Tips for traveling light (stylishly) wherever you may roam.

Anyone who has ever tried to haul oversize suitcases along city streets, onto buses and trains, or up the stairs of a subway platform is well acquainted with the less glamorous side of travel. There are the sweat-stains, the fear of being mugged whilst carrying everything you own, the inopportune dropping of documents, and the desperate search for somebody, anybody, to help you carry your baggage up the stairs.

You’ll often hear globetrotters extol the benefits of packing light, priding themselves on the ability to pack only a modest carry on, whether going away for three days or three weeks.

Recently, I’ve come to realize the benefits not only of packing light, but of living light as well. For the past eight months, through different seasons, continents and hemispheres, I’ve lived only with the contents of my trusty Samsonite bag. Other than the few boxes of sentimental paraphernalia currently gathering dust at my parents’ house, I have little else in the way of worldly possessions.

My stint of extended suitcase living – of which there is no end in sight for the foreseeable future – has been a liberating exercise. At home, I’ve always struggled to minimize my belongings, donate the things I don’t need, and only make conscious purchases. On the road, those practices have effortlessly become a requirement of my existence.

While lugging all your belongings on your back is an impressive demonstration of minimalism, it’s a slightly less challenging one when it’s completely acceptable to look, well, like a seasoned backpacker.

Instead, I have appeared to the outside world as a stable member of society, rather than the quasi-transient one that I actually am. Meetings, interviews, weddings, and dinner parties have all been attended in appropriate and stylish, dress. The best part about this has been proving to myself that living with this kind of simplicity is not only possible, it’s preferred. And somehow, my life seems richer for it.

Shopping is rarely on the list of priorities these days, which is a boon for my bank account. When I do buy something, it’s usually of a higher quality, because I buy things less often. The house wares section of stores – the part that sells things like salad bowls, plush bath towels and scented candles – seems humorously irrelevant to me. In short, when the weight of your material possessions can’t exceed 23 kg, it leaves a whole lot of room for everything else in life.

With that said, there are a few tricks to mastering this spartan sense of style. Fortunately, none of them involve Teva sandles or convertible pants.

• Find a good blazer- a fitted jacket can make even the simplest outfit look sharp. A black or navy blazer does triple duty – wear it to a meeting, over a cocktail dress, or with jeans and a t-shirt on a long flight – and no one will suspect you have no permanent address.
• Don’t get attached- Each time I’m about to move on to a new place, I take careful stock of what I’m actually going to use while there. When I realized I probably wasn’t going to need a pair of chunky (and heavy) platforms while exploring Asia and Africa, my roommate in London happily took them off my hands. It’s important to get rid of stuff responsibly though – don’t just throw it away. There are almost always local charity shops, thrift stores, or perhaps even some appreciative locals who might be happy to acquire some of your stuff.
• Neutral, but not boring- Any list of packing tips will stress packing with a neutral color pallet in mind. While this is certainly a prudent tip, dressing in heather gray, beige and black can get pretty boring when you’re doing it for months at a time. I like to collect colorful scarves and sarongs when I’m traveling – my favorite piece being a green patterned sarong I bought on a beach in Kenya – because they add interest to outfits, can be worn in multiple ways, and don’t weigh much. I also try to keep the weight of fabrics in mind: heavy knits like sweaters or denim should be neutral, because they’re worn the most, while color can be added with light items like linen sun dresses and silk tops.
• Think about what you’re accumulating- When you’re traveling or living in new places, it’s natural to want to buy stuff. But the weight of those funky wooden beads you bought from the street hawker or those quirky vintage tins you found in that antique market add up. I once watched a roommate pack and find she had accumulated three times the baggage weight allowance for her flight back to Brazil. Don’t think that just because something is cheap and novel that it’s worth buying.

To be fair, there is some sacrifice involved in suitcase living, missing my French press coffee maker and wishing I had a bicycle are two. However, I’ve found in recent months that what I’m lacking in stuff, I more than make up for in the experiences I’m accumulating.

Luckily, I don’t think the airlines will be limiting the weight of those anytime soon.

Flickr: kthread

Stuff – we all have it. But sometimes, all of the miscellany of life can add up until it feels like a physical weight. After eight moves in eight years, I managed to accumulate a basement full of storage bins that I unquestioningly brought with me to every new home. I found myself buying more and more bins to fill with more and more stuff.

But eventually, all of this stuff became a burden. I began to see myself as a turtle with an obscenely oversized shell that threatened to topple over at any moment. An extra coffee maker, art supplies that I might use “someday”, an unused ironing board, a stereo gathering dust. It’s all too easy to fill a house with things that we use once in a blue moon, if ever – but it’s not so easy to get rid of it.

I didn’t have much choice – I’m downsizing my life dramatically, and all this stuff had to go. Today, half of my belongings are gone and let me tell you, it feels amazing. Here’s how I did it.

1. Make a list of the items you actually use at least once a month. These things are your core possessions, the things you need to live a comfortable and happy life.
2. As you assess each of the items you have left (and there will be many), ask yourself, “Does this contribute to my life in a meaningful way?” Do you love it or need it? Does it have real sentimental value or a legitimate function in your life, or is it just taking up space?
3. Create a “maybe” box and a “no” box. At first, your “maybe” box will be overflowing, but that’s okay. Later on, you’ll get a bit more brutal about deciding what stays and what goes.
4. Let go of your fears about the expectations of others. So Great Aunt Edna gave you a set of tacky gold angel figurines for your birthday five years go, and you think she’s going to be hurt if she doesn’t see it displayed in your home. You know what? Accepting a gift does not mean agreeing to hang on to it for a lifetime.
5. Don’t use stuff as an investment – it’s only worth what other people will pay for it, and you’re paying to store it. A neighbor of mine once had an entire room in his home devoted to Beanie Babies, which were hot sellers in the late ’90s. You know what they’re worth now? Nothing. Only keep stuff like this if it’s in pristine condition and you’re positive that it has collectible value, and in that case, get it appraised and insured. Otherwise, invest your cash and save precious storage space.
6. Analyze your wardrobe. Anything you haven’t worn in at least a year is a goner. If a color or print sticks out like a sore thumb, don’t keep on searching for something that will match. It’s much simpler to stick to a smaller wardrobe of high-quality essentials that can be mixed and matched.
7. Consider whether you will need to use each item at least once a year. Some things, like seasonal décor, make sense to keep – but others can be rented or borrowed on those rare occasions when they’re actually called into action. If you’re on the fence about an item that you feel might be useful at some mythical future date, think about giving it to someone who would get more use out of it.
8. On the other hand, don’t get rid of so much stuff that you’re forced to re-buy most of it within months. It’s easy for some people to get caught up in the spirit of de-cluttering, but you don’t want to merely re-enter the cycle of consumption and cost yourself more money in the long run.
9. Now, divide your cast-offs into four piles: sell, donate, recycle and toss. Your trash box should only contain things that have truly outlived their usefulness and can’t be recycled. Sell items that could fetch any cash on eBay, Craigslist or at a yard sale. Drop off whatever is left at your local charity drive, or find new homes for it at Freecycle.org.
10. Learn from this experience. After witnessing the pitiful pennies that many of my like-new possessions brought in at my yard sale, I now think twice about every new purchase. If you don’t truly need it, it’s a waste of money.

Image: MelvinSchlubman

Living off the grid – are you up for it? It’s an extreme yet liberating lifestyle requiring complete self-reliance for water, energy and resources. Most of us probably aren’t willing to go all the way (armchair off-gridding). Even if your electricity comes from wind or solar, having internet access means you’re on a grid. Perhaps your electric car charged with solar power keeps you off petroleum, but if you drive on managed roads, you’re using the grid, too.

Few of us would ever go completely off the grid – but there are a lot of things we can do to lower our dependence on it. Dave Black’s book Living Off the Grid gives a no-nonsense overview of your off-grid options.

The book begins with a chapter on conservation, for people who are city-bound (and therefore very much grid-bound) and need ideas on how to manage their home and property in energy-efficient ways. For those who have access to land, the next chapters cover shelter, energy, water and waste management. This book is not technically dense and makes for an easy read, especially for the amateur off-gridder.

Although just about every off-grid option imaginable is explained and some basic instruction is given, you’ll need more resources to actually do any of the more complex projects. An appendix of websites will help you find the extra instruction you need. Even if you’re not planning to go all the way, consider this book a well-rounded, frank introduction to the world of self-sustained living.

Image: visualpanic