Welcome back to the gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video, we discuss how to pack a suitcase like a pro, specifically a business
trip that is longer.
If you want to know how to pack for a shorter business trip using a carry-on, please check
out this video, but frankly, I always try to pick the largest suitcase I can get because
it's better for my suits.
Before we go into how to pack a suitcase, you have to know what to pack.
So what you should pack, honestly, I think you know that best yourself but keep in mind,
versatility is always key.
You want a wardrobe that is easy to dress up and down because you have very limited
garments with you and you want to get the most out of them.
For a standard business trip, I suggest you pack at least one suit, maybe two, and a navy
blazer.
In terms of color, I think a grey suit is perfect because you can combine the pants
with a blazer and have another business appropriate outfit.
If you want another pair of pants, I think chinos are great or if you need something
dressier, of course you can go with dress pants.
Make sure there's enough contrast and don't go with something Navy that is different than
the Blazer, or even exactly the same, because with the buttons, it just looks off.
A heavier fabric such as a flannel, wrinkles less than a light weight high twist fabric,
like this one.
Yes, you can always have your suit pressed when you arrive or just hang up in the bathroom
to release the wrinkles with steam, but ideally, you want a suit that wrinkles as little as
possible because it makes it easier on you and provides peace of mind because you'll
always look presentable.
When it comes to shirts, I'd bring a white dress shirt with cufflinks, maybe a light
blue one, and at least a checked one which is a little more casual that you can wear
without a tie, let's say if you go out at night.
Undershirts may help you to keep your dress shirt fresher all day so please check out
our undershirts guide here.
If you want other colors, I suggest stick with pastel colors for shirts because they're
easy to combine, very versatile.
Don't go with bolder colors and if you want to add a dash of something special to your
outfit, go with colorful accessories such as your tie, your pocket square, or maybe
your cufflinks.
When it comes to shoes, it's actually very different if you have quality men's shoes
because they're usually a lot heavier than cheaper ones.
Personally, I have travelled three or four weeks with just three pairs of shoes, one
which I wore on the plane, and two that were packed, and I could do that because I know
exactly the kind of events I would go to.
If you know you have lots of formal business events, I suggest to go with a black cap toe
Oxford, and maybe a pair of burgundy shoes because Burgundy always combines well, it
looks always presentable, professional, but you can also combine it in a more casual way.
If you don't have formal events, I suggest brown is king and I would always go with a
dark brown pair, maybe a pair of monk straps, or regular lace ups, then a pair of Burgundy
shoes because it's so versatile, and another may be lighter brown or cognac tone, maybe
a suede pair of shoes because that Browns up your wardrobe makes you look presentable
and dapper no matter where you go and to learn how to combine colorful shoe laces with your
shoes and your outfit, please check out this video here.
Most people forget it, but it's very important to bring at least one pair of shoe trees because
it helps your shoes to stay in shape and lasts longer, while plastic ones are really lightweight,
I don't like them because they don't provide the desired shape and hold I need, so I go
with a lightweight wood such as cedar or even better poplar.
No matter where I travel, I always bring a travel shoehorn because it protects my shoes,
it helps me to get into my shoes at security and I never want to miss it because it's such
a small item that can save you a lot of dollars.
In terms of accessories, I usually bring pocket squares, tie, sometimes bow ties, cufflinks,
rings, maybe a car pin, or a collar bar, and also boutonnieres.
I actually use the Fort Belvedere gift box to travel with them because that's perfect
and they don't get damaged that way, that being said, usually I travel my cufflinks
in my carry-on because I don't want to lose my valuable gold jewelry.
So how do you pack a suitcase?
First of all, I suggest you go to the bedroom because if you have a large enough bed, you
can put all of your things out there and you can have your suitcase up on the bed so it's
easier to pack.
The first thing I do is to stuff my socks and underwear into the shoes that don't have
shoe trays.
I definitely recommend you use shoe bags or dust bags because they keep the rest of your
clothes clean.
The remaining t-shirts, polo shirts, or undershirts, and socks, go into the bottom of the suitcase
and especially on the side where you have the pull mechanism because it's uneven and
those socks help to even everything out.
I add belts or suspenders to it, I add my Dopp kit, and ideally, you want something
that's lightweight and not too heavy, sometimes the nicer dopp kits are really heavy and it
just adds bulk so try to pay attention to that and stay as lean as possible.
Folding could have a huge impact on how your clothing wrinkles, dress shirts are delicate
and wrinkle very easily, therefore, you should fold them and not roll them.
The best way to do that is to put the shirt flat down with buttons facing on the floor
or the table.
Fold the sides inwards with sleeves on both the sides, and fold over the hem, and fold
in half or in thirds, depending on the size of your suitcase.
Do that with other shirts and then stack them with a collars opposite from each other.
You can use the same folding technique with sweaters, t-shirts, or polo shirts, however,
sometimes it may make more sense to simply roll them because it's quicker, it's easier,
and it saves you on space.
Now in terms of a suit, the big advantage of a large spinner suitcase is that you don't
need to really fold your suit heavily.
So what I do is I use a lightweight plastic hanger with a wide shoulder pad, you want
the shoulders to be about two inches wide and you want a trouser bar to not be rubberized
because it usually doesn't stick.
You want a form of really grippy foam or anything else that really holds the trousers up.
Simply hang your suit and put it in a garment bag.
Personally, I stay clear of the heavier cotton garment bags I use at home and it's that I
go with really lightweight cheap ones because they help to prevent wrinkles at the same
time they don't add bulk or weight to my suitcase.
Never go with more than two garment bags and if you have more garment bags, such as two
suits and two jackets, simply double them up in the same garment bag.
Trousers go to trouser bar, if you have a vest which is extremely helpful because vests
are easy to combine you added on top of the hanger underneath the jacket and if you want
to learn more about how to combine it, please check out that video here.
Once the garment bag is zipped up, you lay it flat in the suitcase then take the other
garment bag laid flat as well.
and then you fold them over one on each other.
that way the crease in the garment is not strong and it won't wrinkle.
I always try to fold it just at the bottom part of the lapel because that way, you don't
get any creases in it.
Sometimes, if I have more pairs of pants, I put them either on the hanger but if it's
too heavy and it would break the plastic hanger, I just put them flat in the bottom of the
suitcase first.
On top of the suits, I only put very lightweight items such as pocket squares, ties, for that
specifically, I use a tie case that my wife made for me when we first dated so it's very
dear to my heart and I use it to this day.
I found that rolling up ties usually makes them wrinkle much more easily and just laying
them flat in your suitcase means they shift around and that way they wrinkle too so definitely
get a tie case.
You don't want to put any heavy objects on top of your suits because otherwise, it's
much more likely to wrinkle.
It’s good for a suitcase to have that zipper on top so you can close up the suit compartment
and focus your efforts on the other side.
You also want a compartment on the other side because it's much heavier and you don't want
to push on the suit side.
If you have issues with the size of your shoes, I suggest you wear the heaviest pair when
you travel and put the lighter ones in your dust bags.
I also suggest to put the sole to sole and pack them that way, because they're more compact
and you get more in your suitcase.
For my belts, I always try to roll them up and either I put them in my shoes or I just
fit them on the side of the shirts, or the shoes, because there's always extra room for
little things like that.
The same is true for items such as chargers, or maybe your electric shaver, to make sure
you don't overload your Dopp kit, get travel size products or little bottles otherwise,
it's way too heavy.
So what suitcase would you ideally choose?
Over the years, I’ve tried lots of different things and I've found that two things are
very important.
One, you want spinner wheels that are really easy to roll because nothing is as bothersome
as having to carry your suitcase for long distances which makes you sweat and uncomfortable
at the airport.
Also, when you're outside and the pavement is not always the best, having shitty wheels
is really a pain in the ass.
Personally, while I love the look of suitcases like Globetrotter, they're just very impractical
and I've had good luck with these hardshell suitcases in polycarbonate; they're lightweight
and they have strong corners.
I always go for the zippered version because it's lighter than the metal frame version
from brands like for example.
The one I’ using here right now is from Samsonite, it's not sponsored in any way it's
just what I happen to like.
I used to live in Germany and was dating my wife in the US so I was traveling a lot back
and forth, and those lightweight suitcases are really the best, they will break eventually
but it's still better than carrying a heavier aluminum suitcase that won't break as easily
but it doesn't allow you to carry on a lot.
Two, your spinner suitcase has to be wide enough.
Ideally, your shoulders should fit in there no problem.
Originally, I started with larger, more rectangular suitcases, but I've gone to a more square
shape which works really well for suits because you can fold it nicely, you get the width
you want, and they're very easy to handle.
Honestly, if you invest in custom suits, I really urge you to use larger suitcase because
they're easy on your suits and you will able to wear them for much longer.
If for some reason you have to bring a small suitcase that you can carry on, please check
out this video here.
in today's video, I’m wearing a typical travel combination for a fall winter season
the suit jacket is vintage it's from a caraceni in Milan and the fabric is very special because
it has a number of different green tones which makes it very easy to combine especially with
a travel wardrobe and pair it with a cognac colored pair of corduroys to learn more about
corduroys you can check out our guide on the website the belt along here is brown alligator
it works well with the shoes and it has a silver buckle the shirt was custom made for
me it's white with a blue check on it it has a wider spread collar I use collar stays with
it and with it I'm wearing a silk knit tie in blue from Fort Belvedere in a four-in-hand
knot and you can learn how to tie that here the pocket square is an orange wool silk pocket
square from Fort Belvedere and you can find it in our shop it was particularly well with
the jacket and with the tie because it picks up those colors and combines with orange which
works really well with green and blue my shoes are Italian with a thin Blake rapid stitch
I made sure that it don't have a metal element so it doesn't beep when I travel for the same
reason I skipped any other metal accessories such as cufflinks collar pins a watch or a
pinkie ring because much easier to get through security in the airport that way my socks
are shadow stripe they're from Fort Belvedere they are burgundyand cognac. to learn more
about how to combine shoes with socks and pants please check out our in-depth guide
on the website all the fort belvedere accessories can be found in our shop and see you next
time