minimal packing list for a long weekend in southern california
Greetings from Southern California! Brandon and I headed out of town and into the sunshine of Orange County for the weekend to see some friends of ours get married. Real life awaits us at home as we plan to move soon so we're taking this trip as chance to unplug and play a little tourist!
You guys have asked to see how I'd pack for a weekend getaway with items from my capsule wardrobe and I'm stoked I finally get a chance to share a packing guide!
HOW I PLAN
1. Check the weather and your plans
First things first, I check the weather. And then I check it again and again as the travel date approaches. This helps gives me a rough idea of the kinds of clothes I'll need. It might be cold, gray and rainy in Sacramento, but the forecast for Fullerton is mostly sunny with highs in the upper 70s.
Equally important to consider is what you'll be doing on your trip and how you're traveling. We're roadtripping down to Southern California and have an outdoor wedding to attend. But other than that we'll probably fill our time with a coffee shop visit or two, a meal somewhere cool, and hopefully a quick trip to the beach or some other bit of nature.
2. Brainstorm
My next step is to make a quick brain dump list of clothes I might want to bring. I don't think too hard here: I might list some specific pieces or use a general term like "casual dress" and I rarely take more than five minutes to do this.
3. Pare it down
I'm an over-packer by default. I like to have options. However, I'm not a fan of the reality of over-packing, having to dig through the things I knew I probably wouldn't wear in order to reach what I do want to wear and making sure I don't leave anything behind when I head home. I've learned to simplify by taking pieces that can be mostly worn with each other. I get the best of both worlds: options and fewer things to pack!
MY PACKING LIST
Orange County will be significantly warmer than Sacramento this weekend, so I broke out some of my warm weather clothes plus some items I got for Christmas that I haven't shared on the blog yet. Here's a quick breakdown of my packing list.
v neck tee from Madewell (sold out), this season's green | boxy sweater from Madewell | stripe crew neck tee from Project Social T (old), similar
hi rise jeans from Madewell (old), similar | black leggings from Isabel Maternity | stripe t shirt dress (old), similar
green wrap dress from Urban Outfitters (sold out), same dress, different color | cardigan from Madewell | leather jacket from Madewell, similar for less
heeled booties from Lucky Brand | braid sandals (old), similar | sneakers from Vans
That's it for clothes! You can see I kept it pretty minimal. I'm not even sure I'll wear the jeans but they're there in case I get chilly. Head to Instagram if you want to see what we get up to!
