TGIF everyone! I hope you had a good week and have some down time to relax this weekend. I’m looking forward to meeting up with a few friends, a trip to Barneys and plan on taking lots of photos for upcoming reviews.
Inside my makeup bag this week (way too many lip products stuffed in here):
Diptyque 34 L’Eau du Trent-Quatre Eau de Toilette mini (full size here), seriously considering the full size but I already have 3 other perfumes on my wish list
Guerlain Healthy Glow Terracotta Bronzer (discontinued from holiday, review here)
NARS Mini Blush Brush (from a GWP many years ago)
Chanel Les Beiges No 2 in the darker shade for summer (review soon, original ones in 20, 30 and 40 here)
NARS Angelika Lipgloss is a gorgeous pink color (P.S. Sephora has a super cute 100 beauty insider reward option of a mini NARS lipgloss, it was completely gone from all the stores near me but you can still find it online while it lasts)
Aerin Rose Lip Balm in Pretty, a classic staple nude pink (review and swatches)
MAC Viva Glam VI lipstick, my favorite darker rose brown color (wish they made this in lipglass form too, more VG swatches here)
Caudalie Lip Conditioner from the Favorites Set (feature here)
Dior Diorshow Brow Styler in Universal Brown, this is one of three brow pencils I’ve been testing out, the super fine tip makes application easy and I like the packaging which is super convenient and easy to use
Hourglass Extreme Sheen Lip Gloss in Canvas (review here)
I need to start using smaller makeup bags so I don’t end up carrying around so much stuff. Things tend to pile up each day. What’s been in your makeup bag this past week?
I was so excited to be invited to the rewardStyle conference this year in Dallas, Texas. They hosted an incredible event and I felt so lucky to meet so many talented individuals. Personal highlights (and fan-girl moments for me) included meeting the lovely ladies from Beauty Professor, Liana Beauty, Essie Button, Fleur de Force – all of whom I’ve followed and admired for years. I didn’t get as many pictures as I had hoped during all the excitement but if you search for #rsthecon on Instagram you can see snapshots of the past weekend’s events from those who attended.
Many have asked for me to share what I brought with me on my trip. For me packing is somewhat of an ordeal and I’m in awe of those who travel frequently. I usually bring what will fit into my Bobbi Brown travel case which helps me limit what I bring and keeps everything organized. This case was one of the first gifts my husband gave to me when were dating in our early 20’s. (Black version is not currently available, but there is a gold Bobbi Brown Old Hollywood Train case version available.) All liquids are usually stored in a clear quart sized bag. If you have any travel beauty tips I would love to hear what they are. It always pains me that I can’t bring what I love for hair and skincare. My skin often turns into a nightmare-ish wreck by the end of my trip (no matter how short).
For this 4 day trip I was totally unorganized with my beauty. I packed in a rush, didn’t plan in advance and ended up with duplicate brushes, tools, way too many eyeliners and highlighting products. How this fit in one case is a mystery to me, but it did. Be warned this is a lot. I’ll be sure to tell you which items I actually used.
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Giorgio Armani Regenessence Lotion – I keep a mini sized container from one of the many gift with purchase events, I use it to refill with the full-sized version of toner when I travel
Ole Henriksen Truth Serum – part of The Works Set, I’ve been testing this for several months now and have added it to my daily skincare routine, I apply under moisturizer and found the serum helps extend the wear of my foundation and keeps moisture in better
By Terry Cellularose Blush Glace in Frozen Petal 3 – the perfect natural glowy peachy color in a gel blush formula with long wear (these sell out on a weekly basis both online and in store, it took me several months to track down all three shades)
Tom Ford Fire Lust in a mini Chanel sample container (another one I didn’t use, but review from last year’s version here)
NARS Narsissist Eye Palette – the only eyeshadow I brought with me, this palette did it all for me, I didn’t use all the colors, only 7 of the shades were used during this trip, but I found it served me well as a one palette to do-it-all kind of thing, many have asked if I found issues with pigment or application, I found them to be very good in quality, the matte shades were a bit difficult to get a large brush in but I swished it around (let me know if you want a full detailed review in the comments)
NARS Larger Than Life Eyeliner in Via Appia – part of my eye essentials post here
A few more snapshots of my makeup mess scattered throughout the week, let me know if you want the breakdown of the tools I brought, I kinda just threw a bunch of random clean tools into my makeup box before I left.
Recap of what I used: Aside from the staples (mascara, foundation, powder, skincare) I found I got plenty of use of the NARS Eye Palette, Chanel Illusion d’Ombres, MAC Fairly Precious, Edward Bess Daydream and Tom Ford Flush blush.
What I could have skipped: I could have skipped all but one eyeliner, most of my tools were redundant, I probably only needed 5 brushes at most. I had highlighter overload as well and grabbed a bunch of minis that I had made over the past few weeks.
What I wish I brought: More skincare, more hair care products. Next time I need to do better planning with finding or collecting small sample containers that I can use for travel. Also I rarely use mattifying products – the warm humid weather wasn’t something I was used to in Dallas and definitely needed something to help keep the face more matte.
Do you travel a lot for work or fun? What are your beauty travel packing tips? Do you have a checklist to help plan or a travel pouch that helps organize and limit what you bring with you? Or are you the kind of person that checks bags so contents/limits don’t matter?
I’m all ears for your tips, tricks and experiences. I haven’t had to travel frequently in the past but it’s on my list to do this year (for fun of course). If you want to see what I brought on past trips, click on the TRAVEL tag below the post.
Quick update for those who asked about my Bobbi Brown train case, there is a luxury Gold Old Hollywood version available now (quite pricey), the one I have is from over 10 years ago, keep an eye out for similar versions around holiday or seasonal releases. For now a few other suggestions below.
Tom Ford Spring Fling Lip Sheer (sold out online, check your stores if you are interested in this color as soon as you can if you want to locate, swatches here and here)
I’ve been traveling this past week in San Francisco. This particular post is inspired by an interesting conversation I had with someone this week on what beauty items to bring when traveling. We both talked about how we were really sad we couldn’t bring any hair aerosol products with us. I personally was dying that I had to leave my Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray at home this past week. Not to mention pretty much all of my hair care and most of by body care products. (I brought several mini sample packets of Oribe and Diptyque to test.) This is what I brought with me during my 4.5 day trip (excluding a Dolce & Gabbana Powder foundation and my Moroccanoil mini, not photographed):
I carried everything in either a quart sized bag or a flat black leather pouch from Rebecca Minkoff. For me this was light packing. I usually tend to bring a lot more items. Stay tuned for posting to resume this week.
Update – A few of my readers asked for an update on what I used/didn’t use and what I wish I brought. I ended up using everything I brought with me on this trip. Aside from liquids I couldn’t bring, if I had to do it over, I would have brought a couple more dark shadows or a dark smudgy cream shadow stick.
What beauty, skincare and body products do you usually carry for a week trip?
Here’s what’s in my makeup bag right now. It’s one of those weeks where I switched handbags mid-week and I forgot to transfer a few floating items such as my face powder, a couple lipglosses and two mini brushes between bags (I don’t always put them back in the makeup bag after use). Here’s what I have inside my bag right now, listed from top to bottom.
YSL Volupte Candy in Lush Coconut
NARS Blush in Deep Throat
By Terry Blackstar Ombre in Bronze Moon (review here)
Mid-December’s edition of Inside My Makeup Bag. I’ve been lugging around quite a bit of makeup in a medium-sized leather zip clutch from Rebecca Minkoff (Neiman Marcus gift with purchase from a few months ago).
MAC Trace Gold Sheertone Shimmer Blush (1) has been a staple for years. It’s a shimmering golden bronze. These days I find it to be a versatile bronzer/blush/shimmer highlighter multi-use product. Chanel Les Beiges in No. 20 is my go-to all over setting powder these days. (See review of three shades here, swatches here.)
For skin I’ve almost used up my third tube of L’Occitane Amande Hand Cream (2). It has a strong sweet floral fragrance so if your nose is super sensitive you may want to check out their regular Shea version instead. My little travel-sized Caudalie Divine Oil (8) is half-way used up, I’ll need a replacement for my purse soon. (Previous review here.)
For lips, a current staple lip balm is Jo Malone’s Vitamin E Lip Treatment (3). (Reviewed here.) I almost always have a Chanel Glossimer (4) in my bag, right now I have Bon-Bon a sheer light pink gold. Tom Ford Sugar Pink Lip Gloss (5) is a classic hot but sheer pink to add a soft fresh glow to the lips. (Swatched here.) Chanel Rouge Coco Shines are a must-have for everyday swipe-and-go lipsticks. Bel-Ami (12) and Boy (13) layer nicely together.
I’ve been alternating perfumes almost daily, right now I’m smitten with Bond No. 9 Chinatown Bon-Bon (7).
I’ve just opened up a fresh tube of NARS Larger Than Life Volumizing Mascara (6) which is one of my favorites for volume and holding the curl. I rarely touch-up on eyeshadows during the day but they still manage to find their way into my bag. I have NARS All About Eve (9) and Cordura Duos (14), both are staple neutrals. If I could only have 4 eyeshadow colors these would be it.
Laura Mercier mini brushes from one of her palettes are among the best I’ve tried for minis (10). I wish more brands made short-handled versions of their brushes to be purse-friendly. Le Metier de Beaute Blush Brush (11) is the perfect size for me without being too small.
I’ve been traveling for several days to San Francisco for a mini vacation. If you follow me via Instagram @beautylookbook you will see some snapshots of my travels around the city. More on some trip highlights to come soon here and on Styled Notes. Several of you have emailed me asking for a post on what I brought with me on my trip. I left for four days so I didn’t need much. However as usual I overpacked. The items I picked were fairly basic and versatile for a day to night look. Our trip was fairly laid back so I didn’t need to bring things different from what I normally wear for everyday.
This is what I brought with me in a Tom Ford Brush Holder and Bobbi Brown Train Case (both not available now, but previously released with sets or for holidays):
Skincare: mini sized items of Chanel makeup remover, Le Jour, Le Nuit, Sublimage cream and Le Blanc toner, a mini size of SK-II cleanser
Tools: a variety of MAC, Tom Ford and Chanel brushes, Chanel eyelash curler, Chanel Le Coton, Q-tips
Eyes: Le Metier de Beaute Carnaby Street Kaleidoscope, RMS Beauty Solar Cream Shadow, Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara Excess, Chanel Santal Eyeliner
Lips: Tom Ford Love Bruise Lipgloss, Armani Lipglosses, Chanel Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in Caprice, YSL Rouge Volupte Candy, Chanel Rouge Coco Shines, Tom Ford Spanish Pink Lipstick, Chanel Nude Lipliner (I know it makes no sense to bring this many lip products on a trip, but it always happens)
Face: Tom Ford Foundation Stick #5, NARS Groenland Tinted Moisturizer, Cle de Peau Concealer, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette (more on this soon, but I love this!), Edward Bess Bronzer, Chanel Soho Powder, two MAC blushes in Poised and Barefaced, Chanel Les Beiges Powder, Edward Bess Sunlight Cream Highlighter
Hair: Mason Pearson Comb and Moroccan Oil
Did I use everything? Almost, but not quite. Items I found myself using the most included the basics. For color I used Chanel Rouge Coco Shines and Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss a lot. Edward Bess Daydream Bronzer was used everyday along with the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette. I used the one eyeshadow palette as well for Le Metier de Beaute Carnaby Street. The MAC blushes were the perfect shade of nude to go with virtually everything (I layered a lot).
What I could have skipped: the Tom Ford lipstick and Armani lipglosses What I missed: my flat iron, hair dryer and normal shampoo, conditioner and shower gels (but mainly relied on hotel amenities), also shimmery fluid highlighters I couldn’t bring because of travel size restrictions
What beauty items do you usually bring with you when you travel?
