Traveling With Jewelry

Are you bar-hopping? Visiting time at exciting city hotspots? Are you planning a few romantic evenings out on the town? You want to look your best and sometimes that involves a particular statement piece or just something extra to highlight the excitement of the event.

If you wear jewelry regularly, you’ll likely feel naked without it, especially when it’s a piece that you wear regularly or that you always wear with a particular outfit. You may not want to wear the same pair of earrings three days in a row when you have ones that better suit the occasion.

After all, we’d all like to avoid the hassle of paying for a checked bag just to make sure we can pack that second pair of booties on the off chance we have time to wear them. By swapping a few accessories and key garments around, you can stretch out a sweater or a pair of leggings to last more than one day.

Pair it with a statement necklace and a blazer one day and a large scarf with the right pair of earrings the next and you have two different outfits on hand.

Sometimes, you might find that certain items are covered in insurance policies you already have. For example, the average renter or homeowner’s insurance policy covers some amount of jewelry (typically around $1,000-2,000). You may want to investigate your current policy to see what is – and isn’t – covered.

If you decide to bring select jewelry pieces with you for the trip, you’ll want to make sure you pack them appropriately. There are few things worse than tangled jewelry chains or missing earring backs when you’re trying to get ready for the day.

As we’ll discuss later, there are many kinds of proper storage options for traveling with your jewelry. The key is to find something that both works with your budget and is manageable for you to keep up with properly.

If you plan to spend long afternoons on the beach, sipping mai-tais and enjoying the weather, you probably don’t need the bring your nicest jewelry with you. It’ll probably be wasted on the trip and could become a liability instead of an asset.

If you are traveling anywhere with a lot of sand, you might want to consider how likely it is to recover a small, valuable earring or bracelet if it were to fall off your person. No one wants to spend a vacation with a metal detector to recover a treasure that already belongs to them.

If you plan on being bundled up for most of your trip, will anyone see those gorgeous diamond studs under your cozy earmuffs? It’s also hard to appreciate a pretty pendant if it’s buried beneath an equally warm and fuzzy scarf. There’s no sense in wearing things if they’ll go to waste.

However, if you plan to spend equal times in and out of doors, you might find the extra sparkle more beneficial to your plans.

However, bringing three different tennis bracelets when you only plan to wear one on a single night isn’t the best utilization of your space or your safety. You won’t need all three bracelets when you can only feasibly wear one.

The same goes for packing multiple fashion watches or excessive earrings. Keep it simple! Think about what best coordinates with the clothing you plan to pack and try to keep extra items to a minimum.

There’s something to be said for looking our best – but does that include wearing your one-of-a- kind engagement ring on a trip to a city you've never been to before? Or taking a risk of wearing those cute hanging earrings you got out of the country on your flight back home?

While it’s easy to get carried away and bring something unique for every outfit, you may want to slim down your selection to the most versatile pieces.

Most experts will recommend that if you leave one piece of jewelry at home, it should be that engagement ring. We aren’t saying you should travel without your wedding rings!

If you find yourself at a loss without them, you might consider investing in an inexpensive alternative. Plain bands are typically quite affordable, and you can even get a rubberized band that will do the job without the risk of disappearing on your trip.

The custom initial pendant you bought yourself after that big promotion. What about that adorable couples necklace your significant other picked out for you on your last anniversary? Those pieces matter and you would be devastated to lose them. As a rule, don’t bring anything with you that you can’t easily replace if anything were to happen to it.

Probably the most popular option for jewelry storage, hard-sided cases are exactly what they sound like. They often resemble a small briefcase or electronics case with hard sides made of plastic or hardened foam with cushioning inside.

There are also small compartments inside for different types of jewelry to keep your items from jostling around. They do take up more room than some of the other options on the list but are also offer the most padding. On another note, they make great gifts for bridesmaids or even a loved one.

Hanging cases are like a hard-sided one, with the obvious exception that once you reach your destination, you can unzip them and hang them from a bathroom hook or in the hotel's closet. It makes them incredibly convenient for saving space.

They have multiple compartments, snaps for keeping your necklaces organized and untangled, and some even have netting to hang your earrings on.

Jewelry rolls are a great alternative to a jewelry case or box, especially when you’re on the go. They are flat rectangles of material that have small pockets or enclosures for you to place your jewelry into compartments. They come in many sizes and you should be able to find something to suit your specific needs easily!

The jewelry roll then closes by rolling upon itself, making sure your jewelry remains safely tucked inside. It’s usually tied with a ribbon or secured with a snap, or hook closure. Usually, these are made of cloth (cotton, satin, or velvet are popular) but can be made of other materials like leather.

If you want to make a jewelry roll for yourself at home, you can use a washcloth and some rubber bands to the same effect. Simply lay your necklaces out longwise on the washcloth and roll them up, making sure they are far enough apart that they won’t tangle.

Then you can fold the washcloth in half and then secure that with rubber bands. It’s a safe and inexpensive alternative to purchasing your own.

What can you do with a regular plastic drinking straw? You can use it to protect your necklaces from tangling. You just have to thread one side of the chain through the plastic straw and then clasp the necklace together. It will keep your necklace from tangling up with itself and keep it organized for further storage. Easy and inexpensive!

Another surprising and affordable – option for your necklace storage. You can lie them out on a piece of wrap, spacing them out much the same as you would on a jewelry roll, then press another piece on top. This will seal them in for the duration of your trip, though you may want to make sure you treat it delicately so it will last without tearing!

This might sound like an odd option, but it’s a great one for thrifty travelers! If you’ve ever gotten metal tins for mints (like Altoids), you can save the containers for later use. These tins are the perfect size for holding your jewelry items like earrings, rings, and bracelets.

If you have several, you can pack them separately with different types of jewelry for better organization. If you’re concerned about them rattling around, you may want to add a few cotton balls to muffle the noise and provide extra protection during your travels.

These simple pouches are easy to find – or make – and can easily collect all your jewelry in one place! However, we would certainly recommend finding an alternative for your necklaces. You don’t want them to end up knotted together in transit!

For small pieces like earrings or rings, you can place them in a small pill container. These range from beautifully ornate to plain options and are usually overlooked when left out unattended.

For longer trips, you could even consider a weekly pill container. This might be a good option if you have your jewelry selections organized by day or event and you’d like to keep them all together.

Sometimes the most simple solutions are the easiest and most cost-effective. Almost everyone has some kind of plastic sandwich bags at home. If you are in a pinch and need to pack things quickly, you can simply stash your jewelry into one – or several – of the sandwich-sized bags and tuck them into your luggage accordingly.

If you look at jewelry-making suppliers online, you can often find even smaller bags that are specially designed to hold jewelry items – including easily tangled necklaces! And keep them separate from one another. With smaller bags, you can easily place them in a larger container of your choice to make sure.

Remember those giant pink erasers from your elementary school days? It turns out that they have another use for a thrifty traveler! You can easily keep the backs of your stud earrings from getting lost by pinning your earring studs to an eraser. Place them in a larger container and you’ll never risk losing another back stud again!

Do you often travel with a collection of rings? You might be surprised how well a simple carabiner – the coupling links often used for climbing and other outdoor sports, though frequently used as a keychain as well – can solve your storage problems. You can slide your rings on the clip and stash them in a larger bag (like a zippered pouch or even your toiletry bag) for easy storage!

We’ve all seen those adorable zippered pouches with fancy prints or transparent sides. They often double as make-up bags and can make great jewelry storage bags as well. With a slim profile, they are easy to pack in just about any size bag – from an overnight duffle to a rolling carry-on – and won’t take up much space so you can definitely pack those extra heels.