How a Minimalist Fashion Editor Packs for a Destination Wedding Weekend With Only One Carry-On

From the perfect little black dress to the cutest accessories.

woman wearing a black dress
(Image credit: Launchmetrics Spotlight)

I'm in my thirties and live in New York, which is to say that everyone in my life is getting married. Slowly but surely, my calendar is filling up with engagement parties, bachelorette nights out, and several summer weddings, many of which don't take place in any of the five boroughs. I have a three-day affair coming up in Maryland at the end of June, and as a minimalist, I have my wedding-guest packing list down to a science.

I don't subscribe to the notion that you need to buy a new dress for every welcome party or reception you're invited to. Instead, it all comes down to knowing what you have in your closet—and how to style those pieces in new, fresh ways. A little black dress can be styled with a pair of trendy summer shoes or a new, extrovert-coded necklace, and you have what feels like an entirely new piece. Similarly, swapping a dress for a cute matching set adds a fashion-girl-approved twist to the wedding-guest wardrobe. Add in a chic travel outfit for the trip home, and you've got a weekend trip capsule wardrobe worth copying over and over again.

Ahead, I rounded up everything I'm bringing in my suitcase. Think of this as an editor-approved cheat code to earning your best-guest-dressed title.

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Julia Marzovilla
Fashion E-Commerce Editor

Julia Marzovilla is the Fashion E-Commerce Editor at Marie Claire, where she reviews the latest launches from fashion and beauty brands, finds the best on-sale items around the internet, and interviews experts to find the best products in any category to share with her readers. She also creates shopping guides that span every vertical on the site as an expert in everything from the best laptop bags to the best laser hair removal devices.

In her near decade of experience, Julia has both written for several top outlets in the E-Commerce space and worked at major fashion labels. Prior to joining the Marie Claire team, she contributed similar shopping stories to sites such as Bustle, InStyle, The Zoe Report, Who What Wear, and worked as the Trending Fashion and News Writer STYLECASTER. You can find her across the internet at @JuliaMarzovilla. In real life, you can find her creating shopping guides for her friends, cooking or baking in her too-small kitchen, or buying tickets for the next time Harry Styles is in town.

Julia has a Bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Journalism from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. She lives in New York City, her hometown.