Worth repeating: Packing light is worth the effort

8 December 2016

Packing light can be more effort but it's worth it

I’m in the midst of my annual December trip to visit family in Washington state. I wrote this post in January 2015, after circumstances required me to travel light on this trip two years ago. I realized in looking at the post this morning that I didn’t think twice about packing just a carry-on-sized bag for my nine-day trip. Since I’m in the midst of Project 333 and have only about 33 items of clothing from which to choose, it was a no brainer. Traveling is a great time to experiment with getting by with fewer clothes.

In early December I traveled to Washington state to visit my parents just days after I broke my wrist. I blogged then that I would have to simplify my travel taking the bare minimum number of items so that I could lift my suitcase with one hand. Since I also couldn’t fasten pants with a zipper, the number of clothing items I could take was limited anyway.

I really liked packing light. It had a number of advantages:

My light suitcase made travel easier
It was easy to carry my suitcase up the stairs at my host’s house
Fewer choices for what to wear made dressing easier
Unpacking took less time

Now I’m planning another trip to visit my parents, which is being tacked on to a trip to a genealogy conference. I’m a convert to packing light, but I also want to look good at my conference. That feels like a much bigger challenge.

I know I can do it, since my wardrobe is comprised of mix-and-match neutral separates (thanks to personal style coaching from my friend, Geralin Thomas). It’s going to take a little more effort as I plan what to pack. It’s much easier to just throw items into a suitcase just in case I might need them. But doing some planning and mindful packing before I leave will make my entire trip easier.

It seems ironic to me that packing light is can be more work than packing heavy. But I think it’s worth the effort.

Photo by Camilo Rueda Lopez via Flickr.

Tagged with: simplicity, travel, worth repeating