My boyfriend has just surprised me with a last minute break to Thailand (yippee!) but I have very little time to get organised and I’ve no idea what to pack. Have you any advice on what I should bring to look stylish and chic – without having to bring the kitchen sink?
Holiday packing has nothing to do with having an expensive wardrobe, and everything to do with careful planning. It is an art that requires confidence - firstly to leave out all those "just in case" items that you lug half way across the world and never wear and secondly to pack things that are too daring to wear at home.
One way to pack successfully is to identify your favourite clothes - and be honest about it. Don't take those dull, practical pieces that you never wear at home - take the clothes that you feel good in and love wearing, and never save anything for "best".
Don't leave packing to the last minute. Not only does constructing a holiday wardrobe take time, but the night before a holiday always takes on a festive feel - which invariably means a drunken stumble home and a few minutes' sleep before departing for an absurdly early charter flight from a distant airport.
Late nights are no time to make rational packing decisions, either. One year I spent two weeks in the Italy with no bottom halves - to anything - thanks to a 3am packing session.
Set aside a good hour and a half for packing, at least a day before departure, not least so that you have time to launder all your old holiday T-shirts and sarongs. You will find that they have become strangely musty since last July.
This sounds nerdy, but make lists, which will prevent you from taking all that "just in case" stuff that you never end up using. You should carefully plan your waxing, pedicure and fake tan application timetable.
When you eventually get to the airport, don't be tempted to shop; it's always unfortunate if you spend half of your holiday money before you've even left the ground. Thailand is incredibly cheap, so you can pick up stunning bags, jewellery and stylish Kaftans there for a song – so don’t be tempted to splurge at Accessorize.
Make sure that you have all the sunscreen, sunglasses, flip-flops and bikinis that you need before you leave home. And don't forget a hat, either: a cowboy hat if you have the guts - they look cool and sexy - or a peasant-style headscarf, which will look chic while protecting your scalp and hair from frying.
Remember that not all hot countries remain at 30C into the evening so a cover-up will be essential. Pashmina shawls, although no longer hot fashion items, are still soft, versatile and fabulous. And you can always wrap yourself up in one on the plane and pretend you're a supermodel; just add oversized shades to complete the look.
Once you have decided what to take, do pack carefully. Crushing things up into little balls may work on the way home when your clothes are dirty. Wrapping fragile garments in polythene that you get from the dry cleaners protects them and stops wrinkles.
On arrival, it is worth steaming the wrinkles out of your clothes yourself by hanging them in the bathroom, beside a hot shower, for at least ten minutes. It won't get them perfectly smooth, but it will make a significant improvement.
As well as practical capri-length khaki trousers and a pretty cotton maxi dress, there are a couple of indispensable items. The first is swimwear. The last thing any woman wants is big white strapmarks, and the only way to avoid them is to change styles frequently, so take as many swimsuits and bikinis you can.
An evening bag might seem like a superfluous item to pack for your holiday, but don't forget to take one because you really will need it. Just because you're relaxing for two weeks doesn't mean that you can slum it and carry a beach bag with an evening dress. Aftersun lotion will make your face shiny so, more than ever, you will need the services of a powder compact and a bag to carry it in.
You will also need it to carry your camera, for all those "that was the time of my life" pictures of you and your friends laughing around some foreign dinner table.
Besides, if you don't keep your camera in your evening bag you'll probably get drunk and leave it behind.
