How do you avoid bringing clutter home from vacation? Even if you keep a tight ship at home, curbing clutter from your travels is hard. It’s so easy to pick up gifts for others and colorful, unique treats for yourself when you travel.

If you go to Mexico or even the American southwest, you’ll see sombreros everywhere. They are bright, fun and cheap. You think, “I must have a sombrero to prove I came. I’m sure I’ll wear it again someday. I mean, I wore it today, right?”

You wrestle that sombrero home on the plane, maybe start to think it looks silly in your home state, and push it to the top shelf of a closet or the bottom shelf in the basement.

We all own sombreros of one sort or another. Things that are cool in their native place, but silly and clutter-y at home. The trick is to ask yourself, “Is this a sombrero?” before you buy it.

But some things look and feel good anywhere. I bought faux gem earrings at the Tower of London over two decades ago. They aren’t shaped like the Tower or anything. They just look like earrrings. I liked them in the store. I could picture myself wearing them with different outfits at home. They go with other things I already owned. I still wear them to this day, and I think of my first trip to England whenever I wear them. They were not a “sombrero,” and I knew that at the time.

Some great vacation mementos that are easy to pack for the trip home and others mention to me are bracelets, fashion scarves, postcards, and of course, photos.

What are some “sombreros” that you have purchased on past vacations?

What souvenirs have you purchased that just take up space, or you simply did not enjoy back at home?

What types of things would you buy, love, and use from your next vacation?

Are you buying things just because they are cheap and available? Or would it make more sense to treat yourself to one single, expensive, super-useful souvenir to mark your trip?

I recently wrote about the one simple rule that helps me to avoid crazy impulse purchases, even on vacation. Maybe this one little rule will help you, too.