Backpacking Fashion: Advice and Reflections on Packing Light
So, it’s November, and I’m eating dinner with my Dad at a particularly bad Thai Sushi fusion spot in my home city, Fort Lauderdale. Our conversation drifts slowly in the empty restaurant as I pick around the Pad Gra Prow in front of me. It’s, like, 9pm on a Wednesday and the tedious days have made our minds slow and heavy. I feel eyes on me from the corner of the room and slowly look up from the ground beef pyramid I'm building. The owner’s gaze pierces through the feverish light, probably watching me strategize the best way to not eat the slop on my plate. I notice that everyone else seemed to realize this place sucks; it’s empty and dead silent. Maybe he had heard me tell my Dad I didn’t like the food. I snap my gaze back to my plate and demolish my pyramid. I start to gather my next bite when my Dad drops a nuke on my mundane universe: “Would you want to backpack England?”
This past June, I had the privilege to embark on quite the adventure- I backpacked England, Scotland, and Ireland. Sort of like a senior trip, a bunch of fellow 18-year-olds from my area got together, courtesy of a bunch of Gen-X parents yapping and coordinating everything in the sort of bar that has dollar bills stapled to the walls, threw everything in big backpacks, and explored the Isles. I knew, quite literally, not a soul that would be joining me in 6x6 hostels in Europe when I showed up to the airport at 6am the day after my high school graduation. Frankly, I knew next to nothing except that I had to get out of Fort Lauderdale somehow. And that I really liked Anthony Bourdain.
After committing, everyone who knew me knew about this trip; I bought and read travel books, rewatched Derry Girls, and listened to way too much Britpop. I was about to get super British (or super Irish, or super Scottish, perhaps.) But before I could swap my nationality for about 18 days, which was very hard to do because I was “The American” wherever we stopped, I had to pack a bag. And as a true bona-fide Fashion Girl, despite all the other very obvious complications that could come with freshly graduated18-year-olds set loose in a foreign country, packing a bag was probably my biggest hurdle for the trip. Besides making sure I didn’t lose my passport.
In this article, I’m going to give you some advice that I hope cannot be found in the average what-to-bring article or TikTok. And I’m also awesome, so, like, read on.
Creating Your Vision
First things first, gather your inspiration. Set your intentions for your adventure: who are you going to be in this new place? There’s a lot of places to pull inspiration from, but I have three recommendations to get you started, inspired by how I prepared for this trip:
Pull from the media set around your destination of choice. The best wardrobes have eclectic references which have nothing directly to do with fashion. Although recreating runway, magazine, or Pinterest looks can be helpful when you have a creative block, there's a certain fantasy in a look that references a story. For example, let’s say you are visiting the oh-so-popular, oh-so-storied, South of France/North of Italy. Pack a polo of some sort, to channel Chalamet as Elio in the 2017 film Call Me By Your Name. Or perhaps something slightly less known- accessorize your Riviera looks with long pendants or throw in a shimmering drop-waste something-or-other in reference to a jazz-age novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tender is the Night. In my case, I pulled from a man making his second cameo in this article, Anthony Bourdain in No Reservations. Masculine, comfortable, and worn pieces that tell the story of a traveler, not a tourist. And as a literature lover, of course I had to include the beloved Jane Austen in my wardrobe. I added some pastels and light feminine touches with the regency era in mind. A pink cashmere sweater and some lace tanks, do you see it? The vision?
Next, learn about the landscape around you. Traveling is about experiencing new environments, among other things. See the scenery, of course. It’s like, besides a narrated walk through the Royal Mile, Rick Steves’s favorite thing to do. Naturally, the correct course of action would be to match your sight-seeing outfit with the sight you are seeing. To bring us back to the universally appreciated French-Italian-Over-Generalized-Mediterranean vibe, I’d pull colors like blues, oranges, yellows, browns, and perhaps a sage green from the geography of the area to start us off. Pops of colors would include magenta, like Italian ice or bougainvillea. To bring us North, across the channel, when I created my capsule wardrobe, I pulled my colors from the earthy, rocky, and foggy scenery in the highlands of Scotland. The worn brick of castles and visions of medieval River Themes guided my color scheme.
Lastly, pull from what you own. Why drop hundreds on a new wardrobe for your escapades abroad when, let’s be real, you are probably going to drop hundreds at your destination. As someone who loves clothing, as I assume most of those reading do, one of my great joys while traveling was collecting clothing at my destination. One of my favorite dresses is a 60’s number from a vintage store in Barcelona, the Scottish got me really good with their wool hats in Edinburgh, and how could I not bring home a baby tee from a tackle shop in Dublin? (It says, “If this shirt’s missing, I’ve gone fishing.” Who could let that go?) For the sake of your bed-ridden college-student wallet, use what you own. And don’t buy a bunch of SHEIN accessories either. When backpacking, you need to have constant and efficient mobility. There’s no space to buy an extra bag halfway through the trip because, friend, the hostel room is the size of a large parking space and there are already 4 triple bunk beds in there. Don’t let the full plastic crochet hats and dangly waist chains that turn you green clog up space. Odds are they won’t last very long anyways. Also, let your closet see the world! Let the clothes from 4 years ago breathe some fresh air! It’s good for the soul.
Practicalities
Once you’ve compiled your inspiration, and you have that sweet vibe clear in your mind, it’s time to make a list. Frankly, before and after backpacking, I’d just throw whatever in a suitcase and figure it out when I got to wherever I was going. Unfortunately, that’s impossible in this situation and generally unadvisable, if you want to have anything to wear.
Now, there’s plenty of lists of what you need to backpack, and different opinions on how much of everything you need, but the most important thing to remember is that you are unique. (Note: If you want to read the author's personal favorite opinions, find Joan Didion's packing list, Anthony Bourdain's Esquire article, or Rick Steves European Packing list) Your style is your own. It’s important to consider what you know you feel comfortable in. That being said, there are some essentials:
Bring a raincoat. Don’t bother with an umbrella, truly. Raincoats are the only way. And, even if you are not of the gorpcore sensibility, they can become an awesome fashion statement. One of the friends I traveled with in the UK brought an awesome lime green TJ Maxx gem that I found so inspiring. Pair that with an English rose in his ear and we’ve got the ideal practical to fantastical ratio for a backpacking look. You can also go simple, as I brought my plain black Northface jacket. Either way, if it’s waterproof, it’ll work.
Bring a consistent and neutral pair of walking shoes. I’m of the hiking boot sensibility, but depending on your plans your pick will vary. The pro of hiking boots is that they’re perfect for uneven and gross city streets and also, you know, hiking. I walked through both SoHo and the Howth Cliffs in my hiking boots. I will add a note on close-toed footwear: The idea is to wear these every day, all day, no matter the itinerary. That’s great and all, until it's about 8pm and everyone's back in a tiny hostel room, tugging and peeling off their socks and shoes. One second, you will be leisurely running through your plans for the next day, and the next you will be absolutely suffocated by the heinous foot smell. My hiking boots could only be described as radioactive after those 18 days. But otherwise, allow me to advocate for the hiking boot. They look super cool. More gorp please!
Finally, a scarf. This is maybe the most essential piece of advice I’ll give you in this article. Disregard all of the other word vomit on this webpage, bring a scarf. Bring a scarf that you love and matches with the color scheme of your wardrobe. People underestimate the power of an oversized cotton square scarf. It’ll be everything and do everything. On your shoulders, keep you warm. On your head, keep you cool. On your waist, hold up your pants. On your chest, if you are adventurous, a cute going-out top. I am emotionally attached to the blue-grey Tory Burch scarf I brought with me. The most necessary item, forget your credit card and your documents. If you have your scarf, all is well. Bring a scarf.
A Reflection on Style
Curating and wearing a capsule wardrobe for my backpacking trip taught me so much about my own style. Traveling in such a way demanded practicality and conciseness of style in a way home or a resort does not. It clarified to me what pieces are truly important; what pieces are my personal fashion load bearing walls, and which are superfluous. Honestly, I still dress like I’m abroad. The pieces that went unnoticed in my closet pre-June became items I reach for weekly. And now they carry stories. Stories from stoops of hostels, from sunrises in Cowgate, and from late night conversations with people worlds away from this little campus in Alabama.
Fashion has always been about storytelling. What you wear reflects who you are, where you’ve been, and who you want to be. Every trip is a story, every bag packed is an outline, a foundation, an exposition. Fold your clothes, your cashmere sweaters, your TJ Maxx raincoats, and your scarves. When you zip-up your packing cubes, when you put on Oasis in the background, when you add pins to a Pinterest board, you aren’t just prepping the practicalities. You are world-building your own life. You are developing a magic system for yourself, creating the art for the storybook that you get to live. A storybook, that for me, started on a mundane day in a bad Thai restaurant in my hometown.
Shortly put, pack well to travel well. It’s like Marie Kondo. “Life truly begins only after you have put the house in order.” she says. Since we are already quoting, perhaps I should return to Tony Bourdain and my case for romanticization. He said once in an Esquire article, “It's good to feel romantic about a destination before you arrive.” I can try to leave you all with some impactful quote from seasoned packers, but perhaps it is most aptly put by the words of, whom most would say is the perfect reference, myself: Look at art, breathe the local air, read books, don’t lose your passport, bring a scarf, tell a story.
Do these things and the trip will be golden.
