A Personal Stylist’s Guide to Building a Travel Capsule Wardrobe

By Michelle T. Sterling, a globally acclaimed expert in color analysis and image consulting, and the founder of both Sterling Style Academy and Global Image Group

Written by Michelle T. Sterling | Edited by Annabelle Reyes

Last Updated: August 15, 2025 Fact Checked

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What is a travel capsule wardrobe?

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What to Include

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Pro Tips

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Summer Travel Capsule Wardrobe

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FAQs

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If you have a trip or vacation coming up, creating a travel capsule wardrobe is the perfect way to make the packing process easier and ensure you have great outfits to wear the entire time! I’m Michelle T. Sterling, an acclaimed expert in image consulting and the founder of both Sterling Style Academy and Global Image Group, and I’m here to explain how to build the perfect capsule wardrobe for your travel needs. I’ll tell you what to include, provide some of my own personal recommendations, and answer your FAQs. Keep reading for everything you need to know and find me on Instagram @thesterlinglifestyle.

Travel Capsule Wardrobe 101

Illustration of examples of clothing items that go in a capsule wardrobe, including various tops, bottoms, and shoes.

According to wardrobe stylist Ashley Kahn, a travel capsule wardrobe is when you curate a set of clothing items that easily mix and match with each other. Creating a travel capsule wardrobe saves you space and time when packing for trips.

Section 1 of 5:

What is a travel capsule wardrobe?

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The idea is to pack a curated group of clothing pieces that pair well together, so that you can save space and time when packing and get dressed more easily when you’re on your trip.

Section 2 of 5:

What to Include in a Travel Capsule Wardrobe

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Include 10-15 versatile pieces in a travel capsule wardrobe. That said, the number of items to include depends on the length of your trip and whether you’re okay with repeating looks. For example, if you’re going on a five-day trip, I’d say that 5 tops, 3 bottoms, 2 pairs of shoes, and 1 bag would be sufficient. You could mix and match these pieces to create five distinct looks for each day of your trip. Here’s a breakdown:
- Tops: Pick 5 tops that vary in style and color. For example, a mix of casual T-shirts, dressier blouses, and a lightweight sweater or jean jacket would work perfectly.
- Bottoms: For your 3 different bottoms, pack a pair of trousers, a pair of shorts, and a skirt. If you’d like, you can make it 4 bottoms and add a pair of jeans as well.
- Shoes: To look more elevated and put-together on vacation, I recommend packing two pairs of shoes that are comfortable yet stylish, instead of athletic sneakers. Ballet flats with comfortable insoles or cushiony sandals are great options, and you can also add on a low stacked heel to dress up your look from day to night.
- Bag: I would bring a small cross-body handbag for essentials like your phone, wallet, and credit cards.
This popular rule suggests packing five tops, four bottoms, three pairs of shoes, two dresses (or jackets), and one bag. It’s a good basic formula if you’re looking for specific guidelines, but feel free to tweak it to fit your needs—at the end of the day, you know yourself best!

Section 3 of 5:

Expert Tips for Building a Travel Capsule Wardrobe

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Stick to neutral colors that you can mix and match easily. Choosing clothing pieces and accessories in neutral colors makes it super easy to mix and match. If you’re someone who likes to wear more color, try sticking to neutrals with your bottoms and wearing accent colors on top to make the look more interesting.
- For shoes and accessories, I recommend either packing a tan handbag and tan flats, or a black handbag and black flats, depending on your personal coloring and personal preferences.
For example, if you’re the kind of person who prefers to wear dresses, the typical 5-4-3-2-1 capsule wardrobe may not work for you. Instead, it might be best to pack 5 different dresses with 2 pairs of shoes, one casual pair for daytime and one pair of heels to elevate the looks at night. This makes things easy because the dress essentially creates the outfit.
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Take your destination and planned activities into account. Think about where you’re going when packing. What’s the weather like? What will you be doing? If you’re doing athletic activities, you’ll need to pack athletic clothes. If you’re going out to fancy dinners, you’ll need to pack some dressier, more put-together options to wear out. If you think about these types of questions, that should make it easier to decide what to put in your suitcase!
- Think about who you’re traveling with, too. Some of your friends might get more dressed up than others, so you may want to edit your packing list accordingly.

Section 4 of 5:

Summer Travel Capsule Wardrobe

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For a summer trip, pack lightweight fabrics such as linen and cotton. Historically, I would pack dresses that can easily transition from day to night, but these days I’m very into matching sets. They allow you to coordinate pieces super easily! You can even mix and match between different matching sets. For example, if you have a light denim matching set and a linen matching set in the trending butter yellow color, you could pair the denim top with the yellow shorts one day, and vice versa.
- Pro tip: A fashionable one-piece swimsuit can also serve as a bodysuit that you could pair with shorts or a skirt.
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If you’re going for a summer casual look, I would recommend bringing 5 different polos in different colors and 2-3 different shorts in neutral colors such as white, khaki, or navy. Bring 1 or 2 pairs of trousers in neutral colors, in case you’re going out to dinner at a dressier place and can’t wear shorts. Pack a pair of comfortable walking shoes, but avoid athletic sneakers—things that look more like tennis sneakers, driving shoes, or even a pair of suede loafers are all great options for looking more put-together.
- Pro tip: Wearing monochromatic colors (the same color from your shirt to your shorts to your shoes) also makes it so much easier to get dressed.
- If you’re especially chic, I would pack some linen button-down shirts to pair with your shorts and sneakers, as well.

Section 5 of 5:

Travel Capsule Wardrobe FAQs

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Are there any must-haves for capsule wardrobes? Do yourself a favor and buy matching sets. If a top comes with a matching bottom in the store, get it. If a pair of pants or a skirt comes with different top options, get them. This way, you’ll be sure to coordinate and match your pieces in your travel capsule wardrobe perfectly!
- Also, if you tend to get cold, make sure you have a cardigan!
- For the actual packing process, packing cubes are a real game-changer. You can put each of your outfits into a different cube to organize them, or you can just use them to store your PJs, underwear, or toiletries easily in your suitcase.
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What accessories go with a travel capsule wardrobe? For bags, I would bring a small cross-body handbag to put your phone, wallet, and lip gloss in. I would also bring a tote bag for travelling, which you can also wear if you’re going somewhere that requires a bigger bag. For jewelry, go with classic items that are versatile and can mix and match easily with all your clothing pieces. That could be something like a simple golden necklace with matching gold earrings and a gold bracelet.
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Why is it a good idea to build a travel capsule wardrobe? Capsule wardrobes make the packing process easier, and they also prevent you from overpacking.
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How does color season factor into building a travel capsule wardrobe? Figure out your color season so you know what your best colors are. When you know which neutrals and which accent colors suit you best, it makes it much easier to pack and coordinate outfits. For example, if you’re a summer, white would be a good neutral for you, and you could add the trending colors of butter yellow, powder pink, or sky blue as accents. This would not only harmonize with your personal features, but also make you look stylish and up-to-date.
- I recommend an online color analysis with me that starts at $49.97, or a more robust one that starts at $97.97.