Traveling to me is not only a pleasure, but almost a necessity… learning more about yourself by experiencing new climates, cultures and people has always made me feel so invigorated. That’s why when I don’t have my next trip planned out, I try to figure out where I am going next (and how I can afford to or have the time off to do so). Whether its 10 hours away or a half hour away, there’s nothing better than discovering a new place, and making it your own… just like a new fashion trend! So here is my first travel post about my most recent mini vacation!

I went to North Carolina for the third time at the end of November, but it was my first time to the Raleigh/Chapel Hill area (previously Wilmington and Charlotte). I spent almost a whole week in Charleston, South Carolina and a couple days in Charlotte over the 4th of July last summer, and I can say I truly left my heart in the Carolinas in 2011 (AMAZING places and I’m going back over this 4th of July)! I used to visit my older sister when she lived in the Silicon Valley area, so this trip was a special treat to spend time with her and see a new part of North Carolina.

Since I was only going to be there through the weekend, I just brought a carry-on. Here are my tips on packing lightly and making the most of it (remember, pack versatile items!):

• Shoes, although my favorite, are bulky, heavy and take up a lot of room. Try to minimize the number you bring to two or three (especially for a three-day trip like I took). Bring a good pair of walking, out and about shoes (I wore my gold high tops on the plane and for walking around and a pair of ballet flats that fit in my purse), as well as a pair of heels for all other occasions.

• Bring one pant, one skirt, one dress… this will cover almost anything you will be doing. I packed dark-wash skinny jeans, a black wrap skirt and a dress for the fundraising event I attended with my sister.

• Jewelry is where you get to bring a lot to work with the clothes you have. Bring a few pairs of earrings and necklaces and you should be able to mix and match accessories for different looks. I place them in separate plastic sandwich bags to keep similar jewelry together.

• I would also recommend bringing a couple of your favorite accessories, such as a hat, belt or scarf as another way to mix up your looks.

• For beauty products, I typically select a couple eye shadow pallets, black eye liner and mascara for make-up and bring my own face lotion (because my skin is very sensitive). Otherwise I borrowed everything else from my sister. It depends on your scenario, but obviously it’s a pain to deal with liquids on planes, so it is almost worth just buying smaller bottles of shampoo, body wash, etc. when you get there if you can’t borrow it from someone.

How to create outfits from pieces packed:

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