If you’ve followed me for a while you know that I love packing with intention both to make getting dressed easier at the destination, but also to endure a more stress-free way of travelling in general. If you’re travelling with a carry-on suitcase only this mindset is extremely helpful, and so today I wanted to loop back to this brilliant and effective packing method that you might remember from one of my videos last year as well. I learned about this way of packing through Jen Bosen, and I’m so grateful for having stumbled upon this no less than genious way to avoid overpacking for pretty much ANY holiday!
The beauty of the method is, that you can alter it to fit your unique needs as well as the length of your trip. So for example, if you’re gone for more than two weeks, simply add a number: 6-5-4-3-2-1 or if you’re only travelling for a few days, you can remove some numbers: 3-2-1. And if you’re confused no need to worry, let’s break it all down so you can nail that minimalist travel capsule once and for all.
The basics of the 5-4-3-2-1 method
Yes, we are yet again spending a part of our summer holiday in Copenhagen – we have lots of family there and also we just really enjoy the city and the atmosphere. We’re a family of 3, soon to be 4, and it’s just a lovely place to spend a holiday as a family. I do have a vlog from our trip last year with lots of tips, things to see, things to do, especially if you’re travelling with kids as well.
Now back to the art of packing a perfect minimalist travel capsule, before I get into what I actually packed, here are the basics of the 5-4-3-2-1 packing method. For a 7-10 day trip you could pack:
- 5 tops
- 4 bottoms
- 3 pairs of shoes
- 2 dresses
- 1 jacket
Now this is just the template I used for this trip, but again the beauty is that you can alter it to fit your requirements. So like mentioned, you can add or remove the number of items in each category if your trip is longer or shorter and also you can change the categories as you please depending on what you normally wear or what you’d need to wear for your specific trip. The cool thing is that you ensure a functional and interchangeable travel capsule which can be dressed up or down in so many ways, which makes getting dressed feel so much more effortless – plus, your suitcase will be neatly packed and potentially cheaper to travel with too, because the total weight will be lower. I also love this was of packing as an experiment to try out a minimalist wardrobe if that’s completely new to you, because nothing pushes your creativity with what you have like a minimalist travel capsule when you only have limited access to your clothing.
How to choose what to pack
I do think it’s important to always think about your style identity and style keywords both when you’re going about your regular day-to-day but also when you’re attending events or travelling. Instead of thinking about the people and the destination in question, think about what it is YOU want to communicate through your clothing choices. What do you want to tell your surroundings about yourself? Of course you need to dress accordingly for the weather but reframing that question from “who and where am I going” to “who am I” is far more intentional and a better way to stay true to your personal style.
So yes, have a look at the weather forecast and be mindful about which activities you can expect during your trip of course to ensure functionality, but don’t forget yourself along the way. I also suggest putting some outfits together beforehand and maybe taking some photos of them to save on your phone, just so you have a convenient library of ideas while you’re away and to make sure what you pack will work together as you envision.
The key to a multi-functional wardrobe is contrasts and tension; so make sure to adopt this way of thinking when you’re packing as well. For instance, if all you have in your wardrobe are basic jeans, t-shirts and sweaters – all pretty one-note and casual – there’s not a lot of styling possibilities there. However, if you throw in for example some dressy shoes, some tailored pieces and some great accessories, you can dress everything up or down as you please. So items that are contrasting in style like casual vs dressy is very helpful in terms of versatility.
What I packed
My style words are soft, minimal and cool – in other words casual and classic with a bit of an edge. These words feel representative of me as a person but they also feel aligned with my life. I’m a toddler mom so functionality and practicality is quite important to me. My life involves a lot of walking, lots of activities, lots of possibilities to get spilled on or in other ways attract stains on my clothing, so these are all things I think about too, also when I’m packing. I want to be comfortable and practical but also stylish, so it’s all about combining the best of both worlds there.
5 tops:
- 1 racerback tanktop
- 1 t-shirt
- 1 denim shirt
- 1 cotton shirt
- 1 sweatshirt
4 bottoms:
- 1 pair of shorts
- 1 pair of leggings
- 1 pair of breezy trousers
- 1 pair of jeans
3 shoes:
- 1 pair of sleek trainers
- 1 pair of running shoes, which are great for longer strolls and walks
- 1 pair of sandals which are comfy enough for day trips but also dressy enough for a dinner night out
2 dresses
- 1 rib dress
- 1 shirt dress
1 jacket
- 1 linen blazer
To me there’s a great balance between my stylewords here; we have lots of soft and casual pieces like the tops, sweatshirt, leggings and sneakers but we do also have those slightly more classic and dressier pieces like the button-down shirts, the sandals, the slightly more elegant rib dress and the blazer. So lots of styling possibilities there really, depending on what we’re doing. For accessories I packed one larger handbag and then one smaller crossbody bag with an interchangeable strap – I love the shorter strap as a way to update the bag and take it from day to night. I also brought all my most-worn jewelry and made sure to pack a few statement pieces as well like a pair of statement earrings, kist to be able to dress up a little more if I wanted to. Finally I packed a cap for bad hair days and a pair of sunnies as well. That’s one thing I’ll add as well, don’t forget the power of accessories because thats another brilliant and easy way to update your outfits with very little effort.
Now, like mentioned in my summer packing video from last year, I don’t follow the method religiously but use it more to give me direction for my main outfits and daily activities; so I do like adding a few extras in there – especially things like sweats, a rain coat and some workout clothes as well. This could also be something like a fleece jacket to wear over my workout clothes, PJ’s, socks/undies and a bathing suit. The trick is though to still keep things on a bare minimum, especially if you do have the option to do a wash or two during your trip so that you don’t end up packing lots of “just in case items” anyway, which is kind of what we’re trying to avoid here.
I feel like the items I packed here and the outfit possibilities I have with just this little travel capsule is perfect for a summer in Copenhagen where the weather might throw some curveballs; one day it can be hot and sunny, the next day it might be cool and rainy, lots of outfits for toddler friendly acvivites like going to a theme park or a playground but also the more stylish looks for the day strolls or even a dinner out somewhere; the rib dress, sandals and blazer combined is a great example of an outfit that could be worn both for day and night.
“Your Copenhagen packing list is spot-on! Love the mix of essentials and stylish pieces for a summer trip. Thanks for the great travel inspiration!”
Hello! Loved your story and packing list. Any chance you can share the brand of the black sandals? I’m traveling to Denmark for 3 weeks in Sept 2024 and would love to find those.
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