Packing a suitcase is all about personal preference.
Would you rather fit more clothes into your bag, or double-check they dont come out wrinkled?
Everyone has an opinion.
Some say you should roll your clothes, others recommend folding them, origami-like, into a bundle.
Others swear by tools like packing cubes or compression bags.
But there has to be an answerwhich method is the most space-efficient?
I also added a few dress shirts and pairs of khakis for each method to evaluate potential wrinkle issues.
Sorry, rollers, folders and bundlers: theres no one packing technique to rule them all.
Its a packing puzzle.
This also wastes valuable space, but its better for organization.
Then filled the extra spaces with folded T-shirts.
This isnt a particularly space-saving strategy, but its one were all familiar with.
Instead of digging through horizontal layers of clothing, its easier to see the clothing pieces you want.
So I tried it for luggage packing too.
Stacking this way enables you to add more clothes depth-wise and also makes use of room on the sides.
You layer them strategically all in a bunch and fold into one big wrinkle-free, origami-like package.
In theory, its great, but it doesnt make sense in all scenarios.
That said, bundling is great for organizing outfits that tend to wrinkle..
Space:18 additional T-shirts.
Your success with this method will depend on how well you fold your clothes into each other.
Wrinkles:The dress clothes that were packed with the bundle method were the least wrinkled of the bunch.
Space:A whopping 31 additional T-shirts.
Because of their small, narrow shapes, you’re able to fit more clothes this way.
I tried them too.
Specifically,space saver bags like these.
You put your clothes in them and roll the bag to get the air out, no vacuum required.
In reality, I had a hard time rolling the Ziploc-like bags to flatten the clothes.
Also, the bags are handy to have on a trip to dump dirty laundry into.
Packing cubes: Great when combined with other methods
Finally, I tried packing cubes.
Not space-saving, but great for organization.
Packing cubes wont save you space in your luggage; in fact, theyll add to your space usage.
Packing cubes are great for one thing, but one very important thing: Keeping your clothes organized.
Folding clothes together is more natural and logical, but its not as space efficient.
Bundling works, but its a pain to get specific pieces of clothes out.
Packing cubes solve all these problems.
Theyll help you keep your sanity whichever method you choose above.
