The Couture Chronicles

Recently, I have been spending a lot of time in the air, which has given me the opportunity to refine my absolute essential carry on items. By only taking these things I am able to save time, space, and shoulder pain. I have had too many instances where I brought extra stuff I swore I was going to need at some point and ended up never even touching once throughout my entire trip. This list is a my perfect culmination of items that come in handy, not only in the airport, but are versatile enough to be used on almost any trip you take.

• Earbuds/Air pods: a must, music 24/7
• Emergency Minis Kit: gum, tide pen, hair ties, deodorant, makeup wipes, Advil, etc: sometimes you don’t really need these items, but when you do, you’re so grateful you have them
• Jewelry Pouch: I like to keep my valuables with me incase anything gets lost or damaged
• Laptop: Keeps me productive; working on homework, responding to emails, writing…and you can’t check a laptop anyway 🙂
• Highlighter and Pen: Always good to keep on you
• Sunnies: Not only for the obvious reason of sun, but they also help hide the eye bags from the red eye flight , make a great makeshift sleeping mask, and you’re definitely going to need a good pair of shades on any trip
• Water bottle: Hydration Always!
• Hand Sanitizer: Travel is a luxury, but a germ filled one nonetheless
• Hair Clip: Easy for throwing your hair up on the go
• Sleep Mask: if you’re not into the makeshift version with the sunglasses, an actual sleep mask has proved beneficial many times over… on the plane and at the destination!
• Aquaphor: Easiest most versatile way to keep your skin/lips hydrated…especially with it getting so dry while in the air.

Everything else is booted to the suitcase and if it doesn’t fit, then I have to start pairing things down. While most of these items seem obvious, I have experiences where I didn’t intentionally pack them and ended up needing these specific things. Honorable mentions include my makeup bag, books, and film cameras. Those aren’t necessarily essential they are just, in my opinion, better off in your carry on.

Fun fact, it is actually recommended you keep your film in your carry on and ask for separate hand inspection because some X-rays can destroy film rolls; better safe than sorry.