Clothing Folder or Vacuum bags?

We've used the bags that you roll up to squeeze the air out.

I liked them for socks, underwear, swim suits and dirty laundry. They did a good job of compressing the load and isolating dirty or wet clothes. Think of compressing a pile of socks and having it not spring back to the same size after you let go.

The biggest disappointment is they tend to wear out fast. The air squeezes out a trap in the bottom of the bag, but only stays out if the top of the bag is sealed. A lot of the bags' zip lock tops weren't holding a seal by the end of a one month trip.

They tend to fail when they have too much in them. Don't fill them more than half-way. I think at times we overfilled them with laundry during our trip.

They actually have two different uses.

I use a clothing folder for shirts that I don't want wrinkled but still want them to take up less space. If I don't use a folder, I use a packing cube.

If I put shirts in a vacuum bag and rolled them up, they would get very wrinkled. I use the vacuum bag for dirty laundry, sweaters, or any item I don't care about getting wrinkled or doesn't wrinkle easily.

If you are packing to carry-on on one of the many airlines that have a weight limit, e.g. Lufthansa at 8kg, 17.6#, you will find yourself weight limited before volume limited. That is, you will get to the 17.6# limit before the bag is full - at least, that is what happens to me. Therefore, I don't want heavier vacuum bag. I use the lightest organizing bags (mesh) I can find.

But if you fly an American flag airline (Yuch) that only restricts the size, then, heck, pile on the weight, stuff it full, use a trash compactor. Of course, you still have to carry it.

I have some too - but rarely use them. Most of my stuff fits in the cubes - which I not use the most... pref. the 1/2 size vs large (I just fold my shirts 1/2 once more). I tend to use wrinkle-resistant shirts so roll vs fold didnt really matter now. Also - I agree the "Vac" bags lose their hold rather quick - so I just take lots of large zip lock bags. Works the same if needed and a lot cheaper! Also - if you have extra fresh ones at the end of the trip - the locals in europe love them (they are $$$ there if they can even get them!) Ex-Pats say thats the one thing they often miss from the US!

Andrea, I took a packing class 20 years ago and have used the method ever since. I will try to describe it to you (it's much easier to demonstrate).Take a packing cube and put your socks,underwear etc. in it. Set aside. Start laying your clothing out piece by piece on top of your suitcase. Lay like things together, alternating top/bottom. This "balances" the thicknesses. When you are done laying the clothes out, place your packing cube in the center, then fold your layered clothing over it. Like wrapping a package. Then pick it up, turn it over and place in your suitcase sliding it towards the top. Place heavy items like shoes, in the left over space at the bottom (closest to the wheels if your suitcase has them). The folded clothing doesn't really wrinkle because it's a "soft" fold. No one messes with the bundle (TSA has never undone mine).
You will be surprised how much you can pack with this method.

You can at least partially solve the wrinkling problem associated with roll-up vacuum bags by using 2-gallon zip lock bags. You put your things in, sit on them to squeeze out the air and zip closed. An added plus is the much lower cost.

I use the 2 gal. Ziplocs, too, and for the same reason -- they are cheaper.

Andrea,
Not sure what you call clothinng folder, but if it os what I think, then it is different then a vacuum bag. A clothig folder will help you to keep your clothes unwrinkled and in same spot. A vacuum bag will remove the air from the bag, so your clothes will stay tight in the bag. Be aware that they don't work very well if you overfill them. They ave the tendancy to open after a few hours.I used them any way, because I put other things on top. I also used comprassion bags. They don't flatten like vacuum bags, but still you can put a lof things in it.I use them for sucks, underwear etc.

Thanks for the input everyone!

This is what I meant by a clothing folder:
http://www.eaglecreek.com/accessories/packing_folders/

As prior posters have mentioned, the packing folder is best used to keep things from getting wrinkly. I personally use a folder along with ziplocks, but the ziplocks are just to keep things organized as opposed to minimizing space. The best part about the folder, besides wrinkle reduction, is that it does keep everything tidy. It takes a bit to get used to how your clothes best fit in it, but once you do it's easy.

If you're planning to take a bulky sweater or something that could benefit from compression, but won't be a wrinkly mess after, then take a vacuum bag.

I am a complete convert to Eagle Creek clothing folders. After one trip, I've been hooked. Not only do they pack items like shirts and pants into a neat and tight package, they come out very presentable. Highly recommended.

Compression bags I'm not sold on. That's mostly because they are only of value to bulky things like sweaters and I usually don't carry that type of clothing.

Pete

The packing method Gela describes is illustrated pretty well at onebag.com.

I've used the vacuum bags and they tend to badly wrinkle the clothes. I've used the Eagle Creek folder as well and it's great. It makes the folding a bit faster and the folder holds a lot of clothing.
Along with the folder I use the packing cubes and have found them invaluable. They also hold a lot of clothing and can be used to sort out different categories of clothing. When living out of the suitcase the cubes are great in that if you just leave the clothing in them, there's little rummaging around and it makes it quick and easy to repack if you're moving frequently. For me, using the folder and the cubes has taken a lot of the aggravation and inconvenience out of packing.

Okay, so I went out and bought the eagle creek 15" folder and it holds all the clothing I'm taking just fine. Yay!

The packing cubes are wonderful for keeping this organized and presentable and they're great for the TSA. I like to take one medium-size vacuum bag just incase I don't have enough room for everything on the way home such as tablecloths, a skirt from Provence, etc. I have yet to try the folders.

Andrea, my wife I use regular large zip-lock bags that have the small sealing pull lever. We neatly place our clothing in them and sit on the bags prior to sip closing. We make several oversea trips a year and use and reuse them. We use several of the larger bags. They are a lot cheaper than purchasing other types of vacuum bags. Just visit you grocery store. Dorsey

check out onebag.com for good packing advice. I used the bundle system on my last trip and it worked great.

I use a vacuum bag to take my pillow and it works great. For clothing, I usually roll my clothing. My father was taught this technique in the Army and I can pack easily and wrinkles are minimal.

I've tried the bundle method also and agree that TSA leaves the bundle alone. It's a good method but I always go back to rolling.

Andrea, I'd suggest also buying one of the roll-up vacuum bags. They really compress the volume of things that you don't mind wrinkling like underwear and socks. I bring 2; one for those items, one for dirty clothing that will need to be kept separate until I can wash it.

I already had a vacuum bag. I bought that one before asking this question :)