What I’m Taking On Holiday, Vol. 3
*Or rather, what I took. The internet loves to beg the question, “What’s in My Bag?” but we here at the Attic thought we’d take that one step further and have our Editors share the things going into their suitcases. This isn’t a very frequent feature — most of us are, after all, struggling grad students or quite early on in our careers — but as I recently returned from a last minute holiday, I thought I’d share while I unpacked.
I went to Washington, D.C. recently, to meet up with Olivia and visit a few other friends who live in the area. I had never been but had been wanting to see Washington for some time, so when Olivia told me she’d be tagging along on her mother’s business trip, I decided to look up flights on a whim. As luck would have it, a few bargain seats were left and I was able to find a cool place in the Adams Morgan neighborhood to stay, so it all worked out perfectly.
As I had never been and the entire Southeast is in a will-they-won’t-they relationship with actual springtime right now, I wasn’t sure what the weather might in reality do. Reports of rain, heat, winter-like days... predictions changed literally daily as the days came closer to the trip. So I kind of overpacked, too much winter wear for what turned out to be a pretty spring-like week, but luckily I had a few back ups in my bag. The highlights, a.k.a. what actually left my suitcase, below:
Semi-lightweight sweaters. Washington has always given me collegiate vibes from afar, and so my general color scheme going into it was very much following in tone with my Cold Weather piece. This meant my favorite camel pullover and a boxy cardigan I could wear buttoned all the way up as a top or open over something lighter on a chill day.
Leaning into spring, however, I did know I wanted to wear some florals, and opted for a few warm, eclectic pieces. I think random color schemes work well for in between seasons, and I usually wear these a lot around early autumn too.
This skirt was originally a dress I found at Goodwill when I first moved to Savannah ten years ago, but I wasn’t a fan of the top and so I simply chopped it off. I think I do this a lot actually, as another skirt I packed was also fresh off my cutting table. Through all of the moves and wardrobe purges, this is one of those rare pieces full of too many memories to ever let go.
A lot of my favorite products fortunately come in travel size, but what I didn't anticipate was how tired I’d be. In the mornings I’d follow my actual beauty routine (wash, tone, hydrating serum, moisturize), but at night my saving grace was a makeup removing facial wipe. I also constantly reached for allergy treating eye drops and refreshing detox eye roller to look as awake as I wanted to feel. Last but not least, sunscreen, knowing especially how much time we’d spend walking around town. For makeup I decided to mix and match some colorful items for looks that, while fun, were relatively low key.
Knowing the number of bookshops we’d be visiting, I didn’t pack much in that department. Parnassus on Wheels is one of my favorite travel reads, short enough for a quick flight but also relevant given its plot of a young woman who sporadically decides to leave it all behind and travel as far away from home as she can get. I brought along Conversations With Friends to read in cafés but ended up flipping more through local purchases. I also finally got to Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom en route but maybe shouldn't have saved that one for the train...? Regardless, as Olivia said in her travel reads, slim volumes are perfect for short travel or in between moments.
You can read a bit more on our actual time bookshop-hopping in Washington here!
Raquel Reyes is Creative Director at The Attic on Eighth. She enjoys styling photo shoots, dramatic hair accessories, and old fashioned cocktails.
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