Researching the shipping options and getting a better handle on what had to be transported led me to decide that the best option would be the biggest allowable duffle bag, paid for as extra bag on the flight home. A duffle bag is sufficiently lightweight that it doesn't take up weight on its own, and sufficiently expandable that bulky items can more easily be fit in.
Next problem: getting such a duffle bag. Of the ones available to me here, some were too small, some were too big, some were too heavy - and all were too expensive. So on a whim I decided to try to make one, exactly to airline checked baggage specs (so: no more than 62" as the sum of length, width, height) and cheaper and lighter than anything I could purchase. The result:
It's actually just a little over 60" (30+15+15: best to err on the side of caution), and cost exactly 6 pounds 65 pence or approximately $14 dollars. Materials: small tarp, 2 meters rip-stop nylon, 1 zipper, two back-pack clips, one bit of velcro. I'm pretty pleased with it!
Oh, and on weight - my landlady lent me a nifty mechanical luggage scale, an old-fashioned "hook with pulley and scale" type of thing. So for several days I went around weighing things. My Tudor trunk hose and doublet weigh just over 4.5 lbs - while Kaz's trunk hose alone weigh over 6 lbs! We knew it was heavier, but goodness, that's a LOT heavier. The next heaviest costume item for me is my bustle gown skirt, also 4.5 lbs. So costumes are no longer an issue. There ARE of course the 10 meters of Irish linen I bought myself as a birthday present...
Still, it looks like I will be able to get my stuff home. I'll breathe a sigh of relief once it actually is, though.
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ReplyDeleteIt looks like you have come up with a great way to get your costumes home and have a duffle bag to use for more trips.
ReplyDeleteMinnie, you are so entertaining and inventive. Thanks for sharing your adventure.
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