What I Packed For A Week in Croatia | Part Two

My name is Sarah and I’m a packing addict. In part one of this post,  I showed what Im packing for a seven night break to Split in Croatia. I’ve also done posts on what to pack for an overnight trip to London, and a city break in Europe before.

Although I’m a massive fan of packing light, liquids are the only area that I really struggle with when travelling light. So many make-up items count as well as toiletries, even when I’ve gotten down to my bare minimum (why, airport gods, WHY!?!?). My solutions?

1)     I  use the Boots Click and Collect facility to order sun cream for the family online and pick it up from the Boots at the airport (at which point it’s sealed into a duty-free bag and doesn’t count against your liquid allowance). I also use this trick with Theo’s nappies, just to cut down on the amount of space they steal from the baggage allowance otherwise.

2)     I swap out whatever liquids I can for solids ( e.g instead of a brow gel, I take a brow pencil.  You could also look into solid perfume, shampoo bars and soap rather than shower gel if you’re really struggling

3)     I look for multi-tasking products, like coconut oil that I can use on my hair and my skin and pretty much everywhere else (is there NOTHING it can’t do?!)

4)     If I really need space, I share the toothpaste, deodorant and shower gel with my husband and make him carry them all which leaves me more room for other girlier stuff!

So here’s what I packed for a week away in my travel makeup and toiletry bags:

Toiletries

For my toiletries, I’m just using this basic clear washbag from Boots. It's super handy because it can just be pulled out to go through security checks rather than having to mess around getting things in and out of a clear ziplock. 

Instead of taking liquid makeup remover, I’m a huge fan of these reusable makeup removing cloths, which you just soak in hot water. They do an amazing job of removing everything! My Violife Slim Sonic toothbrush is so sleek and hygienic to travel with as well.

I'm also taking a small folding hairbrush from The Detangler, a hair clip so I can fix my hair in a messy bun for the pool or at night, and a little pack with some cotton pads and buds in.

I'm also taking a Gillette Simply Venus razor (one of the disposable ones!). A lot of people seem to think you can't take a razor in your hand luggage but you can, as long as the blade is non-removable (so unfortunately my Venus Snap travel razor is out).

Then I have travel sizes of Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray, and the shampoo and conditioner. I try to have some days on holiday where I work with the natural texture of my hair and just scrunch in some salt spray rather than heat styling. I’m also taking Bumble and Bumble’s Don't Blow It styling cream. 

I love a multi-tasker when I’m away from home, so the Garnier Pure 3 in 1 Wash, Scrub and Mask is great and leaves skin feeling fresh after a day at the beach. 

To complete my skincare, I have a travel size pot of the new Bobbi Brown Extra Eye Repair cream. I try not to take loads of different potions on holiday, but a good eye cream is a must! I also take the Lacura Caviar Illuminate Eye Roll On to take down any morning puffiness. 

Nip + Fab Glycolic Fox Cleansing Pads now come in a travel size as well, which is genius. They exfoliate and smooth so well. Best of all, I can keep the packaging and refill from my regular pot as needed when I travel.

This Works In Transit Camera Close Up is also a genius product, because it's a mask, a moisturiser and a primer in one - deeply hydrating and smells delicious.

My multi-tasking hero is the small pot of Vita Coco. This little pot of natural goodness has so many uses, but on holiday I like to use it as a deep moisturiser for my skin and hair. I pop it on over night and wake up with silky limbs and hair. 

Finally, I have a little can of Nivea deodorant, a Philosophy Amazing Grace shower gel which smells like heavenly clean laundry and a couple of perfume samples to try - Valentino Donna and Dior Poison Girl. These little samples are great for holiday and if they're a new scent you always associate it with that place afterwards.

Tools and Brushes

What makeup brushes and other tools to take can be a tricky area. I believe having the right tools makes all the difference, but when you need to pack light, tough decisions have to be made!

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to track down a set of brushes that were travel-size (with short handles) but also had the correct brushes in that I would need on a daily basis, and equally not lots of ones that were useless (like sponge eyeshadow applicators. Seriously. Does anyone actually use those anymore!?).

In the end, I tracked down this great wooden handled set from BeautyDream on AliExpress, which contains the right mix of tools for me. I’ve added in a Beauty Blender as well as a couble of Spectrum face brushes. I’ve stashed them all in this pouch from Jack Wills to keep them tidy and safe.

Makeup

All the makeup I’m taking with me, I’ve stashed in this small bag from Katie Loxton. Although I’m a total product junkie, I’ve really tried to simplify my routine here. It may still seem a lot to some!

First up, Hylamide HA Blur is my skin holy grail, so it was an essential. It’s a primer and skin finisher that uses an advanced form of hyaluronic acid to intensely moisturise, smooth and blur. I wouldn’t be without it! If I want to go make up free, a dab of this will work wonders on its own.

Next up, my Mac Pro Longwear concealer to chase away my dark circles (I might be on holiday but with my toddler, lie-ins are not an option!). I like to travel with Bourjois City Radiance foundation, because it gives good coverage without being too heavy, has a decent SPF and the packaging is slim and lightweight, so it doesn’t take up too much room in my beauty bag.

I’ve also packed my BareMinerals Original Foundation, as it does the job of a powder and a base in one and lets the skin breathe.

I’m also taking a pressed powder- BeautyPie One Powder Wonder- which I like to use for setting my undereye concealer. 

This Too Faced Chocolate Soleil bronzer will be super useful for adjusting my makeup as I get a bit of a tan, and adding a light contour. It’s a travel size one as well, which is useful.

Limiting myself to one eyeshadow palette is a big ask, but it’s definitely easier when you’ve chosen all the shades yourself! A Mac Custom Quad holds any four shades that you like from the range. The essentials for me are a nude shimmer shade (Shimma Shimma from Makeup Geek- their shadows fit in the Mac palettes), Omega, a soft taupe for defining the crease, Tempting, a chocolate brown shimmer for a bolder look, and Charcoal Brown, which I use to smoke things up more. I can also use this shade to fill in my brows, which it’s the perfect colour for. 

Rimmel Exaggerate Waterproof Eye Definer in Sable is a great recent discovery for me. It’s a really long lasting liner with a twist up casing and a smudger built into the other end. It’s very similar to my favourite pencil liner by BareMinerals but for a bargain price. 

I’m also taking my Benefit High Brow pencil which is another multi-tasking wonder product. I use it for sculpting my face and making me look more awake- there are so many things you can do with it. And also my Maybelline Brow Satin pencil in Medium Brown - this is so useful as its double ended, with a pencil and then a powder applicator on the other end for plumping up sparse bits.

A travel size Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara is also really useful. It’s my all time favourite but I prefer to get the travel sizes as you can use it all before they dry out! 

Vaseline Lip Therapy is another must. I use it to condition my lips, smooth my brows and even as a highlighter patted along my cheekbones! This is the ‘Sugar Coated’ version which has a very faint pink tint.

For my lips, these mini Clinique Pop Lips lipsticks are so convenient and I adore the formula which is so smooth and moisturising. I have ‘Nude Pop’ and ‘Cherry Pop’ for if I want to mix it up a little. Finally, I’m also taking my travel size Too Faced Lip Injection so I can plump my pout on the go.

And that’s it- travelling very light for me!