Confessions of a Bad Packer

My days of travelling with a poorly designed, oddly "organized" carry-on piece of luggage are over. See ya later, rolling-duffle-that-refuses-to-stand-upright-unless-I-pack-a-physics textbook-in-the-bottom-to-give-it-a-substantial-surface-for-balance. You see, carry-on luggage is not all created equal. I repeat: even at the same-ish dimensions, carry on luggage is not created equal. Some bags are just better - FAR BETTER - than others. 

Unfortunately, my current checked-bag piece of luggage is made by the same company of the aforementioned crummy carry-on and suffers the same issues. I am ready to kick this bag to the curb as well. To be honest, my goal is to be done with checked luggage altogether. Like all of you, I am sick of paying baggage fees to the airlines.

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Confession:
I am a travel agent years into her career who has spent too much time poorly packing for vacation. I do my best to advise my clients in their techniques, but it is difficult to do when my packing skills have suffered for so long. Packing is not my strength. 

I am organized, sometimes overly so, in my personal life. I can procure just about any "lost" item my husband inquires about. My planner looks like a fanciful dream of stickers and color-coded events and activities. My kitchen, bathroom, and office are all neat and tidy. 

But packing is not my strength. I tend to overpack. I tend to pack the wrong things. My type-A personality wants to plan for any possible scenario or weather event we might encounter. (I live in Cleveland. This week we had a day in the 60s and accumulating snow two days later, so I feel my living environment is partly to blame.) 

I am getting better though. 

I have mastered the art of all-inclusive packing. We do this style of vacation more than any other, and after many trips, I feel confident in how to go about this. (Read one of my posts here, regarding a four-night resort stay.) Cruise packing, not so much. There are so many scenarios here, my brain hurts trying to plan for them: pool time, lounging, excursions, smart casual dinners, formal dinners, the ships being cool inside and in the evenings...ugh. 

I am on the road to packing mastery though, and this is largely due to recently acquiring my dream carry-on. eBags (check out their products here) has graciously provided me with a new piece of carry-on luggage and packing cubes, and I am already in love after experimenting with some packing test runs.

As a new proud owner of the TLS Spinner Hybrid Carry-On (in heathered graphite) and the Ultralight Packing Cubes, (in black) I can already see I am well on my way to better packing, and in turn, less stressful traveling. I can't wait to share my full reviews and packing tips with you throughout the spring and this summer.