Light packing

...I'm out of here. I love Amsterdam, but it's time to honour my "very fortunate origins", as a friend put it. So, time to pack. Different year, same shit concept. Except this time around I'm cutting all the crap and really challenging myself: 1+ month with only a 10kg carry-on suitcase. Last year, I made a big deal out of packing 'only' 25kg, and then didn't even end up needing all the stuff I brought. This year, I'd rather spend the luggage fees on my holiday instead. And since all I'll be doing is lying in the sun and strolling around, there's no need for much more than bikinis and shorts. That said, some tough decisions had to be made (I have too many summer clothes...).

Here's how packing 10kg for a month-long holiday happens.

1. First, make a list.* **
-about 10 tops (you can do laundry, you know!)
-around 9 bottoms (OK, maybe less -but don't forget a pair of long pants for chilly nights and maybe a skirt)
-dresses: I'm not much of a dress girl, so I only packed one for going out and 2 cover-up dresses for the beach.
-1 denim shirt and 1 cotton sweater for when it gets chilly
-3 bikinis (who needs more? not me) and a hat for the beach. And sunglasses.
-a week's worth of underwear. And I end up wearing my bikini tops as bras most of the time so no need to pack many bras.
-3 pairs of shoes, + flip flops. And then again, I could've done with less, but I'm a shoe girl. Keep in mind that shoes are heavy, though.
-1 canvas bag, 1 small hands-free bag and a big tote for the plane (to cart all my books and my laptop around)
-cotton shorts to be worn with a t-shirt as PJs
-few accessories: I packed a belt and three pairs of earrings.

Of course, I couldn't resist arranging my 'summer capsule wardrobe' by colour on my clothes rack and showing it off -it just makes me happy!*** I think it's a good reflection of what I usually wear: a whole lot of neutrals (black, some white, and shades of grey and sand/brown) and some colour (mainly blue).

2. Here's how you make it fit in your carry-on:
Roll everything tightly and pack it in your suitcase without leaving any empty spaces. If you were planning on taking things that need 3 hours of ironing, forget it... or get your mom to iron it when you get there ;) It's the holidays after all, who wants to worry about wrinkles?

3. Don't use a hundred million different vanity cases and pouches -they take up space and weight. Squeeze the smaller stuff in any gaps left.

4. Most important thing of all: Don't take a huge nécessaire. You can buy your big bottles of shampoo and sunscreen there. If you're a hundred years old and you have a 21-step skin routine, that's another story but leave your 37 hair products at home. As for makeup: take the absolute basics. You won't need much makeup at the beach(!) and anyways you wear less makeup when it's hot. I packed tinted sunscreen, foundation, 2 lipcolours, 1 eyeshadow, 1 eyebrow/eye pencil, eyeliner and mascara.

5. What am I reading this summer, you ask? Voilà. Happy holidays!

* Be ruthless. Do you really think you're gonna wear that? Don't take things 'just in case'. Only take the things you love.
** I love lists, can you tell?
***As does this video in which my friend used my (complete) colour-coded wardrobe as an example of obsessive-compulsive behaviour... oops. Oh well, I think it looks really good actually! :)