You leave your house for two nights and take your bathroom cabinet with you, but you still don't have what you need. Your toiletry kit is so overstuffed with large, often leaky bottles that finding a safety pin or a vitamin (if you even remembered to bring them) is nearly impossible.

What stays at home: Big bottles of anything, including bath gel, hair spray, shaving cream, and perfume; nail polish (glass can shatter in extreme heat); tweezers, scissors, and other objects restricted by airport security, if you're carrying on your toiletry kit.

What goes with you: Small bottles of shampoo, conditioner, lotion, liquid soap, sunscreen (transfer your everyday products into little containers); travel-size toothpaste and toothbrush with plastic cap; deodorant, hairbrush, disposable razor.

The Bottles

Prevent spills with leakproof plastic bottles. The Nalgene Travel Set ($10, www.llbean.com) has two jars and six bottles. Use the colored lids to help identify contents or label with a marker.

Minis Box

The new Clear Divided Box from the Container Store ($2, www.containerstore.com) holds the small stuff, including pills, vitamins, Q-tips, hair elastics, and a pair of earrings that go with everything.

Pinch-Hit Kit

Keep a plastic bag filled with some just-in-case items, such as tampons, earplugs, Shout Wipes, Benadryl capsules, Pepto-Bismol tablets, bandages, and safety pins.

The Case

A compact travel kit in a water-resistant material, like the new Double-Zip Dopp from Flight 001 (5 by 10 by 5 inches, $30, www.flight001.com), will help you pare down to the bare necessities.