Anyone good with hand luggage only packing challenge?

[Sparkletastic]

Off to NYC with DD in April. Hand luggage only as we are trying to do it on the cheap. I’m a tall-ish size 18 with generous tits n hips. No idea what to pack and I guess the weather could be anything. Any helpful suggestions of what to buy / wear / pack gratefully received.

How long are you going for? It's amazing how much you can fit in hand luggage, especially with packing cubes!

Think about things which can be layered up/down for different temperatures or dressed up/down for different times of day/activities. For example I have a jumpsuit which I can wear over a long sleeve t-shirt/under a chunky cardigan/coat during cooler days, but then also with a blazer and some funky jewellery of an evening. Wouldn't pack anything that couldn't be worn at least two ways.

Wear your warmest/bulkiest things to travel.
Have you seen the hack about stuffing extras into a neck pillow? I put underwear and PJ's in mine, worked a treat.

Depends entirely on your allowance and trip duration, also if you're an 'i can't possibly go away without 20 different lotions and potions'.

A week with 10kg just about doable. Ryanair teeny weeny allowance, overnight at best...

Also you need to check what you're allowed to take in hand luggage, I know some airports are lifting the liquids restriction, you'd need to search your airport's rules

Omg the neck pillow hack is genius thank you!
going for 5 days but obvs travelling on 2 of them. I’ve got some compression packing cubes somewhere so will deffo fish them out.

I guess I’ll travel in jeans as they are bulky. Totally undecided on coat. Might just risk pacamac. Blazer is a great call.

I am not exactly low maintenance in terms of skincare and makeup but I’ve been stockpiling capsule serums and stick blushers / bronzers.

Flying from Gatwick so will check if liquids rules lifted yet.

Are you on reddit? There's a sub heronebag www.reddit.com/r/t5_3jnwe/s/mBqO945RGl

I recommend those thin but warm quilted jackets from Uniqlo. Pack into a little stuff sack that comes with them if you don’t want to wear on the journey.

April is unpredictable, so bring layering things. Also rain gear, as in "April showers bring May flowers."
Have fun!

Nobody will care what you are wearing. Too busy looking at themselves!

But I know we all like to look half decent most of the time, so for a trip like that I usually stick to a plain colour selection for mix and match. So black. navy and tan bottoms. White, black, navy and tan tops - short and long sleeved T shirts, a light puffer jacket that can be squashed down into a packing cube. Cardigan in neutral, jeans and or trousers - forget the dresses unless you hate jeans and trousers, but they are so much more practical I think. One decent pair of walking shoes/trainers - wear them going, and one pair of flats to pack. A few nice light scarves and a bit of statement jewellery makes any plain old top look great. Then the usual undies, meds, chargers and so on. Buy toiletries there. Leave some room for purchases. You'll have an underseat bag/backpack so make use of it!

Above all else, have a brilliant time.

I’ve been thinking about one of these.

Thank you for excellent tips. DD and I had thought we should just buy shower gel and shampoo and conditioner to share when we arrive.

I was tempted to pack a dress but maybe not…

OP, any plans to relax the 100 ml liquid rule has been shelved at all UK and EU airports. It seems that the new ultra smart scanners for liquids were not as smart as they were promised to be.