Packing Tips for 10 days in Europe - using a carry-on

I wanted to share a few ways I got away with packing for our trip - since I managed to look and feel good most of the time, and I know carrying on can seem like a daunting task when you are traveling for ten days in Europe.

What I wore: 

 

 

 

  

What I Packed: 

3 shoes: sandals, converse sneakers, Toms wedges

3 dresses: daytime and nighttime

4 pairs of pants: Black leggings/Pixie pants, silk drawstring pants, gray jeans, white jeans

5 Layering pieces: black cardigan, denim button down, jean jacket, tweed sweater, trench coat

6 neutral tops

scarves, hats, belts and jewelry

umbrella

cross-body day bag and big tote bag 

I easily fit all of that into my carry-on and honestly felt like I packed just enough without over-doing it and felt well dressed and comfortable for most every occasion.

Most Important Tips:

-You've got to be okay with re-wearing your clothes. My biggest hang up about re-wearing my clothes was the picture aspect. I felt like it would look weird in pictures - but really, no one will notice that except for you.

-Day and night clothes need to become one. The outfit I wore during the day was the outfit I was going to wear at night. I sometimes changed shoes, or maybe added a necklace, but for the most part, there was no changing allowed from day to night.

-3 pairs of shoes and that's it. I brought decent walking sandals that could be dressed up, white converse, and black Toms wedges. 

-1 pajama option only. I brought one nighty that was really light weight and comfortable and just rocked it every night.

-Stick with neutrals. All of your clothes should be able to be worn multiple ways (and times), and if you bring neutrals, it's much easier to play with them. Plus, in France, I felt like I fit in much better wearing blacks, tans, grays and lots of stripes!

-On a trip like this, I just had to commit to not working out. Another pair of gym shoes and all of my workout clothes wouldn't work, so I just had to give it up.

-Bring a lot of outerwear accessories. For me, this meant, lots of scarves, coats, and hats. It was much colder in Paris than I expected, so I was so thankful that I brought 3 different types of scarves, bought one while I was there too.

Don't Bring:

-Fancy clothes: I brought one really nice dress and one really nice blouse and didn't wear either of them. We didn't have plans for a 5 star restaurant, so I should've known better, but I just didn't have the need.

-White jeans:  For us, it was too cold, and I never felt like I wanted to wear white jeans all day traveling. There is just too much walking, riding public transit, and sitting on the ground to be comfortable in white jeans. Total waste of space.

-American Hair Straightener: Brought it, it doesn't work even with an adapter, and I killed it.

-Statement necklaces: I thought for sure I would wear a lot of jewelry, but swap the space out for scarves. Scarves are much lighter, much more versatile, and much more European.

-Evening clutch : No point. I was hauling way too many things; maps, cameras, keys, band-aids, almonds, you name it....and there was no point to switching out my purse every night.