Jet Set Essentials

Hey guys! So as a few of you may know, I'm gong to New York next week, and I am little kid in a candy store excited. I have been once before, around three years ago, but I've been so desperate to go back ever since. Can you blame me?

I really enjoy reading travel-related blog posts and videos, so figured this was the perfect opportunity to do one for myself! So without any further waffle, here are my in-flight essentials. (Mmmm waffle)

Skincare

So with it being a long haul flight, (around seven and a half hours), I usually take my makeup off a couple of hours into the journey, re-apply it just before landing and do a bit of a treatment somewhere in the middle. I find this just helps to keep my skin feeling healthier and prevents breakouts, otherwise the recycled air on planes turns my skin drier than the Sahara desert. Plus I'm far too attached to my makeup bag to put it in the hold. Anyone else surgically attached to their makeup?

(Products Clockwise from Left)

  1. Yes To Cucumbers Hypoallergenic Face Wipes - £3.99

2. Clarins Factor 30 Sun Wrinkle Control Cream - £20

3. Charlotte Tilbury 3rd Edition Makeup Bag - £32

4. Bath & Body Works 'Fresh Strawberries' Hand Sanitizer - $1.75

5. Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair mini (Came in a set)

6. Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Lip Balm - £19

7. Papaya Gold PAWPAW Moisturising Balm - £5.99

I'm not usually a user of makeup wipes as they tend to strip the skin if you use them too much, but they're super useful for travel and obviously don't count as a liquid. (I learnt the hard way when my Micellar Water leaked everywhere on my last trip away!) These Yes to Cucumber wipes have no alcohol or funny chemicals, so they're perfect for my sensitive skin, and they take all my makeup off really easily. And I kind of love the cucumber-y smell they have! (Shh I know that's not a word...)

Typically I find normal sun creams to be too greasy and heavy for my face, so I invested in this Clarins one a couple of years ago. It has a really lovely texture and doubles up as my moisturiser when I'm away too. It's thick enough so that my skin feels really hydrated, but still acts as a smooth base underneath foundation! It's not amazing weather in NYC at the moment, (not that I'm complaining), but I'm currently using a Kiehl's Dark Spot Corrector, to dull my acne scars, and they recommend facial sunscreen at all times to aid the process along.

Obviously I'm not about to put Anti Bacterial Hand gel on my face, but I figured it kinda fits into the skincare category. It is such a necessity for travelling because, well, planes are dirty! I picked this one up when I was last in Florida, in a '5 for $5' deal at Bath and Body Works and it smells so good

I had always been interested in trying the Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair, but at £50 a pop, I decided to go for a slightly less pricey serum. I have the full size of the Kiehl's Midnight Recovery, which is an amazing product to keep skin hydrated, but the glass bottle is a no-no for travel. I got this miniature in a little set when I last repurchased Estée Lauder Double Wear (surprise surprise), and I think the serum will be perfect when my skin needs a little pick me up, and it takes up zero space.

I'm already a fan of the Lizzie Arden Eight Hour cream, so when my Granny handed me this lip balm one day, I knew I'd love it. (Thanks Granny!) The consistency is somewhere between a balm and a thick gloss but its not sticky at all, so its perfect for applying over a bit of lipstick on the go! The Paw Paw lip balm is quite similar in consistency to the previous one, but this one is more of a deep hydrating balm. It's essentially Vaseline on steroids, and it's great for chapped lips, sore hands and eczema, i.e perfect for planes. 

Whats in the makeup bag???

Makeup

I'm going to be doing a separate post about all my favourite makeup at the moment, cause otherwise I'll miss my flight trying to list everything here! I find it extremely difficult to whittle down the makeup I travel with and usually end up taking about twenty lip products with me. So I guess we'll see about that one...

Reading Materials/Other Essentials

The two most important things after your Passport: One classy and one trashy magazine. Ok so as totally random as this sounds, I never know what mood I'm going to be in on a flight, or how short my attention span might be, so I like to cover all bases! We always buy these at the airport and Grazia is a classic choice for all its fashion features, and coverage of current issues; and then my mum and I usually pick up a copy of 'Look' or 'New' for all the gory gossip about celebs. (Yay for trashy magazines!) Oh and laugh all you want but I love a good puzzle book and they kill time like nothing else! My neighbouring passengers will be wishing they were as prepared as me..


I've really got back into reading thrillers recently and having just finished 'Vanished' by Tim Weaver, (which I really recommend by the way), I was looking for something new to grip me. My bestie Megan and I ended up in the 'Buy One Get One Half Off' section of Waterstones today for a good hour, and came out with two new books each! I'm really fighting the urge not to start this one before the holiday! If you've read any good thrillers recently, I'd love to know which ones!

Surprise suprise, I'm a girl in her early twenties that can't go anywhere without her phone! I've now got into the habit of bringing my iPhone charger in my carry on bag, as some airplanes have USB charging ports, so I can play whatever game I'm obsessing over, in flight mode of course, without losing any battery. Which reminds me - I need to find a new game to get addicted to! Any ideas?

Passport, Boarding Pass, Dollars, Purse - Well duh.

Tangle Teezers save lives. Well they don't, but they come pretty darn close. If you've got naturally wavy hair and you sometimes forget to brush it/put it in a ponytail before bed then you will understand the pain you can avoid by using one of these instead of a normal brush. Thank the lord.

Lush 'No Drought' Dry Shampoo has to be one of my favourite beauty products ever. It has a really pleasant lemon scent, and one bottle lasts a ridiculously long time. It's so much better than the Batiste cans which I swear after about six uses, just when you need it most - aka you couldn't be bothered to wash your hair and you have work in thirty minutes - its bloody empty.  I've always been a Lush supporter as they're a completely eco friendly and cruelty free brand too.

Lastly I always like to bring a miniature perfume with me when I travel, because planes are grotty, and I feel slightly more put together when I know I smell nice. Is that weird? This one is 'Very Sexy' by Victoria's Secret, and it's a really sweet and spicy fragrance, which I love.

Is there anything that you can't live without when you're going on a long journey? Let me know in the comments!

As always, Thanks for reading your Dose of Travel