Not everyone could or would want to do this but I don't travel with anything electronic. That really lightens the load (no cell phone, ipod, laptop, digital camera, hair dryer, curling iron, adaptors, hot pot, etc. etc.)

And my toiletries and cosmetics are just exactly enough for the length of the trip. Lots of very tiny (1-2oz.) bottles packed in ziplocks.

HI Again...
I Agree with Suze..at least about the hairdryer/flat iron adapter. None of mine worked and they had what I needed in the hotel.
I wish hardcore travelers would realize some of us simply will not wear two pairs of pants 5 times each. Yuck. Just can't do it!! Working toward a reasonable middle ground for an chronic over packer is the goal....Not traveling with a backpack and a convertable pair of capri/pants.
La de dah.
Tina

Just having a chuckle to myself here, as I've been following the "Atheists" thread in the Lounge of late. Packing light is like a religion - if you really believe in it you can't help yourself from trying to convert others!

spcfa: That's a great analogy. On the other hand, the OP did ask for help with her "chronic overpacking," so the proselytizers were invited this time. I think she wanted to be baptized.

Oh boy, I can't follow this thread! ( know Eliza has already left, but here are my thoughts anyways, having just got back from 5 days in NYC, with incredibly varied weather:

- 3 pairs of pants, wear the heaviest on the plane
- 1 lightweight rollable skirt, to dress up in
- 1 pair of capris
- 7-8 tops total, including what you are wearing. One long-sleeved in case it's cool, and one dressy (to wear with the skirt)
- 3 pairs of shoes (one walking shoe, one comfortable day sandal, and one strappy little evening sandal.)
- a silk shawl or wrap to wear if you think it's going to be cool in the evenings
- your oldest underwear, so you can throw it out as you use it
- socks for your walking shoes
- if you have a tiny travel umbrella, take it. Otherwise, just buy an umbrella if you need one.

An iphone / good mobile can be very useful. Mine has a good still and video camera, internet access and it holds key information like emergency numbers for travel insurance and bank/passport insurance etc. It's tiny and so takes no space.

I laugh everytime I read the recs to take your old underwear to toss along the way. What brave and hardy souls!

I travel in my nicest underwear in case I'm caught dead in it.

I'm with you, sap. (Never mind that the weight/bulk of my underwear is of small cocern compared to shoes and pants.)

Actually, I just wad up my thong underwear and jam it into my convertible capri pockets!!LOL
Tina

Or I wear them as headbands!!
Sorry too much coffee.
Tina

There's a LOT of room in between 7 pair of pants for a 7 day trip (our OP) and <traveling with a backpack and a convertable pair of capri/pants>

This person asked for our help, tinabina. The only way to pack light is to be willing to wear your clothes more than once.

Like - why do you need 8 tops for 5 days in NY?!?

true, it is funny what some people do and what others could never do. LIke me -- I could never wash pants in a sink, and I'm not being snarky by saying that -- I literally do not comprehend how people can do that given bathroom sinks are so small. Pants are large, they wouldn't have enough room to swish around and get clean and be rinsed off. If I had pants so thin they could do that, they wouldn't be warm enough, I think. Even my thinner cotton ones are too thick for that. However, I wouldn't wear underwear that was ready to be thrown away. Ugh, I don't wear ratty, ugly underwear with holes in it or worn out elastic (which is what that means to me).

I don't travel with electronics, either, at all (expect an MP3 player and noisecancelling headphones for the flight -- I cannot live without those). I have a book problem, also. I need to read. I won't read random books that others leave behind, as it's usuaally junk (and very few places I've ever stayed at have something like that). My time is too valuable for me to read random books. But I don't take guidebooks, I Xerox the pages I need.

Shoes are very important to me. I think some people just don't care about looking decent at night in restaurants or something, if they travel with only a couple pair of shoes. The shoes I wear all day walking around would look horrible with a skirt, for example. I don't wear "strappy little evening sandals" on vacation for dinner because you invariably have to walk some distance to/from your hotel--blocks or up to a half mile, often. I don't even take such things on vacation. I will take a nicer pair of flats/dressy loafers, as well as a nicer sandal for evening (with a somewhat cushioned sole, but not heels), but it won't be flimsy and little. I also would not travel with just sandals for any occasion (like evening), unless I were going to the tropics. Every time I've been in Paris, even in July and August, there were days when it poured rain and were quite cool, and others when it was hot. I would have been unable to go places if I didn't have several pair of possible shoes in such situations. I will not wear ugly walking shoes that I've had on all day out to dinner.

But everybody has what's important to them. I am not a super light packer like some of these folks, but I'm not terrible, either, I guess. I am always astounded by the number of women who can't exist with an electronic hair flatiron, for example, who post on Fodors. I don't know that many people who even use one, but certainly not every day. Some people at the checkin places at the airport have told me I have done really well compared to many people, and I know I have. I usually take a 25 inch bag which I check, and then a smaller carryon. Sometimes it would be easier to only have a 22 inch, I'm sure, but most of the time, it doesn't really matter.

<i>Pants are large, they wouldn't have enough room to swish around and get clean and be rinsed off. If I had pants so thin they could do that, they wouldn't be warm enough, I think. Even my thinner cotton ones are too thick for that.</i>

They are never Bridget Jones knickers are they??? ;)

Actually silk knickers are light, pack very small and wash and dry very quickly (viz overnight)...and they are definitely sexy ;)

Good one, HK. The meanings lost (or found) in translation can be very funny -- especially twixt Brits & Yanks. Like Christina, I forget that "pants" thing every time.

christina, I'm sort of with you about books -- most of the ones that are left behind are pretty bad -- although sometimes we are desperate enough to read them anyway. And the selections in the English-language bookstores are odd, sometimes. Plus, because we have gone to Italy so many times, we spend time in smaller cities and little towns, where there is no hope of finding books in English. Because I can't spend large amounts of money for a Kindle or IPad (spending to go to Italy is hard enough) right now, I am still struggling with the books issue.

She wasn't talking about washing "knickers" in the hotel sink. Rather people who try to wash out slacks/pants/jeans.

If you can't bear the thought of washing your smalls (or not so smalls) there is often a local laundry / cleaning service available. In any case, it's perfectly possible to wash stuff out in the shower / bath tub. Summer weight trousers dry quickly and if you choose the fabric and style carefully they won't need ironing. I tend not to travel with jeans (denims) as they are far too heavy and if they get wet (e.g in the rain) they stay soggy and uncomfortable for ages. Even at home, I would never wear jeans only once before washing - unless I spilled something on them.

I think what those of you who need a 25" suitcase (for any length of time) don't understand about those of us who can travel for a month with 21" case is that we ENJOY THE CHALLENGE in addition to having an almost religious zealousness about the freedom of light packing. I am a self-admitted travel nerd, who probably thinks about some new way to take weight out of my suitcase as often as a grown man thinks about sex. It's fun for me, and I never feel short-changed or self-pitying about not having the perfect shoes for each outfit or the need to wash anything out at night. I loved being prepared for any variety of contingencies within that small bag. Continuous improvement makes it endlessly interesting. Plus, my husband thinks I'm the coolest female on the planet because of how lightly I pack, how prepared I always am and how fast I can get ready!

I just want my suitcase to be easy enough to get on and off trains. So, lightweight is a necessity for me. And I like to be able to put it in the overhead compartment without expecting help. Help is nice, but I don't depend on it.