As a writer who focuses mostly on travel and is currently planning a spring break in Italy and Iceland, I had to pack so much hand things throughout my career. I hate checking bags, so I’ve always flown with just a backpack and a carry-on. A long time ago, I learned the rolling method of packing, where you roll everything piece by piece and pack like that — it helped me become a master at traveling without a lot of luggage. But I recently discovered onebag.com’s “packing” method. I’m always looking for ways to streamline and consolidate my packing process, so I knew I had to try it.
The bundling method involves wrapping your clothing around a central core. Everything is wrapped one at a time over the core, so it gets bigger as you add more clothes. The goal is to avoid the creases that inevitably appear when you put folded clothes in your carry-on. It’s also meant to reduce creasing as the bundle is anchored in your luggage so it doesn’t move.
I hate both bends and ironing, so I tried it. First, I packed my carry-on in my usual rolling way to see how much space I needed. Then I unpacked and repackaged using the bundle wrapping method.
The method has few processes. First, you choose your base item. It should be something that is firm but still somewhat soft and measures about 11 x 16 inches. Fill it with soft, small items like socks and underwear. I used my iPad case.
Put your core to the side, then grab whatever clothes you plan to take with you. On a large flat surface like a bed or table, lay your clothes, one on top of the other, in this order: jacket on bottom, longer skirts or dresses, long-sleeved shirts, short-sleeved shirts, pants or slacks, sweaters and knits, and finally shorts . As you apply each piece, make sure to smooth out any wrinkles before placing another piece on top of it.
For pants and longer items, arrange them horizontally, alternating which side the belt is on (either left or right). For shirts, lay them vertically, alternating the top of the shirt between the bottom and top. You want the stuff that is most likely to wrinkle at the end of the bundle when you wrap it, so closer to the top of your pile. Don’t forget to close all the fasteners on your clothes too, so zips, buttons and snaps should be done. Typically, your jacket should be face down so the front is on a flat surface, not facing up – but that’s mostly for tailored jackets and blazers. I had a normal fall jacket, so I put mine on face up.
Now start the wrapping process. Place your base item in the middle of the pile and wrap each piece around it one at a time (don’t wrap). I found it easiest to move the core during the wrapping process, lining it up with one edge of the garment before wrapping. The sleeves should be wrapped over the bundle in the natural direction of the sleeve’s fall. Wrap each item tightly, but not so tight or tight that you stretch the material.
When you’re done, transfer the bundle to your carry-on and secure it in place with the internal luggage straps. When you arrive at your destination, remove everything and hang up.
I ran into a few problems with the package wrapping method. The first is that I normally don’t unpack things when I’m in a hotel – I just take things out of my suitcase as I need them. If it’s all wrapped up in a bundle, I’ll have to unwrap everything just to get the one thing I want. It’s especially a problem if all my socks and underwear are in the central core. That being said, maybe this method would encourage me to start unpacking fully when I arrive. I’ve also noticed that the pack can get pretty big if you have a lot of clothes to pack. Don’t be afraid to use more than one multi-core package.
Ultimately, I’m going to stick with rolling the clothes instead of using the bundle method. Although it has its advantages, it takes up more depth in my carry-on than just rolling everything, so it doesn’t save much space because it cuts into the other side of the luggage where I store harder things like shoes and camera gear. Rolling takes less time and makes it easier to get things in and out of the suitcase. But if you don’t roll your clothes and are trying to avoid wrinkles, give it a try!