My Travel Toiletry Essentials

I'm currently in organisation overdrive - trying to plan for my holiday to Mexico in a weeks time! I'm at that stage where I'm trying to plan outfits for the week, without wearing anything I want to take on my travels. I want to make sure everything is planned before I leave, so packing next Friday should be (cross fingers) seamless and easy! I'll be doing a few posts about my upcoming holiday, so look out for them, especially if you like planning blog posts - I know I do... I'm such a snooper! So without further a do, here are my top picks for travel toiletries!

Hair:

For my hair I've decided to go for the Charles Worthington Shine Booster Shampoo and the Moisture Seal Conditioner. I find when I go on holiday my hair can become very dry due to the exposure to sun, so these two - although they aren't an original pair - are perfect, the Shine Booster should inject some gloss into my hair and the Moisture Seal should help revive it. I got these both in full size because I'm away for 11 days and I'll probably end up washing my hair most days so I'll need them to be larger than the mini travel sizes. I also picked up the Sunshine Protector Leave In Spray, also by Charles Worthington. It acts as a suncream but for your hair, to help prevent from damage, drying and fading. This is enriched with Moringa Seed Oil to help with moisture and shine, leaving hair protected, replenished and lightly scented. 

Body & Basics:

My body wash of choice is the Dove Go Fresh Body Wash in the scent Blue Fig and Orange Blossom. I love love love the smell of this, it's so fresh and exactly what I'm going to need to freshen up after being out all day in the sun. There's also a few basics like my deodorant, just a basic Soft and Gentle in Lavender and Patchouli, my razor, a Venus Spa Breeze disposable, my toothbrush, toothpaste etc!

Skincare:

I've tried to stick as close as possible to my normal skincare routine, so I've made sure I have my cleanser, eye cream, serum and moisturiser all the same as I have when I'm at home. I ordered the Bioderma Micellar Water as I really didn't want to take my 400ml Garnier version and this was the only one I knew which was small enough. I was also really intrigued to try the Bioderma version, so this small bottle is perfect. The cleanser of choice is of course my Liz Earle original cleanser, I was given this smaller size at an event at work, which is perfect for taking on holiday! The serum is my Body Shop Vitamin E Serum, it's a bit more gel-like than other serums so it's nice and cooling - perfect after a day sunning myself! Next up is my Una Brennan Vitamin C Brightening Eye Cream and my Eucerin moisturiser. I'm also bringing along a small can of the Avene Thermal Spring Water, which I'll use as a toner but it'll also be handy to use in the day to cool off. Finally, I've got a small packet of the Yes to Cucumber Soothing Facial Wipes. These are more for on the plane but should be handy to have with me for whenever, they're also hypoallergenic which is good because I have very sensitive skin at times.

Sun Care:

I've switched up my sun care this year and gone for the Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration in SPF 30. I'm also bringing along my trusty Piz Buin Ultra Dry Touch Fluid, again in SPF 30 -I don't know about you but I'm really not a fan of feeling sticky so hence the dry touch suncream! I've also opted for the Dry Touch Face Fluid, this time in SPF 15, but I also have a 30 just in case. For After-sun, I've gone for another Hawaiian Tropic line, one I've used before and absolutely love, the Silk Hydration After-sun Lotion. 

So thats it, an inside look at my holiday toiletry essentials! Is there anything you like to take with you when you go away?

Emma x

My Daily Skincare Routine

I have an absolute passion for skincare, however I'm also one of those people who used to really neglect my skin when I was younger. It would maybe at a push see some Clean&Clear scrubbed all over and rinsed off -- and that was a treat. Nowadays I take much better care of my skin, and I actually enjoy doing it. It's those five to ten minutes in the morning and evening where you can really pamper yourself and focus on you. Don't see it as a chore - see it as a mini spa experience!

I'll begin with a bit of a background on my skin -- as a teen I suffered from blemishes and spots, not at extreme levels, just the normal, I got slightly greasier skin and my main problem areas were my forehead and chin. Back to present day and I'm very lucky, I rarely get spots and my skin is fairly clear. However, when a spot does decide to appear, it's not just a pimple, its an angry little thing taking up residence (normally) on my chin -- so much fun! I also have quite sensitive skin, so I have to be careful when I decide which products to use as my skin can react very badly. I think having a separate skincare routine for morning and night is really good, as your skin needs different things depending on the time of day. So without further ado... here's my skincare routine!

AM:

In the morning my skin should be looking fresh after a great nights sleep, even if it is 6:15! I never have a lot of time in the week days so this may vary slightly to weekends... but normally I begin with a cleanser. My weapon of choice: REN Everclam Gentle Cleansing Gel, this is great, lightweight and is for sensitive skin. I rub one pump into slightly damp hands and gently massage over face and neck for a minute of so, I then just rinse off with warm water.

Next step, exfoliator. I use the Vitamin C Microdermabrasion scrub from the Body Shop. This is a once a week step so not exactly part of my daily skincare routine but hey ho! This is a step when you have some extra time on your hands. The product has a very light texture, it's not a heavy duty scrub and has a really fine texture. It claims to reveal a brighter, more radiant complexion and I actually think it does, so a good product to use in the morning to give you a healthy glow.

This next product is what I use for my toner - the Avene Eau Thermale Spring Water. Just one spritz of this on my face does the job. It's just a refreshing mist that kind of finishes the job of cleansing off.

I loveeeee the Una Brennan skincare range, and the Brightening Eye Cream is possibly one of the reasons I fell in love with the whole range. I just squeeze a small pea-size amount on my ring finger and dab it round my eye area. It's really good for remedying dark circles and puffiness under the eye.

Then I normally use a serum - the Vitamin E Serum from the Body Shop is a really nice lightweight one. It provides continuous hydration and protection and is a perfect pre-moisturising treatment.

Finally I use a light moisturiser - Eucerin AQUAporin Active Moisturising Cream Rich. It's a really nice lightweight moisturiser and is particularly suited for sensitive and dry skin - both characteristics of my skin, especially in winter. I only have the sample size currently as I found out about at an event at work but I'm desperate to get my hands on the full size product.

PM:

I switch things up a bit in the evening, firstly I have to take my makeup off, which wasn't needed in the morning. I have a range of products I can use for make up removal, but my all time favourite has to be the Garnier Micellar Water. I soak a cotton pad in this and start with my face then moving onto my eyes, one side of the pad for each eye. 

Next step is cleansing, in the evenings I prefer to use a richer, creamier, more indulgent cleanser so I reach for the Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser. I feel like this step really ensures any left over traces of make up are gone and makes my skin feel clean and fresh. After that I use the Avene Eau Thermale again and the Una Brennan Eye Cream.

Another treatment I use is the Tea Tree Pore Minimiser from the Body Shop (can you tell I'm a bit obsessed with this brand?!). If anything this product smells amazing, it also smoothes, primes and mattifies and leaves the skin feeling fresh.

I also use La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo +, this claims to reduce redness and swelling on spots and can correct scarring issues from acne as well. I've been using this for at least a year now and I really do love this stuff, I think it does the job, although I can only speak from my own experience and I don't suffer a lot from spots or scarring, but when I do, I see a difference.

Next up is a new addition: the Body Shops Vitamin E Overnight Serum in Oil. You only need a few drops of this stuff and a little goes a long way. It's not like your normal overnight serums - it does have a very oily texture. However, the product isn't greasy, it's light weight and sinks into the skin nicely before you apply moisturiser.

Finally, the last product I use for the day is a night cream. I choose the Estee Lauder Revitalizing Supreme at the moment, though I do switch it around. As long as it's a rich cream then I'm there, other similar products I use are the No7 Essential Moisture Night Cream and the REN V-Cleanse Revitalizing Night Cream. All of these are super rich and really rejuvenate your skin. They smooth fine lines and can help combat the early signs of aging.

Are any of these products ones that you use? Or are there any you really want to try?

Emma x