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Welcome to Day 13 of 30 Days to Packing a Better Bag.
We all know the big debate when it comes to packing your clothing. Is rolling better than folding? Does rolling clothes save space and keep your clothing from getting wrinkled?
I’m sure we’ve all battled trying to fit an extra t-shirt into our bag at one point or another. No matter how light you pack!
Is there a better way? What is the most space efficient way to pack clothes?
When it comes to rolling versus folding, it’s really a matter of your trip style, personal preference, and packing goals.
- For example, business travelers will probably prefer to fold clothes on the creases, with maybe something like tissue paper in the middle to reduce friction and help keep them from getting extra wrinkles.
- Backpackers, on the other hand, will most likely be trying to cram as much clothing into as little space as possible. To do this, they might prefer the rolling method, which fits more in less room while also keeping wrinkles to a minimum.
Let’s discuss these methods in greater detail.
Rolling
Does rolling clothes save space?
Rolling has been said to be the method of packing that will help people save space.
Why?
Because it compresses the clothing while also making it easier to stack and pack into a tiny section of your bag, suitcase, or travel backpack.
Think about it. Folding your clothes and leaving them to sit as-is can mean that your packed wardrobe covers more surface area in the backpack or suitcase. In the end, this makes it harder for you to fit your other pieces of travel gear into the luggage without overlapping or being a bit more unorganized. Rolling means you can treat your packing list more like the game pieces in Tetris, filling in gaps between certain items to take full advantage of the space (and freeing up space in the process).
How to Roll Your Clothes
For items like shirts, blouses, and sweaters, you generally want to fold the body in half vertically. Fold in the sleeves and then roll tight.
For items like pants and jeans, you will want to fold them in half and then roll them tight.
Try to pack items in your luggage so that the rolls stay as tight as possible. While a rubber band will do the trick, they tend to leave lines on your clothing from the pressure. Another option is using some packing bands, but our preferred method is to roll clothes and then place them into a packing cube or compression bag.
Rolling versus Folding
Is it better to roll or fold clothes?
Some people argue that rolling doesn’t do a better job of making your packing smaller because a bunch of folded shirts that are squished into a suitcase will also be compressed. This is true.
In fact, it has been said that just by leaving your clothes and gear to settle in your luggage overnight (the natural weight of the items squishing out air, for example), your overall luggage size can reduce by up to 8% on its own!
But, it’s not just about the amount of fabric being compressed into its absolute minimum, it’s about being able to pack the pieces in their optimal positions so they remain taut and well-packed — and let’s not forget about the fewer wrinkles part. We’ll be talking more about keeping your clothes wrinkle-free in a future post, and packing techniques for that purpose could vary greatly compared to packing for space.
Rolling versus Folding FAQs
Is it better to roll or fold dresses?
Like any other piece of clothing, rolling travel dresses will help you to make the most out of the space in your bag.
If you are wondering how to roll a dress for packing without wrinkles, this depends largely on the fabric of your travel clothes. Certain fabrics, like merino wool, are less prone to wrinkles. You may want to skip materials like cotton which wrinkle easily.
You’ll probably never have some dresses completely wrinkle-free after being in a bag for a couple of hours. The trick here is to hang the dress up immediately at your destination and use some wrinkle-release spray.
Does rolling clothes save space?
Yes! You will be able to use your rolled clothes to fill up all the empty spaces in your bag and pack more efficiently. This means no more dead space in your bag and more space for souvenirs.
How do you pack clothes with limited space?
This depends on the scenario. If you’re packing formal wear or button-up shirts you may want to skip the rolling. However, if you’re less concerned about keeping your clothing wrinkle-free, you can roll your clothes and then pack them in a compression packing cube. That way you can fit more clothes into limited space. You can also stuff smaller items like underwear or socks into the tiny leftover spaces in your bag.
Take Action: Fold and Roll Your Clothes
Fold a stack of clothing, being sure to take a photo of the before. Roll the same stack of clothing and compare images. If you’d rather see them side-by-side, then get two stacks of clothing that are about equal and see the difference. If you want to make it truly interesting, leave your folded stack of clothes overnight to see if they settle.
Do you roll your clothes? Does rolling clothes save space in your bag? Let us know in the comments below.
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I feel like whether I roll or fold… my clothes end up getting wrinkled! I love using Downey’s Wrinkle Release Spray on my clothes when I arrive at the hotel, then I hang them up for the night.
Better yet, everyone should read your previous posts for this month. That way they won’t have to worry about cramming their clothes into their suitcase since they won’t be overpacking 😉
Happy travels!
I’m a total “roller” when I pack! But I do enjoy the roll/fold hybrid as well LOVE my packing cubes. It’s inevitable that clothing will get wrinkled when packed in luggage for hours and hours – however, I try to choose fabrics such as Bamboo and Modal that are more ‘crease resistant’.
Great post, thanks!
You can use dry cleaning bags in between the folds and each piece to almost completely eliminate wrinkles when you choose the folding option. They work great for business travel.
I use the bundle method. I went to the Philippines with a 20 inch carry on and was able to take enough clothing for the 3 weeks I was there.
Ranger- rolling small tshirts and tanks is a great method…and so much fun! I don’t recommend it for larger items though…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=so93nqxZLjM
I understand about rolling t-shirts and the like but what about woven blouses, etc? I’m not quite sure what to do with them. Thanks
Nice blouses are tough, and I don’t think there’s any way to get them to your destination wrinkle-free, unless you invest in shirts made of wrinkle-free fabrics. Some people fold their blouses with pieces of plastic or tissue paper as it helps prevent hard crease lines. Another tactic is to “bundle wrap” the blouses on the outside of other clothing items. Remove blouses immediately at your destination, hang in the shower, or bring a small bottle of wrinkle release spray.
Folding clothes and layering them in a 2 gallon zip kock is the best! You can see your clothes and the way you fold them, that’s how they come out. I have learned this aftertraveling foe over 30 years!!!
Just by pure physics, a shirt (or any piece of clothing) will take up the same amount of space whether it is laid flat or rolled. The mass of the shirt cannot change so a rolled shirt has the same mass as a flat shirt. It is an illusion if you think otherwise. You might be able to mold a rolled piece of clothing, but it takes up the same space as a flat piece of clothing because the mass is exactly the same.
I agree, as long as the air is removed – either folding and stacking or rolling, both will take same space. The key to folding is stacking so that there aren’t extra air spaces between items.
The steps to folding military pants are: lay out the pants and smooth out any wrinkles and creases. Turn the waistband inside out and smooth out the pockets. Turn pants inside out and flatten again. Fold one pant leg over the other to form a square shape. Bend your ankles up and smooth out wrinkles and fine lines.Roll up the pants, starting at the bottom. Wrap the rolled up pants into a mini burrito.