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Going on vacation? We're on the case

July 25, 2011 09:43

ByJan Shure, Jan Shure

2 min read

In my perfect life there would be a Packing Fairy. She would possess the exquisite taste of a Tom Ford and the ruthlessness of a Mary Portas. She would tip-toe through the window the night before a holiday and as I slept, she would carefully extract all the pieces I need for a perfectly co-ordinated vacation wardrobe together with all the essential toiletries, hair-care, sun-preps and cosmetics. She would fit everything neatly into my suitcase, leaving me to wake, the next day, calm in the knowledge that all I had to do was close my suitcase.

In lieu of a Packing Fairy, I have been trying for years to perfect the art of holiday packing; to ensure that as many items of clothing match as many other items in order to minimise baggage, yet without ever aspiring to that unattainable fantasy a "holiday capsule wardrobe". You know, the sarong, t-shirt, bikini and pair of espadrille that offers sufficient permutations to see you through everything from a trek in the jungle to a wedding. (Okay, not a wedding, but some of the claims for "capsule wardrobes" are almost as ditsy).

And while those of us without a first-class baggage allowance have aspired to efficiency for decades, the ubiquity of budget airlines means that it has now become a necessity.

When it comes to an evening holiday wardrobe, separates offer maximum versatility. Two great pairs of trousers and three tops can provide six different evening combinations, providing the trousers work with all the tops - and we're talking colour and shape, here; there's no point taking wide-leg trousers and skinny ones if they need totally different shape tops. Add a skirt that goes with all the tops, and, (a) you have nine outfits for six garments, and (b) you are very well-coordinated.