Beauty AND Travel…Made Easy!

Happy Thursday! I am excited to share another fun beauty post from the fabulous Erin from “Makeup By Erin”! When it comes to beauty and every day living, she knows her stuff. She is here today to share some simple (and brilliant) tips for packing your beauty products when traveling! Take it away, Erin!

  I love to travel, so much so that if I could win the lottery, I’d retire traveling the world (I keep telling my husband to start buying tickets so that we can at least have a chance of  it actually happening).  But, traveling can be stressful.  What to pack is one of the MOST stressful parts for me.  Where are we going, what’s the weather going to be like, what kind of activities will be included in this trip?…. I could go on with the questions I ask myself every time we’re going on a trip.  Not to mention the beauty products that will be needed…  Oh, it stumps me sometimes.  But, being somewhat of a veteran of travel now, I’ve come up with a checklist to follow.

Here are my tips on how to pack your beauty needs for a trip:

1)     What do you use on a daily basis that you couldn’t go a day without?

 I wash, tone and moisturize my face 2 times a day, so these items are products I CAN’T live without.  But, bringing full size products can be a pain in the butt.  So, I get small travel size containers from the good ol’ dollar store and fill them with my potions and lotions so that my luggage doesn’t go over weight (remember, when traveling by plane, they only allow luggage to be so heavy).

GREAT TIP: When I purchase my skincare, I ALWAYS ask for sample sizes too.

This is a great way to take toner as it can get messy if it leaks, so by having them in small, one time use packages, it makes life a little bit easier too.  Not the best for the environment, but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do…

2) What are the items that are needed but I could live without?

Shampoos and conditioners may be in the ‘use every day’ list for some of you, but for me, I can go a few days without them.  Often times if your staying in hotels, they supply you with some of these toiletries.  For me however, I’m picky about hair products.  I have SUPER thick hair that just can’t deal with 2 in1 Shampoo/Conditioners.  So, I snag those cute little bottles and take them home to fill them up with my favorites.  I also only pack one shampoo and one conditioner for me, my hubby and daughter to share, because remember, sharing is caring. 🙂  There is no need to over pack on these things.

3) Must have stuff that can’t be transferred into smaller containers.

These beauty products are things like toothpaste, deodorant, and hair products such as hairspray or mousse.  Thankfully, stores like Wal-Mart have a ‘travel’ section where they have all sorts of beauty products in mini travel sizes.  They are a bit pricey for the size they are, but I’m not too sure how you’d transfer hairspray and still be able to apply it with ease. If anyone knows a trick for this, please share!

4) Makeup!

Now, this one will depend on many different factors.  First, I ask myself, what kind of trip am I taking?  If it’s a trip to Mexico where I will be sitting in the sand 90% of the time, then I’ll go without my full coverage foundation and opt for a tinted moisturizer with SPF.  However, if I’m traveling and will need to look my best for photos, I’ll just pick up a small container from the dollar store and transfer some of my foundation into it.  With eye shadows, opt for mini pallets, this will give you a few options for your makeup, but won’t take up your whole makeup bag.  For all of my other makeup needs, I bring along more inexpensive items. If you’ve ever lost your luggage, you know you only get a fraction of what all your belongings are worth.  Drugstore makeup has come a long way, and I’d much rather lose a $6 Cover Girl mascara than a $30 DIORSHOW mascara.

5) How to pack these essentials?

Have you ever had your lotion or toner explode in your bag?  It can be UGLY!  I’ve, sadly, had to learn the hard way.  So, hopefully most of you know this one, but for those of you who don’t PLEASE save your clothes the trouble and pack anything in liquid form in a plastic bag.  It’s not nearly as pretty as some of those toiletry bags out there, but it will be a life saver for when something explodes mid flight.  Keep everything sealed tight and anything not liquid (such as eye shadow) in a separate compartment.

For even more help with packing for your next trip (hello, Spring Break anyone?) check out Shelley’s brilliant tips for keeping packing simple:

Packing Tips For Vacation

Happy Traveling!