One Travel Capsule Wardrobe for All Seasons in One Tiny Bag

Packing light sounds great in theory, until you’re staring at a pile of clothes and an airline-approved under-seat bag. Striking the balance between too much and not enough gets easier, the more you experiment and test your boundaries. After a lot of packing practice, I’m finally at the stage where packing has become quick, predictable and truly minimal.

I built a four-season travel capsule wardrobe for a round-the-world solo trip in 2020, all overland, no flying. While Covid and geopolitics put that trip on indefinite hold, I’ve used that same four-season wardrobe template on every trip since. It’s my reliable starting point. I know, wherever I go, I should never need more. I’ll most likely bring less.

I’m sharing the clothing I pack. Your style, climate, or trip might be very different. But, I hope the tips will still be relevant, if you’re looking to lighten your load and secure your pass to baggage freedom.

Wanting to Lighten Your Load? Here’s Where You’ll Find Things

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Building a capsule wardrobe for all seasons

✅Keep it Simple • ➖Less is More • 🎒Baggage Freedom

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What is a Travel Capsule Wardrobe?

So starting with definitions: A travel capsule wardrobe is simply a set of clothes to cover every situation on your trip, from sightseeing to dinner to unexpected weather or whatever else is relevant. The key is cohesion and the ability to combine a small number of pieces to maximise clothing options. It’ll help if your clothing is timeless, compact, has ‘dress up and dress down capabilities’ and reflects your personality. Every item should ‘earn its keep’ by being adaptable, capable of being worn regularly and genuinely useful.

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Benefits of Packing Light

Here’s the four most obvious benefits of packing light:

1 Saves Money

Saying no to all the extras, like baggage fees, is easy when you’ve packed light and don’t feel you’re missing out. While saving money might have been an important motivation at first, now I pack the same, whether I’m saving on airline fees or not. There are other benefits, particularly if you travel point to point, without a car, like I often do.

2 Baggage Freedom

This is the big one for me. You can walk more, worry less, and spend almost no time deciding what to wear each day. You’re ready to go, the moment you leave the plane, train or bus. You’ll be much less focused on getting to and from your accommodation or finding somewhere to dump your bags. And no worries about cobblestones, lifting your bag above your head or stairs either.

If I’m travelling solo, I can’t imagine things any other way. There’s no need to leave anything unattended, locked up or guarded by some random stranger. And if your bag is the size of a daypack, you’re much less likely to draw attention to yourself as a tourist.

3 Easier to Keep Track of Your Things

Fewer things mean it’s easier to account for them. When you unpack and repack, everything has its place and there’s less chance of losing things or leaving them behind.

4 Simple Packing and Unpacking

Using the same base list saves so much effort when packing and preparing for a trip. Light packing makes unpacking at the end of the trip easy too. One small load straight into the washing machine on returning home. That’s it. No large piles to launder, sort through, put away or feel guilty about leaving till later.

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My ‘Round the World’ Travel Capsule Wardrobe

I’m often asked: “How do you pack so light?” So here’s the detail on the clothing element, which for most of us, is the largest part. For everything else, check here.

Do treat my clothing items as examples, not an instruction. I’m neither a fashion icon, nor the fashion police. Frankly, there’s enough advice on the internet already, telling women what to wear, so no need for me to add to it. Your style may be very different to mine.

As far as the individual pieces go, while I’ve put some links in, there’s nothing here, I love so much I wouldn’t travel without. The same isn’t true of the other items I pack, like my toiletries, tech and other miscellaneous items, where I’m far more particular.

Top Row – Ripskirt Sun Dress Long, White Stuff Nelly Notch Top, M&S Merino Waistcoat / Top, Merino blend reversible T-shirt, Navy Jacket, scarf, Decathlon Merino Hat, Packable Bucket Hat, Coolnet Buff , Decathlon Touchscreen Glove, Middle Row – Ruched V Neck long sleeve top, Crew Neck Long Sleeve top, Jersey Button Down Shirt, White/Natural Down Jacket, Elastic Gold Buckle Dress Belt, Rieker Navy Zip Boots, Fjallraven HighCoast Foldsack Bottom Row – Convertible Footed/Footless Tights, Black Reversible Merino Dress, Packaway Trousers (zip off), Kiwi Pro Walking Trousers, M&S Cotton Rich Trousers, Packable Rain Jacket, 1.5L Fjallraven High Coast waist pack

Here’s a list:

The colour scheme is personal to me, suiting my pale hair and skin tone. While individual pieces may change, every so often, the formula stays very much the same.

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Options for Different Weather and Activities

With 12 core pieces, excluding puffy jacket and rain jacket, 2 pairs of shoes, plus accessories, the potential permutations for clothing combinations are endless. Here’s some specifics on how the capsule works for different weather and activities.

Hot and Cold Weather

There’s enough in this capsule to make at least 14 outfits for hot weather and another 14 outfits for cold weather, so that’s plenty for me. There’s no big thick bulky clothes. The key to keeping warm in colder weather, when packing light: layers.

Here are some typical holiday activities I like to be prepared for.

Hiking

The walking boots are from a regular shoe brand, not an outdoor adventure brand. But with ample tread, ankle support and other technical features they are a good hybrid solution, for the trail, the city and smarter occasions.. And definitely more practical than trying to hike in sneakers or other shoes or bringing separate hiking boots.

There’s a pair of technical/ hiking trousers / pants. Plain, with no extra zips, no loud logo or leg pockets and no shiny plasticky finish, (all giveaways for technical trousers). So they work for city trips and smarter wear too.

I have merino layers, buff, gloves, rain jacket and puffy jacket. My backpack is built for comfort with good shoulder straps, sternum straps and waist straps plus padded back and excellent weather protection. As a top loader, it’s a better design for hiking and daypack use than the rectangular clamshell opening travel packs. The fold over top means the capacity is adjustable too.

So for walks and hikes, I am suitably equipped from head to toe, for my skill level.

Smart Events and Work Travel

No separate clothing solely for smart events, just choices which can look smart. With 2 dresses, shoes as well as boots, smarter tops, trousers, a jacket plus a belt, there are options. I’ve worked away frequently. I’m accustomed to dropping a packing cube and wash bag in my laptop bag to turn it into a travel bag, then extending my work trip for leisure purposes. For me, it’s totally normal.

Exercise

So lycra tops and leggings aren’t my style. But my boots, stretchy trousers or shorts and a T-shirt serve the same purpose perfectly well. I may have missed the brief on what’s in fashion on the gym circuit. But honestly? I really don’t care!

Swimming

With a suitable bra top and shorts, which do ‘double duty’, I have no need for dedicated swimwear, particularly if swimming is something I do on the off-chance, rather than a significant part of the trip. I stopped bringing dedicated water shoes for occasional use, when I realised most shoes survive water, especially if you rinse the salt off them afterwards.

Obviously if I was to go on a dedicated beach holiday, I would bring dedicated swimwear and flip-flops, but I’m not a sunbather. I’m far too pale and get bored easily. I’d rather be exploring.

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15 Tips To Bring Fewer Clothes

The most important thing is to bring clothing you like to wear. If they’re not your style, you won’t enjoy wearing them. If you’re going to be living with limited choices, they’d better be good ones.

Here are some tips I find help me pack more minimally.

1 Choose Mix-and-Match Outfits

The aim is not to think in outfits, but to know you can mix and match clothing items to give you options. Sticking to a consistent complementary colour palette may help, unless you like wearing clashing prints and colours. A few neutral pieces, possibly paired with an accent colour and wardrobe basics is a popular way to go.

2 Count your Items

Your ‘number’ may be different to mine, but the great thing about fixing the number of items you bring is it forces you to choose between items and not to add more. I’ve picked the number 33. That’s the total for everything, including my bag. Here are some numbers which might be helpful for you. Or just make one up and set yourself a challenge!

• 5-4-3-2-1 method (choose a clothing category for each number and stick to it)
• 3x3x3 system (3 tops, 3 bottoms, 3 layers).

3 Pack for a Week, Wash and Repeat

Bring laundry sheets (these work for both handwashing and machines) or use. hotel soap/shampoo for handwashing. If you have enough clothes for a week, you can, in theory, travel indefinitely, if you do laundry once a week. Spend a few minutes hand-washing underwear every night and maybe something else. That will reduce the multiples of underwear you need to bring, reduce the amount of dirty clothes accumulating and extend the time between laundry visits.

4 Limit Your Shoes

These take up space. For me two is enough. One pair worn and one pair packed (if needed). Good walking shoes are essential.

5 Weigh Every Item

f you’re torn between two items, weigh them and choose the lighter one. My clothes (excluding travel day outfit) tend to weigh between 1.5Kg and 2.8Kg (for the full 4 season list) and I’m not a size XS.

6 Wear Your Heaviest Items on Travel Days

Straight forward. If you wear it, you don’t have to pack it.

7 Choose Streamlined Styles and Lighter Fabrics

Lightweight, easy care, crease-resistant fabrics are your travel friend. Your travel wardrobe doesn’t have to be full of technical fabrics and specific travel clothes, but a few pieces sprinkled in may help. The fabrics I avoid are cotton because it can be heavy and it takes a long time to dry and linen because it creases. For a cotton like fabric, rayon can be a lighter alternative.

You can keep the styles of clothes you like to wear, but try and find them in a lighter, more travel friendly fabric. So switch a denim jacket, for one in a similar style with some polyester in it.

If you avoid bulky silhouettes such as wide sleeves, floaty hems, and oversized items, your clothes will pack smaller. A-line skirts, slimmer trousers, and sleeveless dresses, that layer easily, are more packable.

8 Consider Merino

Ultrafine, thermo-regulating, and antimicrobial, merino wool can keep you cool when it’s hot and warm when it’s cold. It shouldn’t smell if worn on multiple days, especially if it’s aired overnight. A favourite for light packers, especially on multi-season trips. I love my merino clothes, but I only buy from more ethical sources, that’s wool from sheep on farms which are certified ‘mulesing free’.

Personally I prefer merino blends (mixed with a small percentage of nylon), rather than 100% wool. The blends are more robust and easier to care for. They have a smoother feel, a subtle sheen which looks elevated and they are less likely to be itchy. Not cheap, but I rate Wool&

9 Choose Versatile Pieces

For example:

• A button down shirts can be worn on its own, on top of another layer or underneath one. It can be smarter than a T-shirt buttoned up, but casual too.
• Other examples are reversible items, swimwear which doubles as underwear and zip off trousers
• A buff works as a neck protector (heat or cold), an extra beanie (twist in the middle, and put one half inside the other), hairband, eye mask, face mask, ear covers, hair tie, head covering/scarf (eg for mosque or church). Particularly versatile.

10 Layer Up

To keep you warm and avoid packing heavy items. Here are some examples:

• Tops – A summer short sleeve top can work as a vest under a long sleeve layer or (several), to keep you warmer
• Jackets – A thinner summer jacket, a puffy jacket and a waterproof jacket can be layered on top of each other
• Tights – can be worn under trousers, and trousers can even be layered on top of each other.

11 Check the Weather

A caveat here, don’t go on holiday without a jacket or warm layer. The weather forecast is not reliable and, if nothing else, air con can be freezing.

12 Make a Plan and Don’t Pack in a Rush

Laying everything out before packing helps you spot overlaps and see outfit combinations. Avoid packing last-minute as items added late on, with less thought, often turn out to be bad or unnecessary choices.

13 Do a Post Trip Review

When you return, review the clothes you wore. Which items were worn on repeat? And which items came back unworn? Make a note and adjust for next time.

14 Remember the ‘spotlight effect’

People notice your specific clothes way less than you think they do. Wear a smile and a positive attitude, that’s what you will be remembered for and concentrate on making memories based on experiences, not what you wear It’s unlikely people ‘on holiday’ will notice any wardrobe repeating. And if they do, does it matter?

15 Pack for you, not an in imaginary version of yourself

Pick clothes you feel comfortable in and suit your style and don’t pack someone else’s wardrobe or for an imaginary version of yourself. If you only ever wear ‘comfies’ at home, will you really ‘go glam’ when on holiday? Unless the climate on your trip is going to be vastly different to the one you have at home, then there’s no need to overthink it.

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If you got this far, I hope these thoughts on packing clothes are useful to you. I’m passionate about packing less because I know baggage freedom is transformational. And once you’ve mastered it, there’s no going back.

And for the next steps, here’s my minimalist toiletry kit, a minimalist tech list plus some small mini but mighty, travel accessories and a pouch of ‘just in case’ items which may be of interest you.

How do you like to travel? Do you aspire to bring less? Let me know in the comments.

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