I was taught the Art of Packing a suitcase by my mother. She was a master at filling every nook and cranny to ensure every item found a place in our bags. It's a simple system that incorporates many common sense elements, and I swear by it when packing for a weekend or a one-month holiday.
1. Gather the items required from the Check List in one place where you can see each family members clothing and personal items. You can do this one person at a time, or whatever way works best for you. I like to do the kids at the same time - it helps to cross-reference with each pile.
[travellingmom tip: One of my trusted packing strategies is to lay out my clothes of choice on the bed and pair up clothing items into outfits. That way I can see at a glance how many clothes I'm considering to pack, and what items match well - and most frequently - with other items. For women, the mix-and-match approach can be freshened up with different scarves and jewellery accessories, which don't take nearly as much room in your bags as two extra sweaters or pairs of pants would.]
2. Heavy and bulky items at the bottom, such as shoes, compact hair dryers and books. Shoes can be laid on their sides to help flatten out the bottom layer.
3. Fill empty shoes, sandals and boots with rolled up socks, underwear, belts or even small kids' clothing items. The key is to fill every available space.
4. Next, cover the bottom layer with t-shirts laid flat, and tuck in the ends downwards. Some people advocate for rolling up clothing, but the end result is a lot of wrinkled clothes, and not that much saved space, in my opinion.
5. Now more clothes; pants, shorts, skirts, blouses, scarves, sweaters. I tend to pack heavier clothing items nearer to the bottom, to avoid crushing the more delicate items which I place on top of everything else. Pyjamas make up the last layer on top.
6. The last item is the toiletry bag. This bag really requires a check list all its own. In carry-on luggage, all liquid items cannot exceed 100 ml or 100 g in quantity, and must be packaged in a clear, plastic bag that is removed from your luggage to go through security screening.
For detailed and up-to-date information for Canadian travellers, please visit the Canadian Air Transport Authority link.
Today, many common toiletries - such as shampoos, shaving cream and toothpaste - are made in smaller sizes and are readily available at the drug store. You can also purchase empty plastic containers to fill with your favorite products from home.
In terms of packing toiletries, and liquid medicines, remember that for a family of four, you can have one 'liquid bag' per person, so plan accordingly! Pack a 'medi-bag' with your assortment of required meds - such as children's Tylenol, Gravol, cough medicine - and remember in whose bag it will be packed, for easy access if needed during the travel portion of your journey.
In terms of the rest of your toiletry bag, I recommend purchasing a good-quality bag with several good-sized zipped storage compartments, rather than one big sack hold-all. It should be foldable so that you can lay it flat on the top of your packing - saving space. I also like to wrap my bag in a plastic bag to eliminate any possible accidents and leakages. You just never know what might burst at altitude!
Of course, what you pack in your toiletry bag (other than liquid items) is totally up to you. Just remember - no nail scissors or other sharp objects that are still prohibited by law.
[travellingmom tip: Pack 5 small and 5 larger-sized Ziploc bags in one of the pockets of your suitcase. These bags will come in handy during your travel, whether to store a wet bathing suit after your last dip in the ocean before your flight, or to bring back some special souvenirs.]