Makeup I’m Bringing on My 2 Week Vacation

As you’ve probably seen me mention in past posts, I’ll be leaving for Southern Europe for a 2 week trip soon, and plan on bringing only a carry-on suitcase and a large tote bag. I’ve always enjoyed reading posts regarding makeup essentials when traveling, so I’m excited to be writing about what I plan on bringing. Part of it is that I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of living outside my comfort zone for a short period of time, and being practical about how I want to spent my time when I’m on vacation (it’ll be less time getting ready, and more time exploring, that’s for sure!). Here’s what I took into consideration when deciding on what items to bring:

• Although my skin is dry in the Winter, I would say it’s combination/oily in the Summer, somewhat prone to acne, with redness in the cheeks.
• The temperature at my destinations is expected to be in the high 80s to mid-90s, so I need something that feels light, yet will still stay on throughout the day with minor touch-ups. There’s nothing worse than cake-y makeup that shines in photos!
• I’m also trying to keep my daily makeup routine to under 10 minutes, to make time for more sleep and more fun 😉
• Call me paranoid, but I’ve decided to substitute high-end makeup/tools for my more budget brands/items as much as I can on this trip. This is simply in case the items get lost, quality gets compromised with all the traveling, or some other kind of unforeseen circumstance occurs.

Now let’s break down what I’m bringing into specific categories:

Face:
This is probably what I consider to be my top priority, which is why the bulk of my products that I’m bringing will be in this category. For the primer, I will be bringing the MAC Prep + Prime CC in Neutralize, which I purchased about 3 months ago and have been using every other day. This claims to reduce redness with its yellow tint, although I like it more for its hydrating feel and it happens to include SPF 30. I’m also bringing a sample tube of the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer which used to be one of my HGs. I think this is a super popular product for good reason, and it allows your foundation to glide on so smoothly!

I decided to forego an actual foundation, and will only be bringing the MAC Prep + Prime BB in Medium Plus as my liquid coverage. This also includes SPF 35, provides medium coverage, and looks great layered under powder. Speaking of powder, I am also bringing the Neutrogena Mineral Sheers Loose Powder Foundation in Natural Beige, and keeping the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Plus in my purse for touch-ups. This way, on days where I don’t feel like wearing the BB cream, I can use the loose powder foundation and SF in conjunction and stuff achieve some decent coverage. To top all of this off, I’m bringing a small version of the Tarte Smooth Operator Finishing Powder which is a great substitute for the Make Up For Ever HD Powder.

For concealer, I’ll be bringing the MAC Studio Finish in NC30 for spot coverage and and the NYX HD Concealer in NW04 for under my eyes, both of which I have not owned for very long, but are effective for their size and price.

As for adding some color, the only item I’ll be bringing is the e.l.f. Pressed Mineral Bronzer.

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Eyes and Lips:
I have super oily eyelids so I need a primer before I put anything else on my eyes! I used Urban Decay’s Primer Potion for a long time until my tube finally ran out and I decided I wanted to try something new. The Smashbox 24 hour Photo Finish Shadow Primer works for me, but I’ll admit it’s pretty pricey at $20 for a small tube. When I run out of this, I’ll be trying out some new stuff. The only eye shadow I’m bringing is the NYX in Coquette because I don’t wear much eye makeup normally, and I love how versatile this shade is. For eyeliner, I’ve been experimenting with the NYX Super Skinny Eye Marker to see how long-lasting it is – So far, I think it’s a good alternative to the Kat Von D Tattoo liner and I also like that the brush tip is shorter than the tattoo liner’s, giving you more control. I’m also a huge fan of NYX’s Skinny Black Liner so I’m bringing that as well. The one mascara I’ll be bringing is a sample of Diorshow Iconic Overcurl. I actually used to go without mascara all the time because I have black, naturally curled eyelashes but I really like how my lashes are longer, with no clumping, when I use this product.

As far as lips go, mine are extremely dry year-round, so I rarely wear lip color and generally stick to lip balms and maybe lip butters. Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment in Rose has SPF 15 and color, so that does the job for me.

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Brushes:
Here’s where I also tried to cut down on, and I ended up with these 8 brushes. Going from left to right:

• Sephora Airbrush #55 for the BB cream
• e.l.f. Studio Complexion Brush for powders and bronzer
• e.l.f. Studio Stipple Brush for the finishing powder
• e.l.f. Studio Angled Foundation Brush for the Primers
• e.l.f. Studio Eyeshadow “C” and Contour Brushes for eyes
• Sephora Concealer #45
• Kevin Aucoin Powder brush for touch-ups (that I recently received and talked about in this post)

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These items look like a lot in the photos above, but they all fit in a standard size makeup bag with a lot of room to spare! I’d like to hear your thoughts on what I’m bringing, and what makeup items you can’t live without when you’re traveling!