How do you pack for a weekend away? Yes my friends, this was the lovely dilemma I was faced with when I decided to go for a quick weekend to Paris! As a girl who loves to snap photographs, I decided I wanted to lug around my big dslr (am I crazy? by the way that’s a rhetorical question!).
Anyway that meant I was planning on travelling seriously light and by that I mean go minimal on cosmetics. It’s a big ask for a beauty lover but I felt I could carefully plan the perfect cosmetics bag for a quick weekend away.
So how do you pack for a weekend away?
The first rule of weekend packing is to save your empties or buy smaller containers. I found that tiny empty sample bottles were great for storing all kinds of creams and facial oils. So have a good rummage around and see what you can find.
I had these cute bottles lying around and I ended up putting a facial oil cleanser in one and another I used for my toner! If you have a Daiso or Watsons near you, they will definitely sell bottles like this. If you’re in the UK, I recommend heading down to muji and boots for travel containers like these. Admittedly I don’t think the packaging will be that cute. The UK doesn’t do cute most of the time.
Look around you for alternatives.
I determined to pack the Etude house beauty shot face blur. However the bottle was a little bulky. I was trying to find something I could store it in! Lo and behold, I found an empty nail polish tub (the ones that hold wipes), cleaned it out and put two pumps of my Etude house face blur in it! Perfect.
Remember to use your samples
When you’re an avid beauty buyer, it’s a truth universally acknowledged that you’re going be in possession of many samples. In all likelihood, your samples are usually stuffed somewhere in the backend of your drawers. Am I right? You should really make use them! They’re perfectly packaged for a one or two night stay away from home and also they take up minimal space in your luggage.
Double up on products
My favourite eyeshadows are all contained in the Urban Decay Naked Palette. Have you seen the size of this palette though? It’s big and bulky and who really needs that many eyeshadows for the weekend? What I would recommend is that you look around and see if you have a product you can use which can double up as eyeshadow. For example, I enjoy using 3CE’s magic touch facemaker. For the uninitiated, it’s basically a compact which contains a highlighter and a shade of brown which you can use to contour your face! Thus being a face maker. For my trip, I decided I’d also use the brown as an eyeshadow base and the pink side as my highlighter for under my eyebrows.
Do you have items that you can double up on? Have a think!
Think small
When reducing space, obviously you should think small. I tried to pack things that came in pencil or pen form since they don’t really take up much space!. I’m a huge fan of Etude House’s crayon sticks. I’m not sure if they still sell these anymore but they’re perfect as eyeshadows and highlighters.
Another great space saver are Clio’s gelpresso pens. These are a staple of mine!!! Definitely my favourite pens. I tend to use them as both eyeshadow and eyeliner. I use a deep brown to shade and create depth to the eyes. You can of course get them in different colours to add interest. I love the purple and red! I keep meaning to do a review of them as I’ve been using some for so long. If I never end up reviewing then just to let you know, they have my stamp of approval!
Rethink your items
Do you really need to pack everything? For example, usually I like to double cleanse my skin every day. I’ll use a oil cleanser and then a face wash. For the trip, I decided to skip the bulky face wash and bought facial wipes instead. In that way I could still ensure that all the makeup was well and truly removed. You can buy small packs of 7 cleansing wipes from places like Superdrug and Boots. Since I’m in the UK I like to use SIMPLE wipes as my brand of choice. I do however think the best makeup remover wipes are by BIORE (I’m not even sure if we get them in the UK). Anyway they work so well removing even the most durable of eyeliners e.t.c as they contain oil.
If all else fails!
Don’t forget you could always buy your beauty products in your destination of choice!