Litigation strategist gives travel packing tips for business trips

By Sylvia Hsieh The Daily Record Newswire With all the miles she has logged, trial consultant Tara Trask has learned a thing or two about packing for a business trip. The San Francisco-based litigation strategist, who flies about 130,000 domestic miles per year, can pack a travel bag as expertly as she can fill a jury box. After calculating the wasted hours waiting on checked luggage, Trask now packs everything in one carry-on only - all the more reason to be ultra-organized about what and how to pack. Her first rule is to pick your wardrobe based on one color. Everything has to mix and match, so pants or a skirt from a suit worn one day can be dressed down with a sweater or blouse another day. ''People make the mistake of thinking if your trip is five days, you need five different things to wear,'' said Trask, who typically chooses black, brown or navy as a base color, then packs blouses, scarves and a skirt or dress to add color. She also resists the temptation to double up on items: one pair of jeans, one suit, one pair of heels, one pair of sneakers - no more. A trick for complying with the 3-1-1 liquid carry-on rules is to buy a pre-sized one quart durable plastic bag with a zipper lock available at most drugstores, and a supply of refillable tubes, tubs and squeeze bottles under the 3-ounce limit. Make room in your liquids bag by removing anything that isn't liquid or gel; female travelers especially will discover that a lot of items in their toiletry regimen can be put in their main bag. ''Hair clips, eye lash curler, eye shadow - stuff that in your other bag where you can put as much as you want,'' said Trask, whose company Tara Trask LLP also has an office in Dallas. Rather than go through her list of toiletries every time she travels, Trask laminated lists of all she needs for a trip. If that's too type-A for you, consider leaving a list in your bag and replenishing your liquids as needed. To make the most of the limited carry-on space, Trask always packs her bag the same way. Put shoes in first, on the bottom and toward the side that's closer to the wheels when standing up, then fill the crevices between them with soft items - socks, scarves, underwear. For wrinkle-free attire, separate each item of clothing with a dry cleaning bag, like a lasagna with plastic pasta. ''It doesn't take up any extra room and I have never had any wrinkles,'' said Trask, who saves dry cleaning bags for this purpose. While her advice might seem gender-specific, Trask says while women have more toiletries and wardrobe changes, men are burdened with larger shoes and therefore less luggage space. As for the two-bag carry-on limit, she calls it an ''injustice'' that women have to consolidate a briefcase and a purse, but gets around the rule by eliminating a traditional briefcase, and carrying her laptop, iPad and a smaller purse - big enough only for a wallet, keys, cell phone and chapstick - all inside an oversized purse that rides on top of her roller case. Published: Thu, Apr 14, 2011