I’m one of those people who feels “off” if I don’t have a trip on the horizon. I absolutely LOVE planning my travels, but that’s probably not a surprise to anyone reading this. I’m constantly looking at maps, flight schedules, and my friends’ travel blogs, deciding where to go next. But there’s one piece of getting ready for a trip that I don’t love – packing.

The night before a trip, I’m still scrambling around figuring out how many tops I’ll need, or what I’ll wear if it rains or gets cold, and siphoning my shampoo into smaller bottles. I always bring way too much wherever I go and come home with several items I never wore but lugged around for days. My back hurts all the time and I also have had my luggage lost twice, so I could use some help getting my stuff down to a small carry-on.

When I discovered Vacay on a friend’s blog, I knew immediately that this company could revolutionize packing. Vacay is a clothing company with collections that are meant to be used on the same vacation – with pieces that look good together, mixed and matched. A 5-piece collection with 2 staples of your own (jeans, tank top) can create 12-15 different outfits. Don’t worry – there’s a cheat sheet with your purchase to guide you toward what looks good with what, for those of us who are also not great at fashion {image via Vacay}:

With Vacay, you could conceivably buy a 5-piece collection, add jeans and a tank-top, your undies, shoes, toiletries, a swimsuit, and be ready to go for two weeks. Think about how light a carry-on would be with just these items and your Kindle.

Vacay’s newest collections are called Tahiti, Martinique, Cabo, Belize, and Newport. The cornerstone of each of Vacay’s collections is a MAXi dress, which is actually two pieces – a halter top and a long skirt – each of which can be worn together or with your favorite staples. There’s a caftan or nice beach cover-up, and then each collection is rounded out with jumpsuits, dresses, or tops.

I tried out a MAXi dress from the Fiji collection on my recent trip to the Dominican Republic and I loved it. The top had a shelf bra and the skirt had lining so if you want to go without wearing anything underneath, it is doable. The dress could also double as pajamas if needed because it is ridiculously comfortable.

One dress from Vacay was used three nights on my trip, but each outfit looked different. I wore the dress the first night during the sailing away party on our cruise. While it was quite windy as we were leaving Miami and my hair was going wild, I felt “casually glam” {a term I just invented} in my long dress. One evening, I wore a black t-shirt with the skirt, which is my favorite look of the three. The next night, I wore the halter top with shorts while saying goodbye to friends, my sister, and the beautiful sunset over the Caribbean.

I also received a beach bag from Vacay, which is free with every 5-piece purchase. I’ve used it all summer as a beach bag and as my carry-on for the flight to Miami before my cruise. I always bring tons of sunscreen and books to the beach and it has fit everything I needed it to. It has a lining that could be wiped clean if sunscreen explodes or if tons of sand gets inside (inevitable on the breezy Jersey Shore). My parents’ puppy seems to think that the bag is one of her toys because of the rope handles, but I’ve kept it away from her successfully so far.

While marketed more as resort wear, these pieces would certainly work in urban settings as well. I could absolutely see myself wearing the stylish Tahiti jumpsuit out in NYC or the beautiful Martinique MAXi dress to dinner in Florence. I already can’t wait for my next vacay *and* my next Vacay.

xx

Thank you, Vacay for dressing me up. At the time of this post, MAXi dresses retail for $158-$168. The beach bag is free with a 5-item purchase. Opinions are always my own.