Dress for (Travel) Success

Part 2 in the Question/Answer series with Mr. Chris Beer...

The inquiry we're addressing today:

How do you choose what to wear when travelling? Do you go for fashionable, or practical, or try a mix of both? Do you find it difficult to dress fashionable in other parts of the world where the sense of fashion is ahead of what we have in North America, or do you just go with whatever and not care whether it's fashionable or not, since you're on vacation anyway?

Travel and fashion, 2 things that should be of instrumental importance in everyone's life! (haha) However it's a shame they don't always go hand in hand.  My general belief is that a couple fancy get-ups are important to have if you're going to a wedding/bachelorette on the road, but otherwise COMFORT IS KEY.

Those Jimmy Choo 4" stilettos may be to die for, but if you're wearing them to climb the Eiffel Tower, you're a tool. (Not to mention you might actually die for them in that case as you go tumbling down the stairs...)  Unless you already know you're going to be driven from door to door and doing very little walking on your trip, start your clothes packing by selecting 2-3 pairs of your most comfortable pairs of shoes and build the rest of your travel wardrobe from there.  Start with the pair of shoes you plan to do most of your walking in, this will likely be a pair of runners, sneakers, comfort shoes etc.  Then consider a pair that can potentially be dressed up a little if required, comfy flats or black loafers/boots.  Depending on the length of the trip you might want to bring a 3rd pair, ie. for a formal event if you're attending one, or sandals/open-toed shoes if you have a range of destinations where some places might be warmer.  Do not bring a new pair of shoes to wear for the first time on a trip, especially if that's the shoe you plan to do your walking in.

Layering options is a good way to build your travel wardrobe.  Current fashion trends are giving us more and more options to layer stylishly.  That Wonder Woman t-shirt of yours is fun & casual on its own with jeans, or with a hoodie over it; a cardigan instead of a hoodie and you're off to pub looking geek-chic; wearing it under a blazer is plenty trendy; and if you happen to forget your pjs it's still comfy enough to sleep in. (I'm not suggesting you wear that t-shirt 5 times btw, ew...  Those are just some options.)  Try to pick items of clothing that will match with multiple things, thus giving you options on the road.  I'm a visual person, so I like to make a list of tops and bottoms I want to bring and play connect the dots to check my choices.  Like so...

The more lines each item connects to the better.  Also when it comes to bottoms, stick with the practical. You'll likely pick up some item of clothing in your travels that you'll want to wear right away, and the majority of the clothing out there is not going to match with your purple acid wash bellbottoms. (Actually that sounds ghastly, if you own a pair of those you should probably burn them)

When it comes to fashion vs. practicality, I think there's a lot out there that can be both.  If your closet doesn't lend to that kind of thinking, then you can always look at your travel research (I think I mention "research, research, research" in every blog I write hehe) to help decide.  Where are you going?  If the daily temperature is going to be -15C then screw fashion and pack your warmest sweaters!  What do you plan to do there?  If all you're going to do is hike through parks, go to museums, and ride rollercoasters then there's not much need for a button-up shirt.  However if you're going to see a musical, check out a fancy restaurant, or go clubbing, you'll need something a little classier than your "I'm with stupid" t-shirt.  I have no patience with ironing so formal events aside, no matter how trendy I get with my wardrobe, you will not find me packing any type of clothing that needs ironing.  You can also take into consideration whether you're likely to do much shopping on your trip, and what kind of things you'll buy.  I've gone to New York City with just the clothes on my back and an empty suitcase before, and I tend to arrive in Hong Kong with very few personal toiletries and accessories because I'll load up when I'm there.

How to keep up with the fashion forward or do you even try?  I guess that's a matter of personal preference.  I do try to keep up with fashion, noting the difference between countries and cities.  Sure it's great if you can grab pieces from the closet that you can rock in Paris, but no one's forcing you to go to Holt Renfrew for a new wardrobe before you depart.  I'll try to bring my most fashion-forward clothes to places like Paris & London (so to appear only one season behind at most ;) ) but some cultures like Japan have such unique styles that there's really no hope of blending in.

I'll leave you with a short point form list of my personal travel clothing essentials:

-clothes that require no ironing

-comfort is key

-I will never leave home without a hoodie

-practical bottoms - blacks and blues

-lots of layering options

-sneakers for walking <3!

-a few key accessories that match with almost everything

-pair of Birkenstocks whenever possible

-pashmina

-solid colour purses (easier to match with clothes than patterns)

-as few jackets as possible (because they're heavy) so pick a versatile one

Happy comfy, stylish travels!