Technorati Tags: Packing For A Pageant
Packing for your pageant can be overwhelming and a major STRESS FEST if you wait until the last minute. Do yourself a huge favor and begin packing two weeks before you leave so you can focus your attention on bigger and better things. Following are some tips I use when getting ready to go to a pageant.
Organizing your paperwork for the pageant
Buy a brightly colored 9 1/2” x 12” folder with three metal clasps in the middle, and a package of clear plastic sheet protectors. You’ll want to have a dozen or so sheets to organize all your critical pageant paperwork and information.
Include the following information in the folder:
- A copy of your judge’s bio.
- Printouts of flight information, rental car details and directions to the hotel.
- Phone and confirmation numbers for the hotel.
- Phone numbers to the Pageant Directors or Staff.
- Pageant schedule.Important contact information of people at home.
Add some blank paper for note taking and some extra protector sheets to hold receipts or any other paperwork you need to keep track of when you’re at the pageant.
The goal here is to have a lightweight, easy to carry folder that has all your pageant information at your fingertips. Its bold bright color will make is easy to distinguish it from the pageant clutter that will grow and multiple within your room.
Organizing Your Pageant Wardrobe
- Start with one outfit at a time. Lay the outfit and everything associated with it on your bed and mentally get dressed in that outfit. Include undergarments, hose, shoes, jewelry, hair accessories, and any other props that you need to complete the outfit.
- Now grab your clear Ziploc bags. Put your hose in one bag (pint sized), jewelry in another (snack sized), undergarments in another (quart) and any other small items in another bag.
- Label each bag, for example, interview-jewelry. Put a hole just big enough to slip a hanger through in the corner about 2” down from the zip closure of a gallon sized bag and label the bag (interview). Now put all the smaller bags into the gallon bag. I like to put my shoes in a separate gallon bag.
- Hang the outfit on a hanger. Slip the Ziploc bags over the hanger and cover the entire outfit with a heavy plastic garment bag (the kind of bag a man’s suit comes in from a nice clothing store).
Do this for each competition outfit you have. If you’re driving to your pageant, just lay the bags flat in your vehicle or hang them if you have room. If you’re flying, pack all the individual pieces in your luggage so you can assemble your bags at the hotel.
Organizing Your Beauty Items
I have a clear separate closure bag for each of the following categories to save time, keep everything organized, and to keep things from “walking away” in the dressing room:
- Face- foundation, cover up, bronzer, powder and blush.
- Eyes- shadows, liners, mascara, eyelashes and glue
- Lips- liners, lipstick, sealer, gloss
- Sharp stuff- tweezers, small pair of scissors, small sewing kit, safety pins, nail file
- Applicators- sponges, brushes, Q-tips
- Body- medical tape (creating cleavage), butt glue, lotion, self tanner
- Hair- hairspray, teasing comb, brush, hairpieces, extension cord, hot rollers, hot iron, etc. This needs to be a bigger bag for obvious reasons.
I also put a wet washcloth from the hotel room into a baggie to take with me to the dressing room. As you get done with one bag, put it away. It’s never a good idea to leave your things laying out in the dressing room.
You can also use baggies to categorize your beauty items too. I also have a quick touch up bag put together that has some oil blotters, gloss, and cover up. Pack up all your personal care items, and use it for a couple days at home to discover what you’re missing and what grouping works for you. With all these details taken care of, you can avoid several panic attacks that myself and others have experienced over the years.
Beyond The Pageant
Learning how to organize and pack your personal belongings for trips is a skill that will pay you back over and over again. When I was 19, I traveled around the world for two years and lived out of two medium sized suitcases. I learned a lot from my European friends about what items are essential and what extra baggage will just weigh you down and make the trip miserable. As with all things in life, K.I.S.S.- Keep it simple sweetie! Less really is best.
By Rhonda Shappert
November 19, 2009 01:29
