I’ll admit it: I’m a terrible packer. I wish beyond measure that I could be someone capable of quickly and confidently throwing together a bag and sauntering to the airport, but I simply am not. Instead, my packing process includes hours of agonizing over every little thing I might need or want. And that makes me prone to overpacking and spiraling about what will make the cut—especially when it comes to my skin-care routine.
Packing my precious regimen of lotions and potions used to involve hunching over the bathroom sink and fussing with every aspect of my multistep routine. I would squeeze (what I guesstimated to be) a week’s worth of moisturizer into a leaky tube, or I’d squint at the tiny text on a serum bottle to see whether it would make it past airport security. Trust me, this is no way to start a vacation.
I didn’t think anything could make me a better packer, until I started using Cadence Capsules, in 2022. This was about the same time they started appearing as a recommendation in Wirecutter’s gift guide for travelers and on theme-park travel expert Carly Weisel’s list of must-haves. I recently upgraded with a six-piece set of the redesigned shapes and sizes, and I took those on a test run during a nearly two-week vacation through Thailand and Vietnam. Not only were they a dream to pack, but they kept me well stocked (and highly moisturized!) the entire time.
Although Cadence Capsules haven’t been through comparative testing with other travel-size bottles, I’ve found that the magnetic, hexagonal vessels are great for transporting anything you might need—from skin care to jewelry to vitamins. No, they haven’t magically turned me into a packing savant, but they have absolutely transformed what was once the most stressful part of my routine.