Packing a carry-on for a few days can feel like a real headache. Should I bring hiking clothes? Will it be cold? Do I want to go for a swim? And rain – do I need to prepare for that too?
One of the trendiest packing tips on Pinterest right now issudoku packing– smart combinations where 9 garments can give you a whopping 27 different outfits. This week I'm testing the method during a four-day spring trip to Balkan. The goal? Minimize packing, maximize style. With sudoku packing, you only need to pack 6 items in your carry-on luggage– it almost sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?
How does sudoku packing work?
Sudoku packing is a packing method that aims to maximize the number of outfits you can create with a small number of garments, much like a Sudokupuzzle where each box must be filled without repeating numbers. By laying out the clothes in front of you in a sudoku pattern, where each row only has one of each type of clothes, you can easily get an overview of the outfits you have available. Just by following the rows horizontally and vertically you have 6 outfits – a perfect packing for a weekend with hand luggage!
If you are not satisfied with these 6 outfits, you can start following diagonals and corners. The puzzle is simple. A top, a bottom and a layer. In its simple form, all tops fit with all bottoms = 9 outfits. If you add the 3 layers on top of that, you get a whole 27 outfits!
What should I pack?
The principle is to choose garments that can be combined withallother items of clothing, so you can mix and match freely. It should bebasic clothingandcolor coordinated, the little extra can be accessories. It can also benon-iron garments.
What you can bring with you:
- 3 tops (short and long sleeves)
- 3 bottoms (pants, shorts or skirts)
- 3 layers (jackets or cardigans)
The best part is that you fly in one of your outfits, so you only need topack 6 items of clothingin your hand luggage!
My packing for a trip to big cities with sightseeing
I've just finished planning my carry-on luggage. It took a while, but for this trip I packed according to the pictures above:
BOTTOMS
- A pair of beige wide suit trousers
- A pair of wide black pants
- A pair of medium-dark straight jeans
TOPS
- A black long-sleeved merino sweater
- A good quality white t-shirt
- A patterned blouse with short sleeves and ruffles
LAYERS/JACKETS/CARDIGANS
- A beige short blazer/jacket with buttons
- A green cardigan/jacket with buttons
- A black bomber jacket
I will also bring underwear, pajamas, socks, one or two pairs of shoes, a short trench coat, a scarf, a belt and some jewelry. And best of all? The hand luggage will be almost half full, which means extra room for some spring shopping along the way – who says no to that?
What do you think? Have you tried Sudoku packing? Will the above be a good packing for my hand luggage trip? Would you have packed any other clothing?
What a brilliant idea! I'm going to try this with my daughter next week when we go to Palma 🌴 ☀️😎
Great! Haven't tried this but would love to. And will do it on my next trip. I assume if you're going to a big city you'll be traveling in a jacket and then maybe just pack a sweater and a blazer. I was recently in Tenerife and traveled with hand luggage, but I paid for it because it was only allowed to weigh 5 kg on SunClass and the rolling bag weighs almost two kg. I had a perfect 15 l backpack as a "personal item" so I could pack flip-flops and a jacket there, among other things. (A backpack of the ZeekZack model. Expensive but perfect and goes under the seat in front on all planes. I often find shoes tricky to fit.
Many thanks!
Wishing you a nice trip.
Thank you very much! ❤️
Oh, 5kg was a bit stingy as hand luggage! Then you definitely need a soft bag or backpack. Shoes are always the hardest – sandals take up no space, but this time I traveled in ankle boots and brought sneakers with me. A pair of sneakers takes up at least 25% of the space in the bag, so you don't have much to play with. I've looked at ZeekZack, but I usually travel with a camera backpack instead, in case there's a forced check-in of the cabin bag. I don't want to have to check in the technology.
It would be nice to hear if you thought it worked well with Sudoku packing.
Hi Anna-Lena! It worked out great! I actually ended up realizing that I had so many ways to combine the clothes that I didn't use all the clothes but found new combos – and still always felt "newly styled"! So recommended!