Girl talk. (Kind of)

Posted on by Nigel and Jane

20160224_201202Psssst.

Got a minute?

I need to do something that I don’t think I’ve ever done before.

I accept that it might be of *slightly* more interest if you’re a female, rather than a male reader…..but with the range of male “grooming” products on the market today, you can never really be sure, can you?

So here we go….

20160719_134733Could  you please take a fleeting glance at the array of items on this tray? (This may remind you of a game you might have played as a child….where someone removes one item at a time while you look away. Then you have to remember what’s gone missing.)

The sad thing is…at the moment… with 55 days to go before I pack for a quick whizz round the world, I’m having trouble choosing which item(s) to lose. No, no…this gets worse….

Because…..let’s move on to confession time. If you take a fairly average day (early morning walk, bath, bit of work at home, meeting a friend for coffee, bit more work, shower, change into different outfit, meet friends for a drink…) I *could* use pretty much all of these items IN ONE DAY. Ok…maybe not ALL of the lipsticks, but, you know..different outfit ; different lippie……

Why? Because I love wearing make up. Then, sometime later,  I need to take it off again. I love fresh, zingy bath and shower products. And I NEED to look after my highlighted hair, so it stays in good condition. And I WANT my skin to feel smooth and soft, and protected from the sun.

With a small cabin bag and a modest sized bag for the hold, each…this could be the perfect opportunity to dump the lot; apart from the (ahem) bare essentials. I mean…apart from anything, it WEIGHS so much. In all honesty I’m (almost certainly) not going to pull out my ‘Lady Danger’ Mac lipstick while trekking through the remote communities of Sappa in Vietnam. Or while climbing onto a canoe from our junk, for a paddle round Halong Bay. I think ‘less’ will definitely be ‘more’ on the white sandy beaches of Tonga. But a foundation base, a dab of blusher and a slick of ‘Russian Red’ for drinks on the Rocky Mountaineer, or dinner in Vancouver, or cocktails in Hong Kong? Yeh…I just might.

(If you’re rolling your un-mascara’d eyes by now, it’s ok; thanks for getting this far…)

So. Given my beauty requirements and my ‘fessed up love affair with lippie…what would you advise? What kind of products can work two or three ways? What fail-safe miracle workers can stop my hair turning to straw in the near-Equatorial sun? Do I go completely naked (facially….), get converted, and look forward to a life free of expensive products? Or might I scan through the zillions of pics we’re going to take, catch sight of my pasty face and ‘another sleepless night on another plane’ bags under my eyes and wish I’d added a bit of slap? (A pic is for life, after all…not just for ..yeh…)

I’m now going to curl up in a ball over there, and wait for the responses, accusations of vanity, and darts of derision. Or maybe some inspired, informed advice, from beauty bloggers or other travelling females…who just happen to love their lippie too….!

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26 thoughts on “Girl talk. (Kind of)”

  1. To protect your hair and face wear a hat. You can get nice ones that don’t mind being squashed up. Tinted moisturiser with sun cream mixed in kills several birds with one squirty bottle. That’s all I can think of because I never wear make up. xxx

    Sent from my iPad

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  2. Well Jane, what a conundrum for you, me being of a minimalist when it comes to all that gubbins. So for starters, take vaseline, and it’s a great base on face, eyelashes and lips in little pots (you can get different types),not one of those humongous pots which take up too much room, sudocreme (great for all sorts of sores, rubbing boots etc.), don’t forget ducolax, you never know if you get gut rot somewhere, water sterlising tablets, now Aussie brands of shampoo/conditioner are brilliant for hair that’s had to put up with all sorts. After all the Aussies know their extremes of weather and sea water.
    As for make up, well use a good base cos’ you know you are going to need SPF50 or so and you might get a gentle glow. Go to your local store (John Lewis, Debenhams or Boots) and ask them for sample size foundations etc and you can stuff in nooks and crannies. Lippie of course should be worn at all times, let’s face it (oops sorry about the pun) protection for your lips and you never know who might want to take your picture.
    Then go for waterproof mascara, so if needs must it might last a bit longer and just ditch the eyeliner.
    Good luck,
    Lots of love
    Jen
    xxxxxxxxx

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    1. Jane writes: Jen…I bow to your superior knowledge and travel experience…some great tips here and above all…you didn’t tell me off for even THINKING about make-up!! xxx

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  3. Wish you well with your ‘research’. Can see the problem, would say take essentials and then buy as necessary but it looks as though you may have decided they are all essential. Good luck!

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  5. There is product by Nars called The Multiple, basically a multi purpose stick to be used on lips, cheeks and anywhere else, i know beauty bloggers love it, I’ve not tried it yet but its one I’m looking in to. Another product I’ve seen recommended is a multi use shimmer oil for hair and body by Nuxe, it looks like an all rounder,
    good luck and i hope you mange to narrow it down

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  6. All I use is coconut oil with a few drops of essential oil. Geranium at the moment.you can use it on your face to remove makeup and moisturise. A smear of Dr feelgood from benefit. Mascara. Lippie – something neutral and a red one. I know you can’t go without that. A natural stick deodorant and your shampoo. A bar of olive oil soap. Mosquito repellant. A tube of aloe Vera gel. Sun screen. Sorted.

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  7. I love it Jane

    I am NOT a big make up fan, the most I wear is a lipstick and mascara and the occasional eye liner, due to an allergy to most make ups so I don’t have your dilemma but I feel huge amounts of sympathy for you haha. I do use a moisturiser with sunscreen in it on my face. That is it, so my toiletry bag is quiet light on.

    I wish you luck and remember in the end it doesn’t really matter if your bag is too heavy you will ditch the stuff your not using along the way.

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  8. Hi Jane
    I would whittle down to shampoo and conditioner (I’m an Aussie fan and never use anything else) and a tiny pot of hair oil under a hat goes a long way! A small moisturising shower gel.
    Moisturiser with SPF in (Clarins Multi Active Day is ace). I wouldn’t worry with a tinted one as your face will tan naturally anyway. Waterproof mascara and lippie (2 colours) and micelar water to remove it. No point having full make up in a hot country, it’ll just melt off your face.
    Vaseline is a wonder product as someone else has already said.
    Then just sun cream and aftersun
    Oh and best makeup ever? Sunglasses 😉
    Lara

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    1. Hi Lara….yep….Aussie stuff is hard to beat…I’ve stashed away some sachets of their rich conditioner for the trip already! And the sunglasses tip is a great one. Nice shades, decent hat…*signature* red lippie (Ha!) and you could be anyone really. Within reason….! Thanks for dropping by 🙂

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  9. Hi Jane,

    Looking at the pic of your grooming products I would suggest losing the bottles of hair care products and replacing them with Lush solid bar alternatives, take a look here: https://uk.lush.com/products/shampoo-bars. They’re less bulky, are not liquid and are therefore lighter and can be packed in hand luggage if necessary – you can even get little tins to store them in. Having hair similar to yours I recommend, Brazilliant shampoo, Jungle conditioner and Jo Jo hair wax – they all last for ages and should last for the whole of your trip.
    You can also lose the saving foam and invest in some Gilette Venus Breeze razors http://goo.gl/YAyfNF, you can use them without foam and they last for ages.
    Lastly, get a crystal rock deodorant like such as this one: http://goo.gl/NBN1by take it out of its packaging and pop it in a money bag (the kind you get from the bank) to take up less room. It doesn’t stop one perspiring (or is that glowing!) but it does stop any ponging!

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      1. Jane another thing, that a friend told me about, doing a trek in Peru nowhere to tinkle and no stopping (they were with guides) she took incontinence pads with her and had to tinkle when walking. I know it seems awful but you never know.

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  10. Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation did NOT melt off in the vietnamese humidity – I only used it under my eyes to kill off the aforementioned bags and it lasts forever.
    Annette in HoF in Shrews will give you little testers to try colours.
    Maybelline waterproof mascara stays on too…good old Greatlash.
    Suncream I use Avene as it’s not greasy or itchy. A cheapo bottle of Aloe gel for sunburn.
    Gliss conditioner (also cheap) is amazing for sun dried hair and I use Nuxe oil for dried out skin. Also put small tins of vaseline in for everything 🙂 Happy days xxx

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    1. Thankyou, Carla…the humidity is a real issue, so that’s very helpful…lots of suggestions for oils for hair and skin….MAY HAVE TO TAKE A BIGGER BAG… 🙂 (thanks again xx) Jane

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  11. Hi Jane, I’m with Samantha, Lush products are the go! They even have toothpaste tablets! I can’t wait to here what else you’re packing and where you’ve been lately 😊 Safe travels to you both from Down Under across the pond!

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