It’s getting hot in here. So take off all your…
Summer beauty is a tricky thing. You want your makeup to give you a dewy look, but you don’t want to look [overly] sweaty while simultaneously trying to figure out how to stop everything from sliding down your face. And for skincare, you want something light that won’t make your skin feel greasy or suffocated, but you still want it to be nourishing. Now, traveling and making sure you and your skin don’t look a wreck is a whole other ballgame. Especially in Vegas where I was happy when the weather “cooled down” from 112 to 104.
Summer in Vegas | Hot Weather Travel Beauty Essentials
SKINCARE
For cleansing the skin morning and night, I took my handy dandy & trusty Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser since it doesn’t strip the skin, removes light makeup nicely (heavier makeup will need a double cleanse), and is very lightweight and gentle. To make sure everything was fully off and clean before bed, I brought along a little bit of my Simple Micellar Cleansing Water in a little travel size spray bottle. Side note: I picked up a travel kit from Target, which was a godsend. I bought two kits and depotted lots of liquids, shampoo/conditioner, hand soap, and all my lotions and potions into them.
For a refreshing mist during the day (and night, since it was still in the 90s there), I carried around a small spray bottle (from that Target kit) full of the Pearlessence Cucumber Water face mist. It is such a great way to add a burst of freshness when you’re feeling tired and hot and sweaty. Instead of packing different serums/oils I brought the Complex Beauty Afterglow complexion mist along with me since it has a melange of beneficial ingredients all while being super refreshing as well. I can’t even explain how refreshing and revitalizing this felt on the skin after a hot night out.
My favorite skincare product has to be a good serum. Unfortunately, most serums are glass, and traveling with glass bottles can be a hassle. Instead of going serum crazy, I kept it simple since it was only a 4 day trip. I knew hydration would be key since Las Vegas is pretty dry. The C2 Cali Clean Advanced Hyaluronic Hydrating Primer* comes in a plastic bottle, but I still pumped it out into a little pot from the Target travel kit. It has a very thin, liquidy consistency, since it’s essentially water, hyaluronic acid, and preservatives. It’s super simple, but it works.
Keeping things in the realm of hydration, I took along the Pur~Lisse Balancing Moisturizer* to use as a lightweight daytime moisturizer. It layers well, and moisturizes the skin beautifully for makeup application. At night, a little something thicker was needed so I depotted some of my holy grail, all time favorite Origins Night-A-Mins Night Renewal Cream. The citrus scent of it is very refreshing, and it’s so nourishing and luxurious minus the pore clogging or thick feeling.
I took along The Ordinary Salicylic Acid as well as Acne Patches for pesky pimple situations that always tend to pop up when I’m traveling. I also packed the Complex Beauty Thirst Quencher hydra mask because it’s not only moisturizing, but it contains blue tansy, which is great for redness and blemishes. I actually ended up using this as an overnight sleeping mask a couple nights, and in the morning my skin looked visibly more moisturized, calm, and dewy.
Vegas wouldn’t be Vegas without all that sunshine (aka sun exposure to a scared-of-the-sun freak like me) so SPF was an absolute must. It’s always a must– even on cloudy days! Because ya girl is bougie, I had to pack two. One for the face, and one for the body. I took the Missha All Around Safe Block Essence Sun SPF 45/ PA +++ for the face. This one has an SPF of 45 and it is chemical, but it feels (and looks) like nothing on the skin and is super affordable. For the body, I took along the La Roche Posay Cooling Water Lotion Sunscreen 60. This one is also a chemical, but it’s lightweight. I’m guilty of applying more SPF than you need so it can leave a white cast if you go overboard, but it’s untraceable once you blend it properly.
Skincare is never complete without some lip care, and my balm of choice this time around was the Kopari Coconut Lip Balm*. It looks glossy on the lips, is free of petroleum jelly, and is moisturizing and nourishing without being heavy or sticky and goopy.
MAKEUP
I packed the Make Up For Ever HD Foundation Stick for a full coverage base that doesn’t feel heavy on the skin. It’s also great for travel because it’s compact and liquid free so it won’t accidentally spill everywhere. Another stick product I brought along to conceal blemishes and all the dark circles was the Cover FX Cover Click Concealer + Foundation. It’s super tiny and full coverage, but easy to blend out, and doesn’t look cakey under the eyes.
To keep all of that in place, but looking dewy and fresh, I brought along a travel tube of the Burberry Fresh Glow Luminous Base in No. 1 Nude Radiance. It adds a glow without making your makeup slide all over the place.
For blush, it was all about Glossier Cloud Paint in Dusk for a peachy nude flush, while bronzing and contouring was all up to the Marc Jacobs Tantric Bronzer. It’s warm, but not overly warm so my medium skin tone can get away with using it as a light contour as well. But, at the same time, it’s bronzey, and has a natural matte finish so it doesn’t look flat or chalky or patchy.
To keep my dew game strong, and to keep it from sliding off or fading away so easily, I packed the cream version of Becca Opal and the powder version of Becca Moonstone. Both are radiant, without being glittery, and a little goes a long way.
Eyeshadow is not my strong suit, and I generally skip on it for the day to day, but sometimes you gotta step it up, ya know? But, even then I’m a bit lazy so the ones I turned to for a quick swipe, blend and go routine without the fuss is Butter London Glazen Eye Gloss in Bronzed, Kiko Long Lasting Shadow Stick in 06 Golden Brown, and MAC Brown Script for when I wanted to mix things up with a warm brown matte shadow in the crease or all over the lids.
My favorite eye look at the moment (when I do one ;)) is a smoky, messy eye, and that involves some smudged out black pencil liner like the NARS Long Wear Eyeliner in Via Veneto. The best part is that it’s retractable, has a built in sharpener on the end, and it’s long lasting, super pigmented, and creamy making it perfect for smudging (or not smudging). And, then I’d top it all off with the Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara. It helps lengthen, holds a curl fairly well, and doesn’t clump up the lashes.
Lastly, the lips. Because I was at a convention all day, I wanted something fuss free that would last, reapply easily, not feel heavy on the lips, gunk up or smear. So, ColourPop Blotted Lip in Bit-o-Sunny and their Ultra Blotted Lip in Lexi were two colorful go to’s. For gloss, I went with the Glossier Lip Gloss since it is nourishing and shiny, but not goopy and since it is slightly stickier, it stays put longer.
And, to set alll of that into place, the Pixi Makeup Fixing Mist* was spritzed all over quite generously. It not only enhanced the dew, but kept things in place just a smidgen longer.
What are your travel essentials? Let me know in the comments below!
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*Press samples. But, all opinions are always my own :)
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