I just came back from an image consulting conference and learned a thing or two, stuff I'll be blogging about in the near future. Since I'm headed out of town soon, though, one thing in particular was quite interesting to me -- the fact that other people get flummoxed at the prospect of planning two or three days, or a week, or even more! worth of clothes when packing for a trip. Those how-to articles in fashion magazines make it look easy, and perhaps with money to burn on that requisite (but pricey) shahtoosh shawl, yoga pants, and Burberry eyeshades, it is.
For me, it's always confusing and overwhelming. The only thing that keeps me sane is a trick I learned from a friend: creating a spreadsheet with space for every change of outfit, and then filling it in and developing a packing list based on the day-by-day outfit plan. This friend traveled home frequently, so she even listed her standard must-haves at the bottom (cosmetics, workout gear, etc.), so they'd be there as a reminder for each trip, and she'd change the outfits she needed.
At the conference I attended, several consultants showed templates they'd created. The key thing is to make sure to plan for your trip home and to be realistic about the fact that you'll likely want to change clothes for the evening But you won't necessarily need a completely different outfit for each day -- mixing and matching, and handwashing in between if necessary, is great.
I myself have never, ever traveled and wished I'd brought more clothes. Sometimes I find I misjudged in the choices of clothes I brought, but I've never discovered myself to have brought not enough.
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