The Best Clothes-Rolling Method To Save Space In Your Suitcase While Packing
If you're one of those packers who likes to bring an outfit for every occasion, you're going to love this tip. With checked bags often costing money, many of us try to get away with a carry-on bag for a week-long vacation. Room in that bag may be limited, but there are space-saving packing tricks that can keep you from having to shove that extra pair of pants into your backpack/personal item allowance.
Perhaps you've heard about the technique in which you roll your clothes tightly into your suitcase to save space. But did you know that there are different rolling methods? The best one, the Ranger Roll, can save you from wrinkles by adding a small fold at the bottom of each item.
This military technique, also called an Army Roll, can turn your t-shirt into something the size of a cruller. It also locks your garment into that shape so it doesn't unroll as soon as you open your suitcase. That small fold is what makes it work, and staying in place means fewer wrinkles and more space for things like toiletries and other items.
Packing the Ranger Roll way with shirts and pants
Here's how it works. For a shirt, lay the item flat on a surface and smooth out wrinkles. Flip the lower two to three inches inside out (see the image above). Next, fold both arms and sides into the center. Turn the shirt around so the collar faces you (and the folded lower hem faces away). Begin rolling tightly, all the way to the hem. Now, use the folded bottom piece to wrap around the roll to lock it in place. There are other versions of this that begin with folding into the center first and simply flipping up the bottom two inches, rolling, and locking with the flap.
@pinkjardiski This isn't just for military, honestly I've used it for camping, hiking, and even just for storage as it's a super space-saving lil trick! #military
You can also lay your underwear (not bras, which don't lay flat) and socks on top of the shirt and do the technique around them for a slightly larger roll that will end up about the size of a sub sandwich. That way, you have a chunk of your outfit together in the same little pack. For pants, lay them flat and flip the waistband over the way you did with the shirt, but leave a few more inches. Fold the pants into the center so they overlap. Roll them from the bottom up, and tuck the flap around them.
@organizing.tv Ranger-Rolling Pants (Saves tons of space)
The Ranger Roll technique for socks and jackets
You can also do this with socks by laying one on top of the other, shifting the one on the top a few inches lower than the one on the bottom. Roll them up from the bottom and use the cuff sticking out as the flap, just as you did with the pants and shirt. One caveat is that it may stretch your sock cuffs out a bit if the elastic in them is worn down at all. Still, if you're not traveling all the time, that's no biggie.
Long-sleeved jackets and shirts are a little different due to the sleeves. Fold up the hem to the point where it reaches the top of the pockets or where pockets would be on a jacket. Fold in the sleeves so the wrists touch the folded hem. Then, fold both sides into the center, roll, and lock with the flap. This TikTok shows how to do this on some stiffer military garments, as well as an alternative Ranger Roll for pants.
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You can't really fold underwire bras this way, but you can try the clamshell technique. Stack them with the cups inside of each other and close up the sides like a clamshell. Put socks or smaller items like a jewelry bag inside. It takes a little practice and a little more time to pack this way. However, isn't a few more minutes spent packing worth it if you don't have to pay airline baggage fees? We certainly think so.