Non Wrinkle Clothing

try places like TravelSmith.com for fancier-travel-savvy clothing. Some are full wrinkel free - some just resistant.

Hi Jim--also magellans.com and normthompson.com. I never seem to find everything I need from just one site or catalog because it's difficult to find a style that suits me.

Thanks Tom & Darcy; Have you purchased from any of these sites the products that I am seeking and if so did they meet your expectations?

For summer travel I have had great luck with golfing shorts and Rick Steves reversible wrap around skirt he sells on his website. Both remained wrinkle free and with a small spray bottle of febreeze were refreshed and ready to see 3 or 4 days of wear.

Request a catalog from Travel Smith, their Summer issue is really good. They have a lot of reversible clothing and mix-n-match outfits. I like browsing their catalog - I use it as a guide when planning my wardrobe. LLbean.com is also good, I always check their SALE section first. Look for shirts that are 100% cotton, No Iron, I got mine at Brooks Brothers. Im leaving for Turkey/Greece next month myself, have fun shopping.

I'm not sure I'd worry about shipping clothing back. By the time you are on the ship, the hard part of packing heavy will be over. Clothing that is intended to be wrinkled work well. I've gotten most of mine at regular stores - just look around. In my experience, the most important thing is quick drying since we wash as we go.

I've had good luck on several trips with wrinkle free shirts and pants from Lands End and the Gap. The Lands End shirts esp are recommended. Wash 'em in the sink, hang in the shower/tub and they look fine the next day (not pressed, but not wrinkled either). Any cotton-poly blends are going to be somewhat wrinkle resistant by nature.

I'd also agree with others: linen (that looks right wrinkled) is also a great, casual choice.

Stores like Herbergers and JCPennys carry slacks called 'micro-fiber' which I have found to be both casual and dressy while wrinkle-free and very comfortable. Also, silk or dacon based shirts offer the same advantages as noted for the slacks. In addition, they are cool in the heat of the summer. Good luck!

Weekenders.com - wash & wear, all knit blends, survive suitcases very well, most drip dry overnight. Mix and match well. Have worked very well on past business trips.

I really appreciate all the recommendations so far. If you can focus your attention 100% on my wife’s needs that would be solving my major problem because she does not know that I have planned this trip (over a years worth of planning). It’s a surprise 40th wedding anniversary trip and I’m only giving her 3 weeks notice to pack. So what ever prep I can do for her in this forum will easy my guilt a bit.

I have had a bit of success at the Sierra Trading Post site - it's cheap (good for young budget traveler like me) and I got a couple pairs of nice-looking capris that are light, quick-drying, nylon, etc. www.sierratradingpost.com. If you can, in any way, convince her to go out of her comfort zone and pack light and wash along the way, I think you both would really appreciate it in the long run. Just think about carrying a big heavy suitcase on the Venice waterbuses, etc.... for 6 weeks this summer, I plan on taking about a week's worth of clothes in a carry-on sized suitcase. If I can do it, so can she!!!

My plan was to give her 3 days notice except her boss wanted the LWOP paperwork submitted 3 wks in advance to avoid changing her retirement date problems (Jan 08) & her doctors wanted time to get her prescriptions ready.

After she gets a new digital camera & IPod (from son & daughter) on Mother's Day I'll have the waiter deliver a little bit of tantalizing pre-scripted information piece by piece until she finally gets the drift to what is going on. The final thing she'll get is a print out of the non-wrinkle discussion with all the recommendations because my word will be worthless for years to come so your recommendations are important and I will be blameless (I hope).

Wow Jim, I think I'm in love with you! What a great plan! So, I'm making some assumptions based on your info - 40 years of marriage for one; your good planning for another. I did most of your trip a couple years ago with my mother and I would say that the clothes for the cruise and the clothes for the rest of the trip are easily the same (we included Ireland and Scotland in our Italy/Greece trip) I think your wife will really like the Travel Smith catalog, I wore skirts and dresses quite a lot as they were easy, cool and light, can be dressed up or down and as long as you aren't trying to do a lot of hiking, appropriate for all places you mentioned. Even if you have people to put your luggage where you want, choices slow down the fun, so everyone should pack lighter than they think. In 3 weeks she has time to pack and then carry the suit cases around; then take some things out. Have a great time and you deserve Husband of the Year for this one! Have a wonderful trip.

Hey Linda I think we’re on the wrong website because “love” always has a few wrinkles and I thought this forum was all about non-wrinkle clothing so I’m guess still learning (but ya did a lot for my ego). The issue I'm facing now is do I need long sleeve stuff (& if so what %) and what % should be devote to shorts?

Jim I think most sane females would love a guy who plans a grand European adventure for their anniversary!!!

Anyway to the task at hand, ha ha. You are going to relatively warmer places. I think it depends on the kind of people you and your wife are. I'm always warm, so on my summer trip (later and hotter than yours, though) I'm only going to bring a light shell jacket and very light sweater and that's it, everything else will be short-sleeved. Some people like wearing long-sleeves all the time. As people have said in other postings, if you wear something in, say Zurich, you can always wash it out and wear it again in Como - the two of you will be the only two people in the world who will know you're repeating so soon ;) Taking fewer items but a wider variety that she can mix and match depending on her mood and the weather might be a good way to go for her. I can only speak for myself but in June going to the places you're going, I wouldn't take much long-sleeved...

Hi Jim--This has been so much fun to read.
For a June trip I would only take a cardigan and a raincoat for long sleeves; everything else would be short sleeve or sleeveless. I can't imagine ever wearing shorts except maybe for running or hiking; they might come in handy on the cruise?
I really hope you tell us about your sweet wife's reactions when she realizes where the two of you are going--she must be sweet to have a husband like you!
Happy anniversary!