Some people swear by rolling their garments to maximize space in their suitcase, whereas others fold items flat. I've tried both, and have never noticed a sizable difference, so I decided to find out once and for all.
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The Mission Using the same garments, I packed my suitcase twice. The first time by rolling my garments, and the second, by laying them flat.
The Background This weekend I'm headed to Newport and Laguna with a one-day stint at Disneyland. Since I'm only bringing a carry-on, finding out which packing method uses the least space is an important consideration---hence this A/B test.
This trip is a good reminder that insane travel deals still exist: I booked my $9.99 (each way) flight during Allegiant Air's 3-hour sale when they announced service from Bellingham, WA to Long Beach, CA. Fifty-six dollars later, my entire flight including taxes was booked. I can't even drive from Vancouver to Seattle for that little!
The Prep Garthering garments with the help of my Summer Weekend Packing List, and making sure I've packed everything I'll need thanks to my Going Away To Do List, I'm ready to select what I'll bring on my extended weekend trip to Cali. The goal: bring a little, and mix and match so it looks like a lot!
Rolling VS Folding Result
I ended up having much more space in my suitcase when I......drumroll please.....ROLLED garments. I'm not sure why, but I hate to admit this. Deep down, I think I was on team fold. Based on the pics below, you'll hopefully be able to see almost 25% more space in the rolling versus folded example. I'm now a converted roller.
{Suitcase with garments folded flat - not much space to spare}
{Suitcase with garments rolled - notice the extra space. Now there's the flexibility to shop or pack more.}