What to pack for......................
 

What to pack for a six week trip to the UK and Paris(3 days) in fall??
I am female and will be doing a lot of walking.
Cheers.

A good starting point would be: 3 or 4 pair of slacks (including the pair you wear on the plane) 2 good pair of walking shoes, 5 - 8 mix/match tops/sweaters that go w/ all of the pants and w/ each other for layering. Something waterproof, socks, gloves, scarves, maybe 4 sets of underwear. Everything else is "gravy". This many garments if mostly mixable will give you about 40-50 outfits. You'll have to wash out underwear every 4 days or less and tops maybe once a week. Probably full scale laundry 3 times in 6 weeks.

Thank you janisj,
It is a real art this mix/match thing.
I think I will have to start from scratch and choose a good color scheme - how does black, white and beige sound? Boring or workable?

I'm going to London/Paris next month for the first time - I had the same question about what to wear - I've got a plan and I will definitely let you know how it works. Just curious: what's your clothing style at home?

Val.

black/white/beige is fine - but me personally - I jazz it up a bit w/ scarve/pashmina in bright colors, maybe a pretty cashmere cardigan in a color that becomes you but also goes w/ black.

You can never go wrong w/ black of course. I only take maybe 1 pair black pants since I am awfully fair and a black/white wardrobe totally washes me out.

Your basic/foundation color doesn't have to be black - just any color that most of the other garments will go w/. But if you already wear/have a lot of black it is an easy choice.

OK...just a suggestion. Have you searched "packing tips" or other variations on this forum on the various search engines?? There are lots of tips and packing ideas and it has been done to death. (I mean that in the best possible way). Lots of great stuff.

Thank you all.
ValCanada,I wear a lot of black to the office and am ready for a change. But it is a good basic color to base a wardrobe on. I have a curvy figure and black hides a lot (of me).
Janisj's colorful accessories are a great idea.
I'm feeling better about this already.

When in the fall will you be going? It can remain fairly warm in London and Paris through mid-late October. The year I lived in London, it seemed as though, on Sept 1, the temperature dropped to about 15-22C and stayed in that range until the end of October. Paris can be a little warmer (at least in September), as high as 27-28C although not usually. November, on the other hand, can be cool (but not usually cold).

I also find that some indoor environments in London and Paris can be very stuffy at time, e.g. metros, restaurants and theatres. So, with all these factors in mind, lightweight layers are absolutely essential.

The core elements of my travel wardrobe in almost all seasons are: (a) twinsets (in cotton or silk); (b) a couple of silk/wool pashmina scarves (around your neck to keep you warm and look stylish, over your shoulders at night when you wear a lightweight dress and as a throw for the plane and in your hotel - I buy mine at Tie Rack); (c) a lightweight zip-up polar fleece jacket in black (can be layered under a lightweight raincoat for warmth and works well even in the city); (d) polar fleece gloves; and (e) a super-lightweight umbrella. (I skip the gloves in summer but everything else gets packed whatever the season.)

I will be going at the begining of September. (Air-fares drop on the 1st)
With all your great ideas, I have worked out a wardrobe. (I put it out on the bed and moved things around a bit)
I will have to buy a pair of shoes and the pashmina - but that is no hardship - and then should be pretty well organised but will still keep looking for something "bright" to spark it up a bit. And if things look a bit worn, will replace them as they become "house-clothes".
Now all I have to plan is where to go, what to see etc. Yipee!!

I'm curious about your trip - is it a tour or are you "doing your own thing?" I've wanted to take an extended trip such as yours, but get stuck planning such a long itin. Anyway, it sounds exciting!

I do mostly what Janisj does, but I prefer to take enough undies for the whole trip. I don't like to handwash them, so I will drop a top or two to fit the undies in (they really don't take that much room).

I tend to like more color than a black, white and one color scheme offers (and it doesn't look that good on me), so I usually do the following:

pants, skirts - brown, khaki, olive, occasionally slate blue
tops - pinks, reds, greens, blues, yellows, browns, etc. that match the pants. If it doesn't match all the pants, it doesn't go.
jackets, sweaters - a couple that are as close of a match to the pants as I can get
shoes - brown

I mix up the combination for each trip so I don't feel like I'm wearing a "travel uniform". I also vary the top styles so there's a different look with each one (i.e., short sleeve button down, knit cami, etc.) and I can layer if needed. If I bring a print, it's only with the tops, so it's easy to mix and match.

An easy way to create a color scheme is to find a print that you really enjoy. Pull the various colors out of it and mix and match using them.

toedtoes,
I love that color scheme brown/khaki/olive. I might get a pashmina with those colors and more, and do as you say, pick the colors out for accessories and tops.
I am being a bit of a kangaroo, jumping around all over the place with this but I just love all these ideas and can see them working.
To baglady,
I have done this before but took all the wrong clothes and too many so had to post 4 boxes of clothes home. It can really ruin your trip if you have to haul a huge bag around full of clothes that are totally unsuitable.
Last time I went on my own for six weeks to the UK. All I did was book my first night in London and my train trip to Edinburgh and I purchased the Great British Heritage Pass. (The GBHS was one of the wisest things I ever did.)I also booked a hire car in Edinburgh and just went were I wanted to go - which was everywhere. I made my way back to London and called a friend of a friend who offered me 3 weeks accommodation in London and the use of his Bently. It was wonderful.
This time I am going with a friend and we will also hire a car etc.
It was the "what to take" and how to pack minimally that was beyond me. No sense of fashion.

Thanks for all the help and I know this trip will be as good as the last only more light weight.
Cheers, sss

With the brown, khaki and olive, just think fall combinations. Burnt orange, burgundy, pink, etc. all look really nice with them and it makes it real easy to mix and match and still have lots of color.

For those reading this thread and considering black/white/beige as a colour scheme, may I just add the following advice?

Keep in mind the stain, wrinkle, crumb and lint factor when choosing your colour scheme. Remember that you might be eating (or having people spill) food on you on planes and trains. I tend to pack heathery or muddy medium-dark colours for bottoms (e.g. charcoal grey, khaki, taupe, dark tan) and scrupulously avoid crisp, polished cottons - because the latter show every wrinkle, crumb and bit of lint. For tops, I pack several black knits (e.g. tshirts, long sleeve ts, dressier twinsets) and some other tops that work with at least two different pants or skirts. I sometimes take one or two tshirts or long sleeve tshirts but avoid light, solid colour woven tops, and avoid taking any really nice white or cream tops (e.g. a white or cream twinset). Overall, try to think, how will this look when I've worn it for four hours on a train and the waiter at the cafe has spilled coffee on it?

I would caution against white - for a few reasons. Obviously it shows the dirt faster and it cannot be washed in the same 'load' as the darker colours. We usually try for an apartment with washing machine or go to a laundromat but with mostly dark colours it is often difficult to get the pale stuff washed - and I end up hand washing it. Happy to wash underwear - and would not take more than a weeks worth but that is personal choice. Also there is less of a 'what colour underwear' problem if you have no white stuff. I usually stick to black, khaki and a dark beige - one dark enough to get tossed in with the dark colours. I usually only take 2 prs shoes - 1 on, 1 off ensuring that one is a comfortable walking shoe - preferably both. I take 3 prs trousers or jeans and about a weeks worth of tops. I tend to take mostly tshirts - more long or short sleeved depending on season - saves on ironing and better for layering. I am not a fan of the 'put a scarf on to change the look' as I don't wear them like that at home and feel a bit of a goose/middle aged (I know the French do it so well!) but am happy enough to look pretty much the same every day - others understandably feel differently. Toiletries are my biggest problem but let's not go there.