Well, we are back from our amazing road trip to Taos and Santa Fe! I thought I would fill you in on what we did and wore on our relaxing trip through the Southwest. As my family and past business colleagues will tell you I am notorious for packing a variety of options for any kind of situation in a small easy to carry bag. (I once spent 2 weeks in Belize with only a briefcase of clothing, my brother’s wedding weekend with only a small duffel filled with a boom-box as well as clothing, and Las Vegas Market with only a messenger bag!) I hate over packing but still want plenty of options for different occasions that may arise.
With a little planning, the right accessories, and versatile basics you can create an entire closet full of options on a trip all in one little leather duffle bag. The first trick is to pick an overall vibe for the trip…fairly easy for New Mexico but harder when headed to a buzzing metropolis like New York City where you might be meeting with accounts, family, and old college friends so variety is key. For our New Mexico trip I knew I wanted the vibe to be relaxed, casual, and luxurious. A Southwest vibe of rich browns, sky blues, and golds mixed in with prints, cashmere, alpaca, leather, and silk! With this theme I could easily add or remove pieces necessary for dressing down an outfit for horseback riding through the desert mountains or dressing up an outfit for a nice dinner at a beautiful farm to table restaurant. The next step is to take a few of your favorite outfits from your closet and decide which ones would be appropriate for the trip. Once you have selected 2 or 3 of those start mixing pieces from each look to create another outfit that would work for another occasion. Here is what I wore on my trip to Taos and Santa Fe:
IRO Alpaca Boucle Sweater in Ivory
KAIN Label Silk Pocket Tank in Grey
IRO Missouri Sweatpant in Blue
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
Margarita Saplala Kimono Sweatshirt in Coffee
Earnest Sewn Boatneck Stripe Shirt in Navy & Natural
Earnest Sewn Ginger High Rise Skinny Jean in Super Blue
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
We Are Owls Cashmere/Silk Scarf in Navajo Print
We Are Owls Cashmere Scarf in True Love
B.Chill Sweater Coat (from 4 years ago…quality lasts!)
Small Trades Long Sleeve Tee in Grey
Maggie Ward Ward Legging in Black
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
Jonathan Simkhai Patch Pocket Oxford in Blue
We Are Owls Cashmere/Silk Scarf in Navajo Print
Earnest Sewn Ginger High Rise Skinny Jean in Super Blue
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
Jonathan Simkhai Leather Trim Henley in Charcoal
Maggie Ward Ward Legging in Black
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
B.Chill Sweater Coat (from 4 years ago)
IRO Alpaca Boucle Sweater in Ivory
KAIN Label Silk Pocket Tank in Grey
IRO Missouri Sweatpant in Blue
Frye Engineer Boot 15R in Gaucho
We Are Owls Cashmere Scarf in True Love
It was so easy to swap out the boots for a dressy gold metallic oxford shoe for dinners, the chunky sweaters for my Stylein Tencel Blazer in Black to dress up the day look for evening, or throw on the IRO Cameron Silk Whip Stitch Dress in Ecru with black tights for a dressier night on the Plaza. Hope that helps you pack lighter on your next vacation but still feel effortlessly pulled together everyday.
