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Confessions of an ex-Elle Magazine fashion intern, stylist, pageant girl, current fashion designer and proclaimed fashaholic.

So this is a blog I’ve wanted to do for a while now but I wasn’t sure if it fit in with my normal “type of blog”.  However, after careful consideration I have realized that it does.  My blog is about inspiration, in all ways and for any kind of day.  I don’t know about you but I get so inspired when I pack. I am essentially creating the canvas for my future vacation, fashion shows, photo shoots or just weekend getaways.   I am painting the scene for the essence of what I want to feel on my trips.  As with anything, especially for me – fashion is a way of expression.  Style is the first thing you say, before you open your mouth.

So if you are like me and you know what it is that you want to convey, why not seize the opportunity.  The worst thing for a fashionistas on a getaway is not having the right thing to wear.  Yes of course there could be worse things (God forbid) but I’m talking fashion baby, have some perspective.

1) Saving time:  All of us fashionistas have limited time right? We are busy conquering the day, ruling our world, getting things done and of course multi tasking.  So when a vacation or travel opportunity arises we must take mental action first to avoid unnecessary hours of standing over our empty suitcase biting our nails and pacing back and forth to our closet, dresser, armoire and back. Take a mental note of your closet and think about the stand-out items you should bring for maximum instagraming exposure (or wow factor if you don’t gram).

2) Write it out / Make a grid: Take a blank computer sheet of paper and a pen.  Turn the paper horizontally. Divide your trip (or trips if you have multiple traveling in a short period of time to avoid duplicating outfits) into sections on the page and/or by day by creating vertical lines in between each trip. Then label the trip and/or day at the top of each section.

On the left hand side make a column labeled as so:

Like I said – this blog is for the hard-core fashionistas – if you don’t need all of these categories simply omit them.

*This sounds like a lot of work but it should take you less than a minute to make the grid and it will save you A LOT of time packing and packing to go home.

Where it says Day, Beach/Pool, Night… etc. That is where to write your outfit.  I sometimes write in options like adding great separates if I am not sure what to wear.  Things like adding a few tank tops and mix-and-match skirts and shorts will be great for whipping up an extra outfit if you have a fashion emergency. You can go as far as adding days of the week (Fri, Sat, Sun) or events (Concert night, Dinner at YUCA, Casual night, pool party with the girls) to each day.

3) Plan it out:  After you filled in some of your outfits mentally, now it’s time to take it to your closet. Take your list and pen to your wardrobe and fill in the missing days. Pull out clothes, jewelry, shoes and bags that you plan to wear. Lay them out as an outfit on your bed or a space that you have so you can visually look it over all together.  I like to visually see my outfits to notice if some colors are too similar from day to day and if I am wearing anything in a pattern. I try to mix things up and I’m sure you do too, so switch up elements if any are repeating to make a unique and fun look to look great every day of your vacay.

4) Try it on:  Now is the fun part. Ladies make sure you do this earlier on in the day so you feel your best and not after you just ate.  This will make sure  you have a level head, feel good about your body and are not super critical of how you look when you try things on.

Play in the mirror by swapping out shoes, bags and accessories. If you are traveling light choose nude, metallic or black shoes that go with multiple looks.  If you want to have a full on haute look, go for bold and tailor bright punchy shoes to each specific outfit.  Just beware this is what really adds weight to your suitcase.  Make sure you have a backup carry-on that you can add shoes to if you are flying and your luggage is over weight or a strong handsome man to help you carry your gear!

Once you decide on an outfit write it into your grid.  This will be very helpful to look back on later when you are on your vacation and don’t know what to wear or when you are packing to return home and want to account for everything.

*Also try to throw in a sweater, a maxi dress or pair of jeans for unexpected chilly nights. You will be grateful you did and you won’t be stuck freezing in the airport, at night on the beach or in your boyfriends oversized button down at a nice dinner.

5) Group and organize:  I have a very expensive shoe and accessory collection so I like to make sure I keep track of everything I take. This was a habit instilled in me early on from my Elle Magazine days and days of doing my fashion shows. The merchandise (whether borrowed for magazines, from other designers for your fashion show or specifically YOUR OWN STUFF) needs to be accounted for and properly protected in your suitcase.  You don’t want to forget or damage anything while travelling.

I put each pair of shoes in a dust bag and pack them first by lining the bottom of the suitcase with them.  If the shoes are really delicate with crystals or materials that would get ruined if each shoe rubbed together, then I put the shoes into separate dust bags, one for each shoe. For undergarments and swimsuits I put those in large dust bags as well. This way when you are rushing to get to your tropical dinner you don’t have to search your whole suit case for the nude seamless panties that will go under your white dress. Instead you just have to find the undies dust bag! Genius!

For jewelry, use the jewelry pouch you have gotten with gifts or when you purchased the piece. Add a few to the same pouch if they will not damage each other. Grab a hard box from one of your shopping excursions (I use a round bracelet box from Henri Bendel or a square necklace box from Bloomies) to put all your jewelry pouches in. This hard and durable box will make sure nothing gets scratched, cracked or damaged if your suitcase gets thrown around by TSA.

The other packing tips are obvious, use plastic bags for all bathroom toiletries, separate items per usage (hair, teeth, skincare etc.).  Use makeup bags for makeup and pack soft clothes around anything that could get broken or squashed (This includes hairspray or other pressurized beauty products).

Go back over your list and circle all your shoe options and draw a box  around all your purses. This way when packing to go or return home you can easily identify how many pairs of shoes and bags you are bringing and count them to make sure none are still at home or in the closet of your hotel suite!

Add the devices you will be taking like laptop, ipad, kindle, multiple smartphones, etc to your list.  Charge them all the day before and don’t forget to pack all the chargers.

Last but not least, ALWAYS lock your luggage with a TSA lock, even if you are not flying. The TSA will be able to open it with a key if necessary and you will never, ever (knock on wood) have to deal with finding your suitcase opened with all of your valuables flying out of it on the luggage carousel, or worse with anything stolen.  Even if you are not flying, the TSA lock is still very crucial and handy to secure your fabulous garb. It is a simple combination lock that will keep your glamorous wardrobe and expensive or sentimental accessories safe while leaving your luggage with the bell hop, and even safe from housekeeping when you leave your room for the day or night.

6) Keep your list: When you are done packing, place your list into to the suitcase on top of everything or on the front of the mesh pocket in the top flap when you open the luggage. Some nights away you just don’t feel like wearing the outfit you planned, so look to your list for other options you wrote up.  If you don’t remember what you planned to wear, just look it up and save yourself the headache of looking through your entire luggage to find something to wear.

Yes this whole process may seem tedious but I’m telling you it is tried and true straight from the lips of many professional stylists and from my experience. It will save you so much time on vacation getting ready and so many headaches keeping track of all your belongings – while maximizing your best wardrobe looks on vacation. Try this out and you will be stress free and photo ready all the time.

7) No redo’s: Once you plan, don’t look back. This is why I mentioned adding extra options and mix-and-match pieces.  You should have everything you need to make it work.  It really sucks to feel like crapola on a trip and have to put on a tight sexy dress when you are not feeling sexy. Having a care free and loose summer dress or a great high-waisted black skirt and a tank with sparkly flat sandals will help you feel more comfortable if you want or need to be.

8) Just wing it: After all of this planning, it doesn’t matter what you wear if you don’t feel good in it.  I have had many trips where, like I said you don’t feel sexy and don’t want to wear the bombshell tight dress no matter how good others say you look in it.  I’ve even had trips where I didn’t realized how dressed up everyone else would be (who me) and wanted to get more creative with my outfit. Pulling something together and going with your mood is a great luxury of planning out all of your outfits with options. There is a high probability of having way more gear than you need so you can go with the flow and just wing it when you want to stray from the plan.  Remember, (men if you are still reading this) it is a woman’s prerogative to change her mind, as many times as she wants.

Trust yourself and dress for what makes you feel good.  Travel is fun and a great way to express yourself so don’t take it too seriously but definitely plan to be polished!

Hope that inspires you on your next getaway!
xoxo

Emily