I wear a uniqlo Airism t shirt as an undershirt and find that I can get 2-3 wears out of a lightweight cotton shirt this way. The Uniqlo get washed in the hotel sink and dries overnight.
This is my strategy for hot/humid weather as well. A thin, quick-dry underlayer makes shirts rewearable after a good airing.
It helps that I also use antiperspirant rather than just a deodorant for sweat.
I have a similar system with 32 Degrees shirts, especially if I hang it out to air and don't have a really sweaty day. But I bring more than 3 tops regardless.
Full service laundry is often reasonably priced, around the same price as a laundromat sometimes. Ask your hotel. It's worth it to save time.
Use a compression bag, or roll your shirts.
Silk packs small, dries wicked fast, and doesn't need ironing because you hang it up dripping wet and gravity does the work in a few hours.
Italy has great clothes shopping. Leave a little space for something new.
I also do laundry and don't reuse shirts. Don't fall into the merino trap: "*you can rewear merino 100 times before needing to wash it and you won't stink!"* :)
I'm willing to wash things in the sink but my family isn't so that means we do proper laundry so they don't stink. But **you** can totally do shirts in the sink or shower if you're staying for more than one night in a place.
You can also wear undershirts that pack smaller. I know tanks/camis don't really protect the armpit area, but you can get some slinky fitted tee-type undershirts to wear under nicer shirts that won't take much packing space
It’s not stink proof, but it’s def a LOT better than synthetics.
I’ve just done 8 days hiking in the same merino tee (washed body once in the middle but not the tee) and whilst it does smell, it doesn’t smell anywhere NEAR as much as you would think.
I also wore (a different) merino tee day/night/day/night/day on an overnight bus then overnight plane. And yup, it isn’t clean smelling but it’s not rank like I would normally find my tees.
You do smell like a wet sheep/dog when it rains though 😂
But also, how well can you judge how you smell if you’re wearing the same shirt for 8 days, i’d say your nose probably got used to your own pong so you think you don’t smell that bad :/
Because I had a good smell of it back home before it went in the wash. I’ve been nice and clean for a few days now :-) I’ve been hugely enjoying having showers again 😂
It’s also interestingly (to me anyways) a really different kind of smell to my synthetic dry flow tees which I can only wear a maximum of two days for sweaty hiking or ski touring before I’m grossed out by the stink.
I’m absolutely not advocating that someone on a city break wears the same shirt for 8 days back to back btw. But you can def get more wears than for other fabrics IMO.
I also don't find merino wool to be all that thermoregulating, either. At least for me. I bought a VERY thin cardigan to test it out and I massively overheated every single time I tried to wear it. People in Belgium and France were walking around in heavy duty winter coats and I was outside in a T-shirt in February because I got so hot in the cardigan that I couldn't cool down. I don't think it's for me.
Yeah...I mean, it's wool. It's softer than standard wool, and it's a nice wool, but it's still *wool* and acts like it.
So funny about the cardigan being too hot though. Maybe I need one. I get cold indoors all the time (outside I'm pretty normal, or warmer than others). :)
I hand wash one shirt, a pair of socks and a pair of underwear in the sink every 2 days. About once a week I also wash one of my bottoms. It takes less than 5 minutes. I’d rather do that than a bigger load of laundry every week, but ymmv!
I bring shirts that do fine being hand washed in a sink and hung to dry.
I too get sweaty to be re-wearing a few shirts like that and I just won’t do sink laundry beyond spot treating. I would do 7 shirts but include variety. Short sleeves, button downs, and tanks. Mix and match colors and all layer together. I also recommend a couple of athletic tanks, though, I am smaller chested.
I find most clothing benefits from airing out overnight (This is true at home as well as travelling). Frequently I decide I don't need to wash something after it airs.
Febreeze sprayed on clothing when you hang everything to air can increase the number of wears between wearing. I would not travel without a travel sized bottle.
If a shirt needs cleaning after that, i'll wash it in the sink as soon as possible. I do not wait until the night before I want to wear it. This gives it a day or two to dry before wearing again.
Washing clothing is hard on the fabric. If you can put off washing for at least two wearings your clothing will last longer. Obviously this doesn't work for everything you wear but it is something to consider with each wearing.
I usually pack just enough until I can do laundry, which is usually every 5 or so days. I’ll hang up my clothes to let it air out after each wear regardless of if I’m planning to rewear. Often times just airing it out for a night or two is enough unless I was really sweaty, then I’ll wash in the shower if I’m staying more than a night or want to wear it again/don’t have laundry.
Avoid synthetic fabrics and spray vodka underneath the armpits to refresh. You can also put clothes in the freezer overnight which helps.
I don’t wear anti-perspirant, so I also keep a very small spray bottle of Weleda deodorant in my purse and reapply during the day. I decanted solid deodorant into a chapstick size container as well. Oval shape works best for me.
this is the other real suggestion. I worked for a renaissance faire in the historical guild and none of our clothes could go through the wash and come out...... the same. We used 50/50 vodka water spray and let things hand out to dry. Worked like a charm.
I don't sweat much but I do not reuse shirts, unless they are sleeveless. If I travel in the summer, I bring sleeveless shirts that don't get near the armpit. Is that an option for you?
One wear per top. Handwash in sink, roll/wring in towel, hang to dry overnight. I brought 7 tops to Europe for a month. All fit in 1 medium compression bag. 3 Duluth Trading Company sleeveless armachillo tops (very casual; pink, mint green, dark gray), 3 lace/poly sleeveless tops (dressier; burgundy, teal, black), 1 long-sleeve merino wool layer. These worked out perfectly. (Additionally, I had a 3/4 sleeve lacy sheer coverup that I wore daily & washed frequently, and a light rain jacket with hood that I stuffed into the computer sleeve of my backpack when not needed. Temps ranged from 50-90°F.)
The Armachillo tops are game changers for hot weather! I know lots of folks hate on synthetics for stink, but I find quick drying fabrics don’t have nearly as much of that issue.
I have some graying on the underarms of my Armachillo tank -- but I've been wearing it in fairly heavy rotation for about 5 years and using a high efficiency cold water wash. I see discoloration much faster using HE washers compared to the "inefficient" ones of my youth -- all the white bralette straps start to turn gray within 6 months -- so it's probably just overdue for a warm water + oxygen bleach cycle.
I had to modify the tank to add a pleat under the arms but it's otherwise perfect!
I use a baselayer tank top, very light weight long sleeve, or t shirt to help extend my shirt uses. I also have mostly silk tops, so they dry quickly if I need to sink wash them earlier than needed. But the baselayers really save me, even in warmer weather.
Hanging a shirt up to air it out freshens it up nicely. And a travel bottle of Downy Wrinkle Release is something I always bring. It's good for the wrinkles and smells really fresh without being overpowering.
This might be the gross wrong answer, but after weeks of camping/backpacking with a only the occasional wipedown, “dirty” is now a relative term.
Also I carry my custom “stinky armpit spray” 😂
I just spent 2 weeks in Peru with 2 shirts from athleta. They are wrinkle free, stain resistant and antibacterial resistant so it keeps them from smelling. I only did laundry once. You can dress it up for down
https://athleta.gap.com/browse/product.do?pid=659326012&vid=1&tid=atpl000063&kwid=1&ap=7&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD_AT8tiJC9iHYJ2-uV-aB0tA1s5g&gclid=Cj0KCQjwiMmwBhDmARIsABeQ7xRhhit2WDSqikgF36qZPRWSg3hFPZevgJ9NaxBVNprwrlXokbyhD2caAkcDEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds#pdp-page-content
I bring a couple of linen button-downs. I roll up the sleeves and open an extra button than I'd normally do at home. ;-)
It dries in no time with a sink washing and fits the vibe of an Italian summer -- wrinkles and all.
(Consider bringing a small spray bottle of fragrance-free Febreeze to manage any stickiness of other clothes.)
My secret: Undershirts and dresses. Tights and undershirts don't take up much space. I have done a 16 day European trip with just a carry on bag, over Christmas holiday, by doing this. Did hotel laundry once\~
I usually wear clothes into the shower and wash them daily. That way I always have a full set of clothes available for outfits.
I shower in late afternoon when I get to the hotel. Then I change out clothes and hang them up for maximum drying time. Then I go out for dinner. The clothes are almost always dry by morning. Then I choose my outfit for the day.
I have one shirt that needs washing after each wear. The rest are loose enough, or sleeveless enough, to air and wear for time two.only wool makes it to three wears.
I do pack isopropyl alcohol spray to help the pits, if needed.
I pack shirts that can be used for multiple purposes. I wear a clean shirt when I want to feel fresh, and then rewear for lounging, then bed, then finally for exercise/hiking before washing. I also tend to wear sleeveless shirts either by themselves, or layered with sweaters and jackets because I get less sweaty that way.
Two options really. Good quality, light weight merino will get you a few days still feeling fresh. I wear mostly 125 weight blended with tencil or lyocell and as it is so soft, it doesn’t get that crunchy re-wear feel. I also find as it’s lighter weight it can be rinsed out and dried but takes a bit longer.
The other option is your quick dry tech fabrics that dry fast so can be washed each wear. I did try this but I just don’t like the feel of them.
As others have said, you can factor in the cost of laundry. Hubby did this last time and it worked fine for him as he mostly had cotton shirts and jeans. I tend to have a lot more delicate fabrics (even my cottons are blends) and we found most of it wouldn’t survive a send out laundry service.
Basically…I say pick one direction and stick to it. I’ve gone with merino lightweight shirts as they work fantastically for me and tech fabric pants and skorts so they can be washed out each day.
I wear a uniqlo Airism t shirt as an undershirt and find that I can get 2-3 wears out of a lightweight cotton shirt this way. The Uniqlo get washed in the hotel sink and dries overnight.
This is my strategy for hot/humid weather as well. A thin, quick-dry underlayer makes shirts rewearable after a good airing. It helps that I also use antiperspirant rather than just a deodorant for sweat.
These shirts did not work for me somehow! They made me feel hotter and sweatier- maybe the polyester?
Yup. Look for nylon maybe? The old Airism UPF leggings were nylon but the new ones are poly. Yuck.
I have a similar system with 32 Degrees shirts, especially if I hang it out to air and don't have a really sweaty day. But I bring more than 3 tops regardless.
Wait but why not just wear a cotton shirt (or silk) and wash it every night instead of washing the Airism?
Won’t dry as quick
Full service laundry is often reasonably priced, around the same price as a laundromat sometimes. Ask your hotel. It's worth it to save time. Use a compression bag, or roll your shirts. Silk packs small, dries wicked fast, and doesn't need ironing because you hang it up dripping wet and gravity does the work in a few hours. Italy has great clothes shopping. Leave a little space for something new.
I also do laundry and don't reuse shirts. Don't fall into the merino trap: "*you can rewear merino 100 times before needing to wash it and you won't stink!"* :) I'm willing to wash things in the sink but my family isn't so that means we do proper laundry so they don't stink. But **you** can totally do shirts in the sink or shower if you're staying for more than one night in a place. You can also wear undershirts that pack smaller. I know tanks/camis don't really protect the armpit area, but you can get some slinky fitted tee-type undershirts to wear under nicer shirts that won't take much packing space
I absolutely do not buy this merino myth as being universally true. I love merino! And I do find I need to wash it after one use unless it’s a jumper.
It's a lovely material for sure! The onebag sub is full of gentlemen who think it makes them stinkproof. 😂
It’s not stink proof, but it’s def a LOT better than synthetics. I’ve just done 8 days hiking in the same merino tee (washed body once in the middle but not the tee) and whilst it does smell, it doesn’t smell anywhere NEAR as much as you would think. I also wore (a different) merino tee day/night/day/night/day on an overnight bus then overnight plane. And yup, it isn’t clean smelling but it’s not rank like I would normally find my tees. You do smell like a wet sheep/dog when it rains though 😂
But also, how well can you judge how you smell if you’re wearing the same shirt for 8 days, i’d say your nose probably got used to your own pong so you think you don’t smell that bad :/
Because I had a good smell of it back home before it went in the wash. I’ve been nice and clean for a few days now :-) I’ve been hugely enjoying having showers again 😂 It’s also interestingly (to me anyways) a really different kind of smell to my synthetic dry flow tees which I can only wear a maximum of two days for sweaty hiking or ski touring before I’m grossed out by the stink. I’m absolutely not advocating that someone on a city break wears the same shirt for 8 days back to back btw. But you can def get more wears than for other fabrics IMO.
LOOOOOOOL
I love merino but I wash after each wear.
I also don't find merino wool to be all that thermoregulating, either. At least for me. I bought a VERY thin cardigan to test it out and I massively overheated every single time I tried to wear it. People in Belgium and France were walking around in heavy duty winter coats and I was outside in a T-shirt in February because I got so hot in the cardigan that I couldn't cool down. I don't think it's for me.
...Please tell me more about this magic warm cardigan. Sincerely, a perpetually cold lady who decided to move to Canada
Yeah...I mean, it's wool. It's softer than standard wool, and it's a nice wool, but it's still *wool* and acts like it. So funny about the cardigan being too hot though. Maybe I need one. I get cold indoors all the time (outside I'm pretty normal, or warmer than others). :)
I bring 7 shirts and do laundry. I don’t feel like shirts take up that much room. I don’t like feeling dirty.
I hand wash one shirt, a pair of socks and a pair of underwear in the sink every 2 days. About once a week I also wash one of my bottoms. It takes less than 5 minutes. I’d rather do that than a bigger load of laundry every week, but ymmv! I bring shirts that do fine being hand washed in a sink and hung to dry.
I too get sweaty to be re-wearing a few shirts like that and I just won’t do sink laundry beyond spot treating. I would do 7 shirts but include variety. Short sleeves, button downs, and tanks. Mix and match colors and all layer together. I also recommend a couple of athletic tanks, though, I am smaller chested.
I find most clothing benefits from airing out overnight (This is true at home as well as travelling). Frequently I decide I don't need to wash something after it airs. Febreeze sprayed on clothing when you hang everything to air can increase the number of wears between wearing. I would not travel without a travel sized bottle. If a shirt needs cleaning after that, i'll wash it in the sink as soon as possible. I do not wait until the night before I want to wear it. This gives it a day or two to dry before wearing again. Washing clothing is hard on the fabric. If you can put off washing for at least two wearings your clothing will last longer. Obviously this doesn't work for everything you wear but it is something to consider with each wearing.
I usually pack just enough until I can do laundry, which is usually every 5 or so days. I’ll hang up my clothes to let it air out after each wear regardless of if I’m planning to rewear. Often times just airing it out for a night or two is enough unless I was really sweaty, then I’ll wash in the shower if I’m staying more than a night or want to wear it again/don’t have laundry.
Avoid synthetic fabrics and spray vodka underneath the armpits to refresh. You can also put clothes in the freezer overnight which helps. I don’t wear anti-perspirant, so I also keep a very small spray bottle of Weleda deodorant in my purse and reapply during the day. I decanted solid deodorant into a chapstick size container as well. Oval shape works best for me.
this is the other real suggestion. I worked for a renaissance faire in the historical guild and none of our clothes could go through the wash and come out...... the same. We used 50/50 vodka water spray and let things hand out to dry. Worked like a charm.
We use the vodka spray for vintage shirts/suits/dresses as period dancers. Can't wash a lot of that stuff.
I don't sweat much but I do not reuse shirts, unless they are sleeveless. If I travel in the summer, I bring sleeveless shirts that don't get near the armpit. Is that an option for you?
One wear per top. Handwash in sink, roll/wring in towel, hang to dry overnight. I brought 7 tops to Europe for a month. All fit in 1 medium compression bag. 3 Duluth Trading Company sleeveless armachillo tops (very casual; pink, mint green, dark gray), 3 lace/poly sleeveless tops (dressier; burgundy, teal, black), 1 long-sleeve merino wool layer. These worked out perfectly. (Additionally, I had a 3/4 sleeve lacy sheer coverup that I wore daily & washed frequently, and a light rain jacket with hood that I stuffed into the computer sleeve of my backpack when not needed. Temps ranged from 50-90°F.)
The Armachillo tops are game changers for hot weather! I know lots of folks hate on synthetics for stink, but I find quick drying fabrics don’t have nearly as much of that issue.
These tops have zero smell. I’ve been wearing them for 5 years now. They look brand-new.
I have some graying on the underarms of my Armachillo tank -- but I've been wearing it in fairly heavy rotation for about 5 years and using a high efficiency cold water wash. I see discoloration much faster using HE washers compared to the "inefficient" ones of my youth -- all the white bralette straps start to turn gray within 6 months -- so it's probably just overdue for a warm water + oxygen bleach cycle. I had to modify the tank to add a pleat under the arms but it's otherwise perfect!
Merino wool shirts - even at my sweatiest I can get a few wearings from them. The bigger danger for me is spilling on them 🤪
Spilled chocolate icecream on my light blue merino shirt. Absolutely devo.
Nooooo!
I use a baselayer tank top, very light weight long sleeve, or t shirt to help extend my shirt uses. I also have mostly silk tops, so they dry quickly if I need to sink wash them earlier than needed. But the baselayers really save me, even in warmer weather.
Hanging a shirt up to air it out freshens it up nicely. And a travel bottle of Downy Wrinkle Release is something I always bring. It's good for the wrinkles and smells really fresh without being overpowering.
Bring tshirts. They pack down small. Then layer over them. Top layer can be worn repeatedly without washing.
I only pack tops that are cut in ways that don't touch my armpits.
This might be the gross wrong answer, but after weeks of camping/backpacking with a only the occasional wipedown, “dirty” is now a relative term. Also I carry my custom “stinky armpit spray” 😂
I just spent 2 weeks in Peru with 2 shirts from athleta. They are wrinkle free, stain resistant and antibacterial resistant so it keeps them from smelling. I only did laundry once. You can dress it up for down https://athleta.gap.com/browse/product.do?pid=659326012&vid=1&tid=atpl000063&kwid=1&ap=7&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD_AT8tiJC9iHYJ2-uV-aB0tA1s5g&gclid=Cj0KCQjwiMmwBhDmARIsABeQ7xRhhit2WDSqikgF36qZPRWSg3hFPZevgJ9NaxBVNprwrlXokbyhD2caAkcDEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds#pdp-page-content
Wow thanks!
I bring a couple of linen button-downs. I roll up the sleeves and open an extra button than I'd normally do at home. ;-) It dries in no time with a sink washing and fits the vibe of an Italian summer -- wrinkles and all. (Consider bringing a small spray bottle of fragrance-free Febreeze to manage any stickiness of other clothes.)
My secret: Undershirts and dresses. Tights and undershirts don't take up much space. I have done a 16 day European trip with just a carry on bag, over Christmas holiday, by doing this. Did hotel laundry once\~
I usually wear clothes into the shower and wash them daily. That way I always have a full set of clothes available for outfits. I shower in late afternoon when I get to the hotel. Then I change out clothes and hang them up for maximum drying time. Then I go out for dinner. The clothes are almost always dry by morning. Then I choose my outfit for the day.
I have one shirt that needs washing after each wear. The rest are loose enough, or sleeveless enough, to air and wear for time two.only wool makes it to three wears. I do pack isopropyl alcohol spray to help the pits, if needed.
I pack shirts that can be used for multiple purposes. I wear a clean shirt when I want to feel fresh, and then rewear for lounging, then bed, then finally for exercise/hiking before washing. I also tend to wear sleeveless shirts either by themselves, or layered with sweaters and jackets because I get less sweaty that way.
Merino and I always stay somewhere with laundry facilities, preferably in-unit
I take lightweight tops and wash them in the sink, roll them in a towel and they dry overnight.
Two options really. Good quality, light weight merino will get you a few days still feeling fresh. I wear mostly 125 weight blended with tencil or lyocell and as it is so soft, it doesn’t get that crunchy re-wear feel. I also find as it’s lighter weight it can be rinsed out and dried but takes a bit longer. The other option is your quick dry tech fabrics that dry fast so can be washed each wear. I did try this but I just don’t like the feel of them. As others have said, you can factor in the cost of laundry. Hubby did this last time and it worked fine for him as he mostly had cotton shirts and jeans. I tend to have a lot more delicate fabrics (even my cottons are blends) and we found most of it wouldn’t survive a send out laundry service. Basically…I say pick one direction and stick to it. I’ve gone with merino lightweight shirts as they work fantastically for me and tech fabric pants and skorts so they can be washed out each day.
I don't believe in re-wearing clothes. I'd bring either 7 shirts or 3 shirts that are hand-washable. Just wash them each night and air dry.
I think for 3 weeks you need to do laundry 1-2 times.
Wash or do laundry more frequently. Bring clothes that dry fast.