One of the biggest dilemmas I usually face in traveling is packing enough for my trip. I’m someone who can be utterly indecisive, so having a variety of choices is a must for me whether I’m going for a weekend up to New York or two weeks in Europe. Many blogs always tell you the best advice is to pack light, but as a maximalist and a lover of putting together outfits, I am here to teach you how to pack more, regardless of space limitations. I am so good at getting the most out of my suitcase space that I once almost incurred an overweight bag fee on a checked bag that was small enough to normally carry on. And as a woman of size, I don’t exactly have the luxury of wasted space when it comes to packing.

First and foremost, make sure you’re getting the best bag for your travel needs. If you do a lot of weekend warrior-ing, finding a flexible weekender or duffel bag is a must. Getting something in canvas or a stretchier material gives you a little more wiggle room and precious extra inches to fit that extra pair of shoes or couple of extra tees. I have this weekender from DSW and the carry-on with compression straps in asphalt from AWAY. I can usually fit about a week’s worth of outfits in either of these bags (and I’m a plus size woman, I can only imagine how much more I could fit if my clothes were smaller!).

The second most important thing is in how you utilize your available space. When you’re done packing, you should not have any extra room or gaps around the side of your bag or in between your clothes. Getting everything into a uniform-ish size and chickleting the items around will guarantee you additional space for those just-in-case items. To make your stuff relatively uniform, I recommend the Marie Kondo method of folding everything but your socks and undies. By getting all of your tees, jeans, dresses, skirts, blouses, and trousers into relatively the same size rectangle that stands on its own, you can file everything away in as little space as possible.

The biggest tip I can give will help you find extra space and help your stuff keep its shape. The inside of shoes are great places to stash socks and underwear (or keep bottles of wine or liquor from getting jostled and broken). You get to use that space more effectively and you keep your flats from getting folded in on themselves and creased beyond repair.

I’ve tried the rolling method, packing cubes, that method where you start with a small lump of items and fold all of your stuff around it to make one giant block of clothes, and the rubber band method, but I’ve found the tips above give you more flexibility and use of your luggage space while preserving the shape and condition of the clothes you pack. I’m going to be posting a photo series on my instagram (@savanagram) later this week showing how I packed for my weekend trip to Jersey City in just my weekender and my Longchamps tote.

I mean, you could always pack less. But what’s the fun in that?

Let me know if you have any other maximalist friendly packing tips in the comments below!