What I packed for 4 days in New York

There’s something about packing for New York that makes me want to simplify. I know I’ll be walking everywhere, layering for the weather, and wanting to feel put-together without overthinking it.

I pulled out my small rolling suitcase and created a mini “wardrobe rack” at home to plan it all visually before packing. Seeing everything together helped me spot easy mix-and-match combos: It's so helpfully to physically put together different outfit – to see how many outfits you can make from just a handful of items. I'm a very visual person, so this is essential for me.

Here’s what made the cut:

• 2 pairs of jeans

  • Black straight leg Paige

  • Dark barrel leg Frame

    
    

• 2 tops

  • Striped long-sleeve

  • Chambray button-up

    
    

• 2 sweaters

  • Beige Sezane sweater

  • Red button-up Sezane sweater

• 1 short coat

• 1 long coat – a versatile wool coat that worked day to night

  
  

• 1 pair of sneakers – perfect for long city walks

  
  

• 1 pair of flats – great for dinners and meetings

  
  

• 1 pair of boots – for cooler evenings and extra polish

To save space, I wore my jacket and boots on the plane — a game changer for packing light.

Once I started putting outfits together on the rack, I realized how much variety I actually had. Just swapping shoes or layering a sweater changed the whole look. Over four days, I had more than enough options without ever feeling like I was repeating an outfit.

The takeaway?

Creating a small, intentional capsule made packing so much easier — and getting dressed every morning in New York felt effortless. Next trip, I’ll be doing this again.

Other packing items:

• Sezane flower travel pouch

• Parker Thatch animal print Buddy pouch

• Away suitcase