3 pairs of shoes, 1 tiny tote bag: How to pack luggage efficiently

As mentioned in last week’s post about the iGrill, Memorial Day—thus, summertime—is just about upon us. With the kids out of school and the climate luring us from beneath our down comforters and out our doors, summertime is peak season for a lot of people’s favorite pastimes: vacations!Almost everyone has at least one (if not several) fond memories of vacations from childhood to present. My most memorable ones from my wee days were of road trips to southern California to visit family. I grew up an only child, so my cousins were the closest thing I had to siblings. We would hang blankets from the top bunk and force the youngest to go through our “haunted house.” We’d play with Barbie dolls or lip sync and dance to the VHS tape of Madonna’s Like A Virgin tour. In my adulthood, some favorite vacations include my backpacking through western Europe the summer after I graduated college, our honeymoon to Paris and Barcelona, and my two trips to Japan. If backpacking has taught me anything, it’s how to pack light and efficiently.Nowadays, I travel so often for work that packing well has taken on new meaning. A couple of weeks ago, I made a 24-hour trip to Dallas for the Reading and Radio Resource Sushi, Sake, and Samurai event. As my title denotes, yes, I really did pack three pairs of shoes (and two outfits, pajamas, toiletries, not to mention the unmentionables) into one tiny Tumi tote.I hate to overpack, especially now that I’m vision impaired: the less things I take along, the less things I’m likely to lose. And all the better if everything is tucked away neatly in its own space within manageably sized bags. Ever since traveling has become such a frequent part of my life, I’ve been a little obsessed with luggage. (The hubs would say “a lot obsessed.”) I’m always on the lookout for suitcase sales (just bought a set of carry-on roller and check-in suitcase at Costco for $150); weekend, overnight, and tote bags with lots of pockets to stash snacks, zippers to contain contents, and made of light material; and smaller bags to put within bigger bags that can hold toiletries, cosmetics, shoes, underwear, dirty laundry, etc.But how do I get all of these things into one bag or suitcase? Apparently, I’m also the collector of efficient packing methods. My latest thing is to use the bundle wrap method, which utilizes space most efficiently while incurring the least wrinkles to your clothing. This One Bag website is a great place to start if you plan to travel this summer and want to know how to make the most of your packing technique. There’s just something satisfying about being able to fit everything you need into manageable luggage. It’s like you’ve conquered the duffel dilemma.Read this article from One Bag about how to pack efficiently using the bundle wrapping method, and streamline your next vacation prep.What are some of your favorite vacation memories? Where do you plan to go this summer? How do you pack? Are you like me who is all about organization, or like my hubs who throws everything into a bag and is done with it? Do you strategize your different outfits to make sure you can mix and match the tops, bottoms, and shoes you plan to bring along (me)? Or do you pack so quickly, you often forget a belt and end up tugging at your belt loops all the time (him)? Have you applied bundle wrapping? What are some good tips for efficient packing? I admit I could still learn a lot about efficient packing, plus I’m about to do four back-to-back trips that will take me to varying climates, so any advice on packing or just general travel tips would be helpful.