Tuesday Travels' TIPs & TRICKs

My recent experience at the airport gave me an idea....to share some travel tips and tricks with you. I normally travel by car, but this time it was appropriate to fly. I found it silly to pay for checked luggage so (to my very girly sister's dismay) managed to pack 2 weeks worth of clothes and shoes into my carry-on bag. I also brought a small bookbag that contained my laptop, sketchbook, indie biz binder, and pencil bag. Oh, and I also carried a 16x20 painting (this one) that I wrapped in newspaper to disguise it as reading material. lol. it worked :)

Just to fully visualize this, my carry-on was completely full, but it just goes to show you (well, me, really) that one can get by just fine on only a few outfits. I actually didn't even wear everything I brought. well.... maybe I did. (see video below)

ok. lets get to it.

Challenge: I want to bring my scanner back to Tahoe with me. I'm too broke/cheap to mail it plus I don't want it to get damaged. I read the airlines rules on luggage and found that I was only able to bring 1 carry-on bag and 1 personal item. The personal item could be a laptop bag, a briefcase, a handbag, OR a small bookbag. So I need to make my 3 items equal 2 items, without exceeding the size limitations.

Hmmm. I debated leaving most of my clothes behind and packing the scanner in my carry-on bag. Decided against it because I really wanted to have the scanner box too since traveling in the car/trailer makes loose, improperly packaged objects likely to get damaged.

Solution: I used kraft paper to make the scanner box less noticeable and hopefully pass as an over-sized (20 x 14.5 x 6) briefcase. ;) it has a handle even. I then layered as many of my clothes as I could managed without looking to 'obvious'. Since I was now wearing almost the whole contents of my carry-on, I managed to then fit my book bag and all its contents in my carry-on, plus a few items I wasn't able to wear. My carry-on I'm sure surpassed the weight limit but I knew as long as the stewardess didn't try to lift it, noone would know. (just fyi. i was a little worried about my healing hand, but it managed to help get my bag in and out of the overhead compartment resulting in a few aches afterward but doing quite fine.) I DID make it back to Tahoe, to my surprise, without being hassled or questioned about the big extra box. I didn't pass out from heat exhaustion even though it was in the 70's when I departed Wichita and when I arrived in Sacramento.

Here's a little video demonstrating my layering technique =)
note: the pink bottom layer are leggings (aka long underwear) so I didn't want to strip down to them for you.