Black Silk Tank • Everlane | Grey T-shirt • H&M | Graphic (Joy Division) Tee • PacSun | Floral Print Top • Mango | Black Blouse • H&M | White Blouse • H&M | Long Black Cardigan • H&M | Yellow Sweater • Topshop | Grey Pullover • Uniqlo | Pink Sweater • River Island | Trench Coat • Mango | Dark Denim • H&M | Casual Distressed Denim • Mango | Black Pants • Mango | Black Wrap Dress • Marks and Spencer | Casual Dress • Madewell | Pink Print Scarf • Loft | Black & Grey Scarf • Joe Fresh | Hat • Madewell | Sunglasses • Quay | Grey Slip-ons • Latigo at Free People | Sneakers • Adidas | Booties • Seychelles | Large Purse • Sam Edelman | Crossbody Bag • Foley + Corinna |
Dilemma, dilemma. How the heck do you pack light for one full month (June) in an area that will experience all kinds of weather and varying temperatures? This question was asked of me and my answer is….I have no idea. I can only tell you what kind of things I would bring and my reasoning behind my choices.
I was told that this trip will be covering about 30 days going from London, to Edinburgh, the Highlands, and then through the French countryside. June hasn’t reached peak summer heat yet at this point and while the occasional day may hit a hot temperature, most days should be a comfortable 18-20°C.
A lot can happen in a month and the need for a variety of outfits is important, so the goal is to pack as light as possible but to have enough that you won’t need to wash clothes every couple of days (in case you don’t have access to washing facilities). Enough of a variety that you won’t get bored, but so you also will have an outfit for every need (so you will never have to run out and buy something).
I included several shirts ranging from casual to dressier ones (or can easily be dressed up). A few long sleeves and a cardigan on the days that it is too warm for a jacket but too cool for short sleeves. Several bottoms (2 jeans and one solid black pant). Light casual jeans will get a lot of use, dark jeans are dressed up or casual, and a pair of black pants always looks put together with minimal effort. A light coat is important and I chose a trench because it is extremely versatile, can be rain resistant, and every outfit looks instantly polished with a trench thrown on. I included two dresses but if you feel one and a skirt is a better option than that is what you bring instead. I picked one dressier wrap dress (that can also be made casual with the right pairings), and a loose-fitting casual summer dress. For shoes my choices included one pair of slip-ons, short booties, and sneakers. Then I added a few accessories (scarves, hat, and I would personally bring a watch and maybe one simple necklace) and two bags (one large and one small).
For the colour palette I went with a base of black, grey, white, and pink. I included a bright yellow top for some variety because after a month you might feel too monotonous. I know a lot of people doing the 10×10 challenge on Instagram (check out the #spring10x10 hashtag to see what I am talking about), which is 10 pieces of clothes for 10 days and many decided that they went too neutral with their choices and were craving colour and that is only a week in to the challenge. While I could probably easily skate through a month wearing just black, grey, and white I do know that sometimes I feel bland and unadventurous doing so 😉
Remember that your travel outfit comes out of these pieces. Choose the heavier and bulkier items to pack less. I would probably wear the t-shirt, cardigan, jeans, sneakers, the trench, a scarf, sunnies, and carry the largest purse while packing the rest. Remember to roll everything, rolling works people 😉
Outfit options for this packing list cam be found in this post.
How long do you think you could go with wearing just neutrals before you craved some colour?
If you like this post you can find more packing lists and outfit options in my:
Packing Light Series
What to Wear Options
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