Packing lightly for a roadtrip vacation

I wanted to have blogged about this before I left, but between the packing and the getting everything ready, I never did! I was out for a couple of weeks, roadtrippin’ with my favorite ally, across America. We are both obsessive packers with very different styles. He makes sure that we will be ready to deal with anything – flashlights, first-aid items, snacks – and I pack as little as humanly possible. : )

I’ve perfected my method over the years, picking clothing items that do double duty, limited color schemes and sample size toiletries. My makeup is no exception so I wanted to share the contents of my makeup bag for this trip and reference some of the posts I wrote in the past about these products.

My goal was to achieve a natural and easy look, using as few products as possible, in under 3 minutes.

For the face I used the Laura Mercier’s Mattifying fluid and it was enough for most days. If I wanted a little bit of coverage/evenness I went with LM’s Tinted Moisturizer. I also dabbed some concealer on my eyelids and under my eyes to look more awake. Casual and effortless but not shiny (I hate shiny foreheads and chins on vacation pics…)

My sample-sized Tarte Glam Gams bronzing stick became face bronzer because it works so well everywhere and takes up no space (no brush needed, either).

The eyes were all about polished brows thanks to e.l.f. Clear Mascara and defined long lashes with Tarte’s sample-sized Lights, Camera, Lashes! Mascara (the two products I was sure to use every day). Sometimes I added Lancôme’s eyeliner and a few nights I created a light smoky eye using L’Oréal’s eyeshadow and my lovely magical brush.

Loved my vacation, the pics look good and carrying my bag was easy – win, win, win!