After being a stylist for over sixteens years and spending well over hundreds of thousands of dollars shopping and curating capsule collections and outfits, I want to express how life-changing it is when your entire wardrobe mixes and matches EASILY so you can spend your time where it matters to you.
Remember, these pieces may not be exactly your style, this is meant to inspire you to show you that packing smartly can yield SO many outfits.
Supplement styles and colors accordingly that work for you but use this guide as a formula for easy, stylish outfits.
This travel capsule wardrobe is meant for a 4 or 5 day trip , 70-80 degrees with daytime casual events and a few evening dinners.
Creating a capsule, whether for everyday life or travel is best when choosing a color scheme.
While I typically wear a lot of black, I chose navy for this travel capsule. (Wow, I must be feeling wild!)
Temperatures are warming up our wardrobes are bound to change.
Whether headed on a quick weekend getaway, a vacation or looking for inspiration for your summer capsule wardrobe, here’s how to pack a carry-on for 3-5 days worth of outfits.
Use this blog as a guide and substitute as needed with your own personal style.
Travel Capsule Wardrobe Packing List:
- 3 tops
- 2 dresses
- 2 bottoms
- 3 pairs of shoes
- 3 layers
- Accessories (I always love small scarves because they take up little room but easily add visual interest to any outfit)
- Lounge set (not pictured but great for travel days and also lounging)
The Tops:
In the travel capsule wardrobe:
- a textured or pop of color
- a neutral basic short sleeve or sleeveless
- long sleeve for cooler days
It’s smart to have some neutrals in your travel capsule wardrobe as well as some statement pieces– i.e. one neutral top to go with any bottoms and one colorful or patterned top to build an outfit around.
Remember, you can always add visual interest to your basic pieces with layers, accessories (hello scarves!) and jewelry.
I could even take it one step further and use the white textured top as a vest over the long-sleeve blue and white stripe top.
The Dresses:
As just mentioned above, pattern, color or texture are great ways add more visual intrigue to your outfits.
For dresses, the travel capsule wardrobe includes two:
- pattern/texture/color for day
- a dress you can take from day-to-night (this can be done with fabrication like this silk dress, or colors like metallics, black or navy)
Practical me wants to suggest a navy or black dress (solid) but vacation-fun me wants to suggest a pattern, choose which suits you best.
The Bottoms:
For the bottoms:
- a pair of denim jeans
- easy & airy pants (ahem, an elastic waistband. It is vacation after all (wink).
Both pieces pair well with all three of our tops and can be mixed-and-matched up or down.
The Layers:
Even the addition of ONE layer from your travel capsule wardrobe can create a handful of new outfits!
For a long weekend with warmer temperatures, I suggest bringing three layers–
- a “can be evening” layer ( see grey with sheer sleeve)
- a day jacket (denim, chino, etc), my example is the navy bomber here that was my grandma’s Yvest Saint Laurent
- a linen or similarly lightweight layer
As with the other pieces on this travel capsule wardrobe list, the weight and warmth of your layers will depend on where and when you’re traveling.
Regardless of weather, jackets and scarves/wraps have the potential to transform your outfits AND give you more options while on your trip.
If you’ve got a jacket that buttons up (like a denim jacket) these jackets can be fully buttoned a la Jenna Lyons style and completely transform it’s overall look.
These are the small-but-mighty styling tricks and tips you can use to extend your wardrobe.
With a less-is-more approach, we want to practice creativity and wearing your items in new-to-you ways.
The Footwear:
Shoes, like layers, will depend on where you are traveling, but for a long weekend in a warmer climate, sandals and sneakers are the way to go.
In this warm weather travel capsule, I suggest :
- day-friendly walking sandal (in my example. these would also work well for dinner if you’re walking a distance to dinner)
- a pair of neutral sneakers that can be worn with both your dresses and pants
- a dinner shoe (metallics are an easy way to do this)
Accessories | Odds + Ends
Accessories can entirely transform your outfit, taking a dress from day-to-night or jeans and a top from casual- to-dressy.
Even changing your earrings and adding a silk scarf can make a big impact on your outfit.
Most accessories, too, are small and easy to pack multiples of.
However, you don’t need too many.
The accessories in this travel capsule wardrobe include everyday earrings, two silk scarves, a necklace, and a pair of “fun” statement earrings.
It wouldn’t be a warm weather summer vacation without packing a throw-over-suit dress, a sunhat and sunglasses, a lounge set and, of course, a swimsuit or two.
These are the odds and ends of this travel capsule wardrobe– things that might not contribute to your outfits but things you’ll need to enjoy your long weekend.
Want help with your wardrobe capsule?
Stylist in Your Back Pocket: Text Style Consulting
With this virtual service, you upload your own wardrobe and I’ll capsule it for you and make recommendations as needed.
(Literally click-and-shop convenience!)
Resulting in 20 mix and match outfits.
Shop 5-7 stores at ONE time, with a seamstress service so everything fits and flatters. Lastly, ends with a virtual lookbook so you have stylish, head-to-toe outfits.
See all the outfits at a glance below:
Want help with your wardrobe capsule?
Stylist in Your Back Pocket: Text Style Consulting
With this virtual service, you upload your own wardrobe and I’ll capsule it for you and make recommendations as needed.
(Literally click-and-shop convenience!)
Resulting in 20 mix and match outfits.
Shop 5-7 stores at ONE time, with a seamstress service so everything fits and flatters. Lastly, ends with a virtual lookbook so you have stylish, head-to-toe outfits.
