No more over-packing.

This post is basically me planning my packing for my upcoming holidays, but I thought I could make it useful. I have always been an over-packer and a 'just in case' person when I pack my clothes, because I never want to feel without when I'm on holiday. Having a capsule wardrobe has helped in this area, because I have put more thought into my style and what goes together, so when I pack I instantly know what I wear all the time and what thing go together so I don't need that random extra top just in case. This is just a fashion packing post, because I can go on for hours about packing which no one wants. I am in no way a packing expert, but I thought I would share my process and simple rules. 


What is your style? First of all I always try to continue what I learnt in 'The Curated Closet' about knowing your own style because if you get that down then everything will fall into place. If you haven't got your style down then not many things are going to go together so you will probably need more items to create an outfit. Cohesive means less I think.

What kind of holiday is it? Another obvious point is think about where you're going because there is no need to back a crop top if you're going to Iceland and you don't need a winter coat in Tenerife. This year I am lucky enough to go to Cornwall and St Andrews so I wont need a bikini but I need to appreciate our random heat waves this month. This is something to think about when you read my list as it may it is a guidline/inspiration especially if your style is different or are going somewhere particularly hot or cold. I also think about what I'm going to be doing while on holiday because this can affect our outfits me than you think. I'll be doing lots of leisurely walking in Cornwall around Nation trust properties and going to the beach which means I need to be comfortable but I don't need to go full D of E practical.
I know it sounds painfully obvious, but think how long you're going for. Think about how often you change outfits in a normal week, because many people won't wear a pair of jeans for one day and then leave them, so why do that on holiday?

Write a list.  Before I go searching for my suitcase in the spare room I will right a list. I usually form it in a day to day style, so I can see what my week will look like. I will write out what particular items I want to take like a certain top or jeans then I will plan my outfits day to day, so I don;t keep adding items endlessly hoping I can make something work when I get there.  I'm not too rigorous with this as the weather can change and I might fancy something different. I wish I can be like my Dad who can pack a few t-shirts and be done.

Leave space. Purely because it means I haven't over packed and I have space for anything I want to buy while I'm there.

So Bon Voyage!

This is a really basic list to start with. It doesn't have to be much more complex though.
Clothing. (For a week)

Underwear/socks/tights

Pyjamas                           
 
Bottoms                                     
Jeans                       
Denim Skirt
Shorts

Tops
2 Light knits

Shirt.
4 tops.
(Mixture of long sleeves and short sleeves)

2 dresses.

Coat

Shoes
Converse
Sandals
'Nice' shoes.

My F Word.

This post comes from two things. I was seriously inspired by the book; 'The F Word' by Lily Pebbles and my best friend. Our female friends are amazing and I don't think that relationship is given enough airtime.

This mostly came from a conversation in Tesco where me and my best friend were buying snacks as usual and she joked about me writing a post about her. We laughed but the idea came came to me that I really wanted to say how much I loved that Lily Pebbles didn't just write about herself or romance, she wrote about something equally as important but is often forgotten about. The idea of a girl group  or having a best friend is clearly seen in books, films and tv shows, but can be put aside to a main romantic plot or if it is the centre theme then it tends to go along the lines of bitchiness and drama. This is not the stereotype good friends deserve. 

I thought I would tell my little story about friendships. I have always loved making friends, because I am so sociable. A friends mum once said I was the most sociable little girl she had ever met which could have been a very polite way of saying talkative, but I'll take it either way. With such a big age gap between me and my siblings I had to make friends because I didn't have a little brother or sister to play with. Mine were adults and had adult things to do, however if you include gentle sibling tormenting as playing, then yes. We played. When they weren't threatening to put me in our water barrel we did have fun. Even though she is my sister, she is basically one of my best friends as well. 

The story is short because I grew up in a village where I went to Pre-school, Primary school the Secondary School. I didn't even change when I did A-Levels, so my friendship group has stayed very similar all my life. I'm still bestfriends with people I knew at Pre-school and I'll be completely honest, I feel so lucky, because, Lily, I could not have survived without you from being cheering me up to keeping my hands warm on the way to school. Through primary school you develop your social skills and learn to spot a true friend and that is a lifelong skill. 

 And at secondary school I found my tribe so to speak. It was The friendship group and still is and it doesn't matter that we have all gone off to uni all over the country, (get ready for the soppy) because it doesn't matter how far away we are, we're still best friends. Gross, I know. However, there is nothing wrong with having different friends as we all have our own hobbies we made friendships through those. Something I have learnt is that there is no point getting jealous about other friends because their friendship does not take away from yours. I have actually made new friends by meeting my bestfriends' other friends. And although we are a solid group you do get the occasional drama, but if you're mature that you can get over it quickly or avoid it all together. Have patience and remind your friends that they are important to you every now and again, because they will always have your back. And friendship is always quality over quantity. At my secondary school there was a massive group of populars as you get at all schools, they thought they were so cool...But I lost count of how many times I over heard them saying horrible things about each other. On social media they appeared to have all the fun at their parties, but I'm pretty sure most of them couldn't stand each other. I'm not going to get into mean girls even though when you're 13 this is the worst thing ever (not to be dramatic), but this is a positive space, but I will say this; I was told that the best revenge is to live well. Just focus on your real friends. 

Starting uni can be challenging for everyone, but you're all in the same boat, so you're all trying to make new friends. I was very lucky to find my best friend on the first night of freshers week. Which makes it sound like a couples 'how they met' story, but here it is anyway. We chatted a little bit then agreed to go shopping the next day. The next day summed up is, we got lost. The first thing I learnt is that she has no sense of direction, so we walked around Sheffield talking for so long. Then we continue to talk when we got home. The conversation flowed for hours and still hasn't stopped one year on through the ups and downs uni has provided. Its amazing to think that someone has you have only known for a few months can be so important to you. But back to my previous point, my older friendships are still just as important.  And as Lily said in her book, the reward of friendship is so much greater than any friendship fall backs. 

So instead of setting girls against each other we should empower each other, because we're better together. Empowered women empower women and that is what we need right now. Its time to step up our game encourage one another, because girl power can help change the world for the better. 

 And I wanted to say thank you to all my friends who put up with me. 

Below I thought I would include some photos which aren't too embarrassing.