Select Page

I’m off on holiday at the end of next week. And in typical Carla style, haven’t thought about clothes but have already decided what stationery to take with me…

Obviously the type of trip makes a difference. Whether I’ll actually have a chance to sit down and write, or if I’ll be scribbling postcards in haste. The UK or abroad, plane or car, how long I’ll be away, how much luggage I’m allowed. My belongings will almost always overflow into the cases of others I’m travelling with. And

This trip is one with my parents to Dubai. The chief aims are relaxing, catching up with old friends over there and planning for my businesses. So here’s what made the cut this time – it’s quite restrained, for me!

Clockwise from top left:

Purple pencil case

The staple of my kit is the purple pencil case, which I recently lost and found. I have packed it full of pens, pencils, highlighters and of course a fountain pen or three. I’ve included some disposable ones this time, just to be on the safe side.

Airmail envelopes

I rarely use these and have bought a pack especially to take away. I tend to write reams by the pool so the lighter the resulting epic package, the better. And I love how retro these look!

This serves as a sort of notebook, journal and stream-of-consciousness catcher. My creative spark is often ignited by all the new experiences that come with going away. So this notebook will hold daily doodlings, dreams and their meanings. Then I will note overheard snippets of conversations and places we’ve visited. Finally, there will be things I want to look up when I’m next near a screen, as well as my daily gratitudes and intentions.

Typewriter notebook

A rather gorgeous writing pad with the inscription “Live and Laugh Abundantly” at the top of each page. This is really nice writing paper and means I can compose long, waffly letters to the people that matter without worrying about whether I’ll run out of sheets or envelopes from a normal writing set.

And finally – unicorn stickers!

Because I try to sign everything with a unicorn but I can’t draw for toffee, so I’ve invested in lots of unicorn stickers. These are from Paperchase. I also have some from Moo with my own logo from Carla Louise on them, and some pretty stickers from years ago which happen to feature unicorns. They sparkle up the most boring of paper and envelopes.

I’ll also stock up on postcards when we get there, as I love to add a local flavour to my writing, but the back of a postcard is rarely long enough for everything I want to say when I have time to write properly!

What goes in your writing kit when you go away? Do you have staples that travel everywhere with you, or do you tailor what you take to each trip?