Packing and Pressing

[sailorgirl]

Any tips out there for having your clothes look like you can wear them once you unpack and hang them up? Particularly linens, so popular, are a mess after living in a suitcase for a day or two. Someone once mentioned taking all their clothes dirty and unpressed and sending them to the ship cleaners upon embarkation. Any ideas here?

[dkjretired]

Any tips out there for having your clothes look like you can wear them once you unpack and hang them up? Particularly linens, so popular, are a mess after living in a suitcase for a day or two. Someone once mentioned taking all their clothes dirty and unpressed and sending them to the ship cleaners upon embarkation. Any ideas here?

 

I have on a number of occasions taken the clothes for my son and myself and left them unpressed. We then have them done on the ship which is very comparable to the prices at home. (we live in NJ, high cost of living)

 

Heres the price list if your interested....

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/beforeyourcruise/faq/home.do;jsessionid=0000J2fz5UD_zXj-LrwHW0R2a0a:1051tg60i?faqSubjectName=Ship+and+Stateroom+Details&faqId=566&pagename=faq_answers

[eandj]

I hang things in the bathroom for a nice easy steaming during and after our showers. Does a pretty nice job. Used to carry a small plastic steamer with me. But haven't used it in years. I tend to take along clothes made of less wrinkly material nowadays too.

[the2006Junket]

Sailorgirl,

 

I agree, that you may just wait to have them drycleaned and pressed til on-board. They do a nice job! I also swear by Downy Wrinkle Releaser (spray bottle) that you can find in Walmart and many food stores. Things won't look like they've been pressed, but it will ease out wrinkles from being folded in a suitcase.

 

Happy sailing,

 

Lynne

[poohtaz]

You can try folding your clothes with tissue paper in between it worked for me and all of my finer fabrics unpacked without a wrinkle. I also packed heaviest material to lightest, good luck and have a great time.;)

[prosenbl]

Try this one: Pack clothes that wrinkle, in plastic dry cleaning bags, 1-2 items per bag. This works really well, even for linen items. These bags weigh almost nothing. After I unpack on the ship, I store the bags in my luggage and use them for clean items going home.

[Willy44]

My wife packs all her gowns, dresses, slacks, etc. by keeping them in the plastic covering that comes with them from the cleaners. She says it helps keep wrinkles out. So, on our last cruise in March, I used her method.

 

We were among the unfortunate stuck in Philly in March. And after packing on 3/15 and living through the Philly mess and finally boarding Galaxy on 3/18 at 4:30 in the afternoon I was able to take my tux right from the suitcase and wear it for formal for 6:00 PM. No wrinkles! it works!

 

I will do what she says from now on! :rolleyes: yeah, right!

[Glendakayself]

I agree with pootaz. Placing tissue paper inside each garment and between garments laid flat in a hanging bag (before folding to close the bag) keeps the wrinkles away. Hanging in the bath knocks out any small wrinkles that appear.

Happy sailing,

[skandls]

If your 'linens' are washable - wash them at home and then have the ship press them - half the cost of cleaning.

 

We take things that are less wrinkling. I pack most of our clothes within individual 'plastic cleaner' bags on hangers. Put the clothes in the suitcase with the bottoms hanging over. Pack 'stuff' and then fold the bottoms over whatever things you have packed.

 

DH's shirts may end up with a few wrinkles - but with jacket and tie it doesn't matter to much. We take only enough shirts for one week and have them cleaned on the ship.

[JanineM]

I always pack my "better" clothes in dry cleaning bags, then in a garment bag. The very first thing I unpack is that bag, and I pull each item out of the plastic and hang them so there is some space in between each item. The humidity in the air tends to take out some of the wrinkles.

 

Ditto to the idea to hang things in the bathroom when you take a shower. That works well for some items. I also take a small hairspray bottle filled with Downy Wrinkle Release.

 

Last cruise I sent my linens plus DH's good cotton shirts for pressing. I spent about two bucks per item, and they do a LOT better job and I do!

[thepeacha]

what are you doing wandering out in the wild X boards, when you should be safe with us on our thread? Ok only kidding...

 

You know, I roll and put them in 2 gallon ziplocks and let me tell you, it works great! Then I mark each bag with the contents, so I can pull what's needed- it all looks the same, rolled up. The only real danger is that I can fit heaps in my suitcase this way and go way over the 50lbs mark unless I am careful, but now I am in the 12- step program for chronic overpackers so we shall see if i stay on the wagon this trip. DH's silk Tommy Bahama pants (no fun to press) come out fine- his shirts, too. Delicate things get a layer of cleaner's bags and come out lovely.

 

Hope this helps! Meetcha in three weeks!

-Melissa

[LHARTWICK]

I agree with thepeacha. Rolling your clothes carefully before you pack them instead of folding them really works and you can put much more in a suitcase that way. Just keep an eye on the total weight of the suitcase once you're done. The dry cleaning plastic is great for your dresses and suits, too.

[sailorgirl]

My golly, now I have to gather 2 gallon storage bags, dry cleaner bags, tissue paper and a de-wrinkler! This is more than I bargained for. Anyone wanna come and help me pack now? It's going to take two weeks! Sorry, Melissa, you found me sneaking around. I'll head right back to my Roll Call before I get into more trouble. Carole

[LeslieSJ]

All of the above are good ideas. We had two nights in Ft. Lauderdale before our last cruise and I worried that after being backed for a few days there would be tons of wrinkles. Even casual clothes like shorts and t-shirts would be too wrinkley to wear and who would pay to have them pressed on the ship?

So when we got to our hotel in FL the first night I ironed everything and hung things in the closet or gently folded them. I waited to repack them until right before we left for the port so they didn't have enough time to get ruined again. My husband thought I was nuts ironing for hours but we were watching tv anyway so it was no problem to iron at the same time.

 

When we unpacked onboard everything was perfect!

[SheilaNC]

I only recently learned the 'keep things on hangers in hanger bags' trick. I've always used zip lock bags (still do for undies, socks, tee shirts (rolled), etc.) and cleaner's bags but, somehow, missed the wire hanger thing. Well, it worked so well on our last trip that I'm going that route from now on. And, for whatever reason, things seem to take up less room that way. We now use larger rolling duffles that have a separate bottom section for shoes and toiletries that can't go in carry-ons. Also end compartments that work well for all sorts of small things. The combinations of the bags/hangers/duffle works amazingly well and can hold enough for a 7 day cruise. When it's a 10-14 day, we use laundry services or take a small additional rolling case for each of us. Trick is to keep shoes to a minimum - I know how hard that is - and wear the heaviest shoes to travel.

[Nonna and Papa]

Sheila,

 

Would you please elaborate exactly how you pack your suitcases with your clothes on the hangers? I've been using tissue paper and /or cleaner's bags for years with success, but I've never kept our clothes on hangers unless we were using garment bags. Do you "hang" the hangers inside the suitcase? If so, how? Have I misunderstood you?

 

Thanks for your help.

 

Mary

[SheilaNC]

Mary,

I hung one or two things in a cleaner's bag. Then put all of them together in the bottom of the duffle bag with hanger ends in the bottom and the rest hanging out of the bag. Added the other things...zip lock bags and things rolled and not in bags. Last thing is to fold the ends back over the other things - sometimes requires folding back on itself to fit (hope that's a clear description. I pack tightly so there really isn't any room for things to slip and slide. I've also just packed the other things in the bottom and folded the cleaners bags to fit on the top. Seems to work either way. When I unpack, I just hang everything up immediately - any minor wrinkles hang out or I do the 'shower' thing. I'm still surprised that it works. Of course, I try to buy travel friendly clothes and do send shirts, etc. for pressing if needbe. But rarely have to do that.

[Nonna and Papa]

Thank you, Sheila. I think I was getting caught up with the idea of "hanging" the clothes in the suitcase and couldn't figure out how this was done. I understand everything now! However, now that I think of it, I believe one of my husband's larger rolling suitcases has a fixture inside for hangers - we just have never used it.

 

Mary

[Cruise Raider]

I always pack everything on hangers on the way to the cruise....leave them behind afterwards as the wrinkles no longer matter. I lay everything out still on the hangers with absolutely no wrinkles or folding....just stack away. It is best to pack non-wrinkle items at the bottom, and top of the stack. Then, I fold everything in one chunk....being careful not to let any wrinkles form. I protect the top grouping of the wire hangers with bubble wrap so as not to damage the clothes. This has actually worked very well for us and unpacking is quick as can be. Just in case any wrinkles do find their way .... I take a small spray bottle of wrinkle releaser and smooth the clothes out on the bed before getting dressed.

[labmom]

My husband had to buy a steam iron. Small, only about $30 and works like a charm! Not much impress' him, but this did. I don't have much of a problem with my packing, but they way he packs....he really needs it!

Good luck, you'll get a lot of answers.

[sailorgirl]

If I'm not mistaken, personal irons are prohibited in the cabin due to fire hazard. Right?

[t0mzilla]

Hi labmom,

 

What brand steam iron did you buy for your cruise?

[dkjretired]

Hi labmom,

 

What brand steam iron did you buy for your cruise?

 

Irons are forbidden on most cruise lines including Celebrity as the previous poster mentioned...... From the Celebrity website...

 

Prohibited Items

Items with Heating Elements or Open Flames

Certain items that generate heat or produce an open flame are not permitted on ship. This includes clothing irons, hotplates, candles, incense and any other item that may create a fire hazard. (Curling irons and hair dryers are allowed.)

[t0mzilla]

I was referring to the steamers people were talking about. Someone mentioned that these were allowed on Celebrity. Can anyone confirm? I guess I am unclear as to whether a steamer is an iron, having only used a traditional iron before. Thanks

[hugger]

what are you doing wandering out in the wild X boards, when you should be safe with us on our thread? Ok only kidding...

 

You know, I roll and put them in 2 gallon ziplocks and let me tell you, it works great! Then I mark each bag with the contents, so I can pull what's needed- it all looks the same, rolled up. The only real danger is that I can fit heaps in my suitcase this way and go way over the 50lbs mark unless I am careful, but now I am in the 12- step program for chronic overpackers so we shall see if i stay on the wagon this trip. DH's silk Tommy Bahama pants (no fun to press) come out fine- his shirts, too. Delicate things get a layer of cleaner's bags and come out lovely.

 

Hope this helps! Meetcha in three weeks!

-Melissa

 

I NEED your 12 step program :confused:

We normally drive to the ship - which means I keep taking more and more with us.

This next cruise is a repositioning out of Cape Liberty. We must fly - how will I survive :rolleyes: