Project333 and cruise packing?

So, I have been reading a lot about the closet challenge for "Project 333" which promotes dressing with less.

I am wondering if any cruise critic members are doing this and if so, how does it affect your fashion choices for cruising? I LOVE dressing up on a cruise and doing so requires multiple outfits and accessories.

I am trying to figure out if I can have a variety of clothing choices and still only pack ONE medium sized checked bag and NO extra carrying other than my purse.

Any suggestions?

I hadn't heard of Project 333 but did a bit of research on it and you basically live with 33 pieces for 3 months (excluding workout and sleepwear, though it does include shoes and accessories). I am not sure I could do it for everyday AND cruise clothes. I am sure I could do it for a warm weather cruise and only pack 33 items and not feel deprived.

1 flip flops

1 nude heels

1 casual sandal

1 workout shoes

2 Nice trousers (one black, one khaki)

2 swimsuits

1 long swimsuit coverup (suitable a long maxi dress)

2 shorts

4 sundresses/maxi dresses

6 casual tops

1 Little black dress

3 dressy tops

2 earrings

2 necklaces

2 lightweight scarves/pashminas

2 cardigans

We are going on a W Caribbean cruise in Oct and plan on just taking a 21" carry-on suitcase and a tote each (well, backpack for DH and DD). I already made sure everything fits and actually have some room to spare. Have done other trips with just carry-ons so I know we can do it.

4 ports, 2 sea days, 2 travel days, 1 pre-cruise and 1 post cruise days. I am not planning on re-wearing anything except a black wrap dress (just changing the accessories), a cardigan, and jeans which are my travel pants. The bulky items are shoes so I am taking a pair of nude wedges that match all the dresses for dinner, Teva sandals and a pair of flip flops (and I am debating about the flips).

We are bringing an extra duffle (packed) in case we get souvenirs that don't fit in the carry-ons.

As for everyday life, not sure if I could do it for very long. My job is pretty messy, ice cream is messy too ;) and I am not the most coordinated person.

"Messy" -- that is my problem with trying to live with limited choices. Most of my wardrobe is clean for less than 8 hours. I love the idea of wardrobe minimalism. I want to embrace wardrobe minimalism. But sadly, I am messy. I still manage with one checked bag and one carryon, though, when we travel. I just factor in doing or sending out laundry on a regular basis.

I hadn't heard of Project 333 but did a bit of research on it and you basically live with 33 pieces for 3 months (excluding workout and sleepwear, though it does include shoes and accessories). I am not sure I could do it for everyday AND cruise clothes. I am sure I could do it for a warm weather cruise and only pack 33 items and not feel deprived.

1 flip flops

1 nude heels

1 casual sandal

1 workout shoes

2 Nice trousers (one black, one khaki)

2 swimsuits

1 long swimsuit coverup (suitable a long maxi dress)

2 shorts

4 sundresses/maxi dresses

6 casual tops

1 Little black dress

3 dressy tops

2 earrings

2 necklaces

2 lightweight scarves/pashminas

2 cardigans

I like your list, and I am going to experiment to see what I have that matches that list and see how it fits in our suitcase.

Dh and I started doing carry on luggage only a while back. Scary at first, now we won't do it any other way. Because we live in driving distance of Vancouver, we use the next size up for Alaska cruising but otherwise yes it's easy to do and the size luggage you are thinking of is an easy way into bringing less.

I start with shoes. I base my wardrobe around the shoes, the colour and the type I want to wear. For my flight and traveling to the ship I like to wear my heaviest pair along with my bulkiest pants, jacket and top, often with a sweater as well to save space.

I get about 4 days wear out of dark pants/capris and 2-3 out of whites and lights. I can use a top for 2 days before a change and I like a change of underwear, sometimes 2 per day.

I plan for the steward to do a load of laundry mid voyage. It saves a TON of room. I also do a little hand washing using the complimentary shampoo and soap on board ship. I pack a couple of thin light plastic hangers and a couple of pants hangers with the clips that I get from my favourite clothing store. I use those for drying socks, panties, bras and light tops not to mention bathing suits.

With that in mind I list the days aboard the ship and activities, like any shore excursions. I keep in mind local weather and customs and plan my wardrobe day by day repeating as much as possible.

To prevent boredom I bring costume jewelry and scarves etc. I stick to a neutral dark with a couple of colours so all my stuff can mix and match.

Here is what I'm taking on our next cruise which is 7 days off the coast of California. We will have several shore excursions and aren't planning on formal nights. (We do formal nights usually by renting a tux for dh, and I have a bunch of light knit dresses, tops and skirts but not this trip).

The colours I chose are black beige, cream, rust and olive green.

Wearing on travel days to and from ship:

Black overcoat

Beige suede jacket (Bronze and "ivory" costume jewelry)

Black and brown and cream animal print velvet tank top (a print is coffee spill proof for airline turbulence and other food spill reasons)

Black jeans (lots of lycra for comfort but these are my heaviest pants I'm taking)

Black Scholls running shoes with gel heel inserts, Brown purse and Black and brown tote bag (I put the purse and a shawl or wool sweater into the tote)

Packed in suitcase:

----------------------

Bronze sandals (with dress or pants)

Havianas flip flops (black and brown print)

Rockport sandals brown leather

2 pair black pants (dressy type, business casual in a poly rayon lycra mix)

Black merino wool V neck pullover in a very thin elegant knit.

Olive green shawl collar drapey thin knit cardigan.

Beige and cream print tank top

Olive cream and black print tank top

Rust tank top

Black cowl neck tank top for spare not listed in day by day outfits

Black turtleneck sweater (thin knit)

3 print scarves in coordinating colours

Costume jewelry to suit in bronze metals and "ivory" bits. (I never take expensive real stuff so I don't worry about customs on the way home or theft during the trip)

Black and brown print knit dress with black cotton cardigan 3/4 sleeve suitable for dining room with bronze sandals (which are a mule type with a bit of a heel)

Bathing suit, cover up, hat. Spare sunglasses besides the pair in my purse at all times.

Underwear for 7 days (unlike most of our cruises this is only 7 days, I'm not going to even get the steward to do laundry let alone me)

Black capri pants and a cotton Missoni knit style tank top if it gets really hot.

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That is it. I know I won't wear it all, but it all fits in a carry on and if dh rented a tux that dress would do formal if I switched the cotton cardigan for a black lace and silk shawl. Still fits the carry on.

The cruse after that is in January and it's in the west coast of Mexico and I'm basing that on my Navy capsule wardrobe, and we will do formal nights, and it's longer so I'll get laundry done.

The value of a tight colour scheme is that everything goes together, and you pack less accessories because you need less.

Even the cosmetics can be pared down for the same reason. I'm only taking a powder foundation that dusts on top of my sunscreen, a neutral peachy blush, a bronzer from the Body Shop that is a tiny compact, a single peachy beige eyeshadow from Maybelling called Earthly Taupe and a black brown mascara. My lipstick is Peach Me by Revlon and it's all in bronzey peach summery tan tones that go with the bronzes and cream clothing.

Unpacking is fast, you can have it all out and hung up in 10 to 15 minutes and the same goes for packing it back in. I don't have to rush anymore on the last night to get that suitcase out into the hall, because it all goes into my carry on.

I always have a soft folding extra case so that if my return trip has expanded my luggage, I've got room. I can then turn my carry on into checked baggage and haul my soft duffel shaped extra case. It is rip stop nylon, weighs next to nothing and I usually don't use it but I did once for stuffed animals I brought back for granddaughters.

I love reading the Vivienne Files and Janice does a wonderful job showing different colours for all sorts of wardrobes.

I can travel with a carryon and tote bag ( did that for a Mediterranean cruise)

And attended formal night ( not a fancy ballgown)

A note about messy stuff. I wear print tank tops for that very reason. When I shop for clothing I always keep an eye open for what I call "coffee spill proof" tops.

Prints hide a multitude of sins, and I like synthetic knits. Not all of them are like wearing a plastic bag. I choose ones with some rayon or cotton in the mix but not a lot so they can rinse, squeeze almost dry and be worn right away if you have to.

The shampoo aboard ship will take out most food stains or grime from the tour buses if you wash them that night and hang to dry on a light plastic hanger (I always travel with 2 of those and 1 or 2 clip style light plastic pant hangers for sink laundry)

Cotton knits the 100% type are too heavy and stay damp too long so I prefer microfibre or rayon and poly blends.

I also have a few scarves with me. They are always a print that goes with all my solids and I use them like a bib on a toddler. They protect and hide any salad dressing tracks. They look a lot more chic than a bib but do about the same job.

That way I can pack less and do more with my time.

Last comment and I promise I'll shut up but about that tote plus purse combo I mentioned.

The purse is my usual purse and contents, it fits inside the tote for traveling days or shore excursions, and by doubling up I don't need to waste space in my packed carry on for the tote or purse.

For the flight in, I can fit a sweater or pashmina type shawl or scarf in the tote on top of the purse to protect it somewhat and save more space in the carry on while keeping my layers handy if the cabin is freezing or baking which often happens on airlines. That and my kindle or magazines from the duty free shops for reading. Add a water bottle and more duty free purchases like cosmetics or costume jewelry and that tote comes in very handy on travel day.

If the airline quibbles, my tote is light and easy to fold into my carry on hard sided case and I can squeeze the other contents in, tossing the water bottle and leaving my purse out.

For shore excursions that tote means I can EASILY pack a water bottle, sweater, shopping etc along with the purse. If I buy a lot of souvenir stuff I can wear the tote and the purse separately but still have both hanging conveniently off my shoulders. They go with my outfits, so I continue to look pulled together.

I also have a tiny fold up nylon shopping bag in my purse which can also be used for dragging shopping back aboard ship. This way I'm not struggling with a lot of plastic shopping bags from the stores and all my stuff is easy to keep track of. The ship isn't coping with a lot of garbage from excess shopping bags and I stay comfortable and chic.

Beside the pool on board ship that tote means I can pack sunscreen, cover up, kindle for reading, sunglasses, lip balm etc. I put the sensitive purse contents (passport, money, credit cards) in the safe, and leave my purse in my room for the most part.

It's my version of having my cake and eating it too. Versatility for my minimalist wardrobe and it saves packing room for other stuff.

Update, I pared this down & made other last minute changes. Weather forecast looked good and my feet were hurting a lot so i ditched several items. Trip went well but due to landing gear problems the trip home took a lot longer, but one thing that made life a lot better was using the carryon pack system. So thankful I wasn't wrestling luggage off a carousel thru customs at 2 am, finding a shuttle to the airlines voucher hotel for a nap from 3 am to 630 am when we woke up to go back to the airport for our newly rebooked connection home.

To the OP, yes I like the Vivienne files project 333, but I use her colour accent groups & neutrals as inspiration. And for me the 333 is still too big.

In real life in my own closet, I mentally divide into several seasonal capsules based on 3 pants, 6 or 7 tops, 3 jackets or cardigans and a couple of skirt or dresses for Sunday or other dress up occasions. A lot of my capsules share items from one another. Things like black pants or cream tops for example. I define seasons by fabrics and colours. They all go with each other. Nothing clashes.

I actually use a mental trick to help inspire my capsules. Gets me to coordinate easily and it may work for others. I think of exotic travel locations & themes, tying them to a season. So my winter theme is Paris with Coco Chanel. That means black with ivory and dashes of red or soft olive green. Spring is a visit to the Brittany seaside, Deauville to be exact with a navy & white emphasis. Grey, teal, aqua, lemon & coral make for accents but all the winter things go too. Summer is a Safari trip with browns, tans & ivory. Olive or khaki green, black, aqua & teal work in nicely. Fall is an imaginary trip to a Tuscan hillside with browns, black, tan, rust, olive greens and a bit of ivory.

When I go to pack, I start with the capsule I want to pull from, which is my late summer into fall stuff in the example above.

I need enough accent colours to keep from boredom which is a problem with Vivienne's core 333 wardrobe, which she herself mentions. I get around that by my seasonal accents which she seems to do too.

When I began doing the carryon experiment I kept a list of what i took, and what i actually used on each trip. I keep refining it.

When I shop for any clothes I consider the weight and space in my luggage as well as how it fits into my capsule.

I really like the Nygard formula: 2 jackets or cardigans, 3 bottoms and 4 tops. If you add a dress think of it as 1,2,3,4 done!

I always add 1 or 2 more tops, and an alternate weather outfit. I usually pack a dress/skirt & dressy sandals plus a wrap of some sort. If I want that can pare down to dressy sandals & a sparkly top to go for formal night with my dressiest pants.

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