As the title indicates, this is my evaluation of the most used packing devices with pros and cons and usage tips. With an easy to remember packing mantra at the end!
Folders:
I like those quite a bit. They do work and are probably the best method for packing dress shirts and easily wrinkled garments. Not necessary (or rather counterproductive) for sweaters and trousers.
Lay two shirts over one another, fold in one act as if it was one shirt. This provides extra crease cushioning. Place in folder. The next two shirts are placed in the folder with the collars in the other direction. Then ties are wrapped around the shirt bundles with the ends neatly tucked in between the shirts so that the ends don't get bent. This is the best carry method for ties I have found and I tried them all! Finally the folding board is placed on top of the bundle and the velcro is closed. This will prevent accidentally snagging the silk ties with the velcro and will create a little extra slip for the shirts. You can even wrap a suit AROUND the 18" folder and use it in an Airboss style bag. Works great.
They can also be used as a shelf or a separation wall within a bag. Fragile documents can be hidden and protected in the slot where the folder bottom slips into. Finally, they can help give structure to an otherwise floppy but lightweight bag.
I prefer the 18" folder but just got a 15 inch model to use in a duffel bag and in two personal item bags I have.
Packing Cubes:
Packing cubes are great for organization but they only start to really help when they are used to compress items. Otherwise they are only good for organization but add weight and bulk. Everyone will have to decide whether that's worth it. If you want to compress it is wise to choose flat packing cubes because those will achieve compression easier. Otherwise, think about the position or pocket that a packing cube might go into, so you buy the right size. Packing cubes do make great cores for bundle wrapping. Fragile things packed inside a softly filled cube that forms the core of a clothing bundle will usually emerge unscathed.
Compression bags:
Compression bags like the one EC makes can also be good for space savings IF the items are indeed compressible. This applies mostly to knits and jerseys (technically knits) as well as fleece wear and down jackets. Using a compression sac on a pair of jeans is not very useful. The compression bags do have one advantage, though. Once they are properly packed and compressed they get quite stiff. This can give structure to an otherwise soft-sided bag and can protect the contents of that bag very nicely. Compression bags usually hold the vacuum for the duration of a trip but oftentimes I found mine inflated when I unpacked. It is important not to overpack these compression sacs and to squeeze the air out until the thing is hard like a board. This will somewhat wrinkle the contents. So don't put dress shirts in there.
Forgot to say, compression bags are pretty ideal for dirty laundry. They keep any odor in and usually the laundry items are underwear which can be quite compressible at least for us men.
Garment bags:
There are the full-blown garment carriers with and without wheels. Those are usually a waste of space and weight in the case of those with wheels in particular. The wheeled version with a hard frame do protect suits from wrinkling quite nicely, though. They are also pretty idiot-proof to pack and I think that is part of their success.
And then there are garment or suiter inserts for rollaboards or even carry-on shoulder bags. These can make sense depending on how well they are constructed. The better you can fix the suit in place and the nice the upholstery on the crease bars that sit in the fold lines, the better the suit will be protected. It pays to put these in their own pocket on the lid of the case. Travelpro does that and many others, too. Victorinox 4.0 luggage just has them hanging there. Not a good solution.
Otherwise, I posted a number of suit folding techniques here and on OBOW with pictures and a video. With these techniques you will be perfectly able to pack a suit without a garment insert in any bag.
Bundle wrapping/packing:
I am not a fan of this technique. It takes too much time and is not practical enough to justify the space savings. It is also really not suited to pack dress shirts.
The space saving you can get from bundle packing is due to a decreased total number of folds. Basically each fold makes the item thicker. If you can decrease the total number of folds you can decrease the volume of the bundle.
Depending on the clothes you can actually get away with less volume when you fold neatly. This is the case for socks and underwear. Rolled socks will take up more space than neatly folded ones. They will also be harder to compress.
So, in principle, for non-fragile and bulky items like jeans, sweaters, fleece wear, khakis and wool shawls bundle wrapping is actually good. These items will also wrinkle less with the bundle method. But as soon as you try to include fragile and easily wrinkled items like silks or dress shirts, it's just not the right method.
If you really plan it out, the bundles can be nicely conceived as units that are easy to access. But that needs way too much planning; and that's coming from Dr.A. Nal Superpacker.
Another thought coming from the bundle wrapping discussion on OBOW: Since bundle wrapping takes time and can make you end up with more wrinkles than ordinary folding but does save space, it is a good method for the return trip where often one needs a bit of extra space. It doesn't matter that the used garments will get wrinkled or that they are hard to access because they will be washed anyway and no particular access is needed.
Conclusion:
I hope this helps my fellow travelers decide which packing aide or device to use. When I read descriptions of how people pack I most often see a random approach. If used judiciously each of these techniques and gadgets can be really useful, so the above should help in that process.
When packing, think of:
- Weight
- Volume (available and occupied)
- Protection (wrinkles, breakage, spillage)
- Access (easy packing and unpacking as well as organization of what you need at which stage of the trip)
- Price (you pay for packing aids)
As a mnemonic device let's put it this way:
P(rotection) - have your things arrive safely
A(ccess) - easy packing and unpacking
P(rice) - think economically, is it worth it?
E(rgonomics) - keep stuff at hand exactly when needed
R(estrictions) - in weight and volume
ADDENDUM: A list of weights for the EC packing cube series, thanks to Alan Birnbaum from OBOW:
Eagle Creek 18-inch folder: 16 oz. (packs thinner than 15-inch for same items)
Eagle Creek 15-inch folder: 9 oz. (holds up to six long-sleeve shirts)
Eagle Creek double half cube: 4 oz. (haven't used this one yet!)
Eagle Creek full cube 10 x 14: 3 oz. (holds four sets of underwear)
Eagle Creek full tube, 4 x 14: 3 oz. (good for socks in excess of those in shoes)
Eagle Creek half tube, 4 x 10: 2 oz. (organizes electronics chargers, etc.)
*Eagle Creek zip sack, 6 x 8: 1 oz. (fits MY toiletries...but not my wife's...)
*replaces full-size 9 oz. EC fold-out toilet kit
Cheers,
Till