In real life, the act of arriving at your destination is nowhere near as glamorous as I pictured it growing up. I grew up in the 80s, when everything seemed fancy and the Concorde was still a thing. And of course, I pictured travel as an adult as super fancy, jetsetting to exotic locales on private jets and having the luxury of taking every single pair of shoes, if I wanted. And that’s a lot. Shoes are kind of my thing.
Travel is sadly not like that for me. Not only is the act of getting to the destination a little stressful (anyone else have a fear of flying) but now I also travel with my favorite people, and they also want to take their shoes.
Frankly, it stinks. However, after decades of international travel and a dozen or so years helping other women pack for their travels as a personal stylist, I have learned a thing or two about how to enjoy traveling without a private jet or an entire shoe wardrobe. And it all starts with a travel capsule.
Hundreds of travel capsules later, I still enjoy the process of making the most outfits with the fewest items while still looking chic and stylish for wherever you’re headed.
Today, I am showing you a travel capsule that I created for an old friend and Facebook group member Lara for a casual and fun trip to Italy with her family. It’s chic enough to blend in on the streets of Europe and casual enough to be practical for a family trip. And you can find the entire capsule right here in this catalog.
Naturally, I used my Cluster Concept to build this travel capsule, and it never fails.
The Clusters
This travel capsule consists of two clusters as well as a couple of additional clothing items (dresses and jumpsuits don’t need to fit into the clusters because they are standalone items), shoes, and accessories. Here’s what I chose. (Almost everything is available from Old Navy to keep this simple and affordable).
The Outfits
Since everything in this capsule goes with everything else, this capsule can create dozens of outfits giving you all the versatility you will need for a trip of almost any length. Here are just a few of the possible looks.
When you are systematic and intentional about building a travel capsule rather than packing haphazardly or emotionally, and when you use my cluster concept to create a versatile capsule, you’ll find that you never overpack but are always ready for anything.
Nada Manley says
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it!
Nada Manley says
Hi! Great question! I would recommend packing some pieces with performance fabrics. They tend to wash and dry very easily, resist odor and wrinkling, and they can also be really cute. Every athletic brand has them, so you can find some that suit your budget. It might also be worth it to invest in a pair of travel pants or a travel dress because those tend to be made of the same type of material but they are a little dressier for those times when you might want to dress up a little. I’ll see if I can post some ideas for you in the FB group!
Corina says
Love it! This is perfect!
Debbie says
What are you suggestions for a more “athletic” week vacation in the San Juan Islands in August? I’m always concerned I’ll spill something on a shirt, or it will be too sweaty/stinky to wear again and so tend to overpack for that reason. Thanks for your insights and helpful suggestions!