What's In My Travel Bag?

Another day of December means another day of Blogmas! I've got to say it's hard work blogging everyday but I'm really enjoying it! Tomorrow I'm off to Birmingham for a few days - a couple of gigs to attend to, the German Christmas market to visit along with all the other amazing shops Birmingham holds! If I'm honest I'm quite glad for this mini break. Working in retail is stressful any time but at Christmas a lot of people turn into an idiot customer and it doesn't half get you down. Anyway, back to the point of the post.. With my mini break looming I thought it would be the perfect chance to show you what bits and bobs I'm taking with me on my travels. A lot of this you can easily pick up in the drugstore and always a good time to try out samples.

I go for a clear wash bag to keep everything in because I've got a tendency to forget things and I'm always in a rush so a last minute check of everything is made a little easier with this option!

• Shockwaves Ultra Strong Power Hold Spray (£2.95) - What a fancy name for a hairspray eh?! Names aside I've been using this hairspray for years. I'm yet to find one that keeps my hair in place for longer or one that smells as nice. A lot of hairsprays I can't stand the scent of but this one is spot on!
• Sunkissed Instant Self Tan Moose Medium Bronze* (£4.99) - Become my new tanning favourite recently so this has to come with me for a tanning top up. Read my full review HERE.
• Batiste Dry Shampoo Paisley (£2.99) - Always safe to carry a bottle of dry shampoo around with you. However I think they have stopped making this paisley version as I can't find it anywhere online but I've spotted it in my local Superdrug recently. 

• Nivea Double Effect Anti-Perspirant (£3.29) - Bit of an obvious one but I've been loving Nivea's deodorant range recently and they do the job!
• Nivea Invisible Black & White Clear Roll On (£2.10) -  I like this roll on especially because you can use it with whatever colour clothes you are wearing without the worry with white marks on your new black dress and I prefer a clear roll on as well.

• L'Oreal Matt & Messy: Salt Spray (£3.75) - One of my favourite purchases ever brought on a whim, I picked my first bottle up in the summer. As a natural wavy/curly hair girl I love to embrace it and I love spraying this for an added texture to my waves.
• L'Occitane Jasmin Passion Hand Cream (:Limited Edition) - C'mon it's Winter and the dry hands are making there way out to haunt me. I love this 30ml size, perfect for travelling. It has a slight scent which is nice as I don't like strong smelling hand creams (yuck for finger foods half hour later!)

• Simple Kind To Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser (£3.79) - Whenever I'm having a skincare nightmare I always turn to Simple. My skin gets dryer as it gets colder and applying this twice a day has kept the dryness at bay as it hydrates the skin.
• L'Oreal Paris Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution (£4.99) - I'm currently in the trail period with this product but so far I've been enjoying it. It does a good enough job of removing any make up and toning the skin. (Don't forget the cotton pads either!)

• Clinique 7 Day Scrub Cream (£18.50) - When it comes to travelling out it always the right time to gather your samples and try them out. I have tried this a few times before and it always leaves my skin extremely soft and helps glide on primers/foundations even easier.
• Clinique Dramatically Different Lotion+ (£28) - I can see why so many people love this after a couple of uses. Already thinking of purchasing the full size if I'm honest!
• Vichy Idealia Life Serum (£29.50) - I got my hands on a couple of sample sachets of this and I was hooked after one try of the stuff. Every time I go into I'm stopping by this but the price tag for such a small amount puts me off. I can see myself buying it in the new year though.

So that's a few bits I'm taking with me this weekend (don't worry I know I've missed out key things like shampoos etc but I'm doing a haircare post soon!)

What are you up to this weekend?

Solution to Pale Girl Problems

I'm pale all year round without fail. I go on holiday and my skin's idea of a tan is to go a lobster shade of red and then straight back to milk bottle legs and arms. So when Sunkissed sent me these goodies I couldn't wait to try them out and I've got nothing but good things to say! With the upcoming party season fast approaching I definitely needed a self tan that wouldn't be letting me down. I'd actually had a dabble in Sunkissed's cosmetic range when I was a lot younger and enjoyed it back then so it's nice to go back to a familiar brand from your younger days isn't it?

Firstly the Application Mitt* (£3.99) works a treat, leaves my skin with no streaks and an even and flawless natural looking tan. My favourite thing about the mitt as I don't get any stains on my hands like you do with a lot of mitts out there. This usually leaves my tan uneven and patchy on my hands/wrists area but no problems with this mitt from Sunkissed. Then onto the Instant Self Tanning Mousse in Medium Bronze* (£4.99), nothing but good from this bottle of magic. Now you might not believe me until you try it but this doesn't have that digestive biscuit smell that self tan usually does have - instead it has a coconut scent to it. This makes me a massive fan as I love fruit scented beauty products. Gold star to Sunkissed for this as I can say goodbye to worrying about stinking a room out with self tan. Now this is an instant tan and as I mention all the time when I say I'm pale, I mean really pale so 'medium bronze' is probably a shade or two darker for me. I find best to apply at night before bed then shower in the morning which leaves me with a golden natural looking glow. I had so many compliments from friends and family saying I look a lot better with a bit of colour to me (I often get the "are you ill?" comments). Now possibly the best product I got sent was the Exfoliating Tan Remover* (£3.99), usually I find it so hard to get rid of any patchy areas after a few days of wearing self tan. I was so excited to see this and was even more excited to try it out. It clears up any patches as well as removing dead skin cells, making your next tan application even smoother! You can also use this product after applying your tan to make sure you have a flawless tan that's even and smooths out colour!

I can't recommend Sunkissed products enough and I personally can't wait to purchase some more. I'm pretty sure it will be my go to product for a natural glowing tan for the party season.

What are your favourite tanning products?