Practical Packing Tips for a 6 Month Adventure

If you are like me, you probably have watched a handful of Youtube videos on how to pack light or how to stuff tons into a tiny suitcase. If that is the case I am assuming you are going on a trip soon? That's SO exciting!

I do admit packing has brought me near anxiety attacks a couple of times. Mainly because I think I have narrowed down my list of items as much as possible and then the suitcase won't even begin to hold the first half of it.

It really all depends on the length of time you will be away from home, your ultimate destination, and how materialistic you are. (Just kidding about this last one but the first two are important factors!) Anyway, having traveled a little myself I will expose my routine of packing for a 6-month adventure. (Again: helpfulness from this article will really depend on your destination and time of travel.)

• I make a sketch of the events I will most likely be attending during those 6 months to make sure those outfits or objects for those particular moments do not go forgotten.

• I particularly like going to Pinterest after this and downloading a checklist, just to refresh my mind on the things I am most likely to forget.

• Then I make a list of the things I use in my day-to-day routine. These are things I cannot think of surviving without for 6 months. Such things are usually skin care products, electronic devices and their chargers, books, journal, etc.

• I evaluate if my destination has the option for shopping and I also make a budget for stuff I could get at my new "home". This way I can safe space in my luggage with things I can get later.

• I have realized that shoes are the most space-consuming objects but so can underwear if not folded properly. This tutorial might help you fold clothes neatly to save more space.

• What I do next is separate everything into categories. Just making little piles of underwear, makeup, shirts, pajamas, etc. And if I still do not have enough room for all then I start making sacrifices by cutting some off, and I do this by thinking practically as to what is really needed and what is more like a preference.

• I bought two suitcases, one was a large suitcase and the other a normal-sized carry-on. Inside the carry-on (which I paid to have checked in) I stored my makeup, skin care, and "hard" objects, and very few clothes. I also tried to get a couple of shoes in there. And the rest of my clothes and only a few "breakables" were stuffed around my clothes in the large suitcase.

• I packed my handbag next, making sure that if I had a few inches of spare space I could at least store a couple of socks in there. This should not be the case if you folded everything neatly and distributed it into piles before actually placing it into the suitcases.

There is not much science to it, you just have to be organized. And the fact that you are going to be away for 6 months does not mean you have to take your whole closet with you. One of my main mistakes was not checking on the weather before I packed and I ended up packing some summer clothes for what turned out to be the winter season in the destination I was going to. Stuff like that can be avoided if you do a little more research than me. But even then I was able to do a pretty decent job, the only thing I could not take with me was my big library but that was kind of obvious that it was not going to happen.

Hope this either helped you or encouraged you.

God loves you,

Dear Ordinary Caro