Packing light is not really my jam, but I also like to be thrifty - so hand luggage only, right? Culling my skin and cosmetic collection into just 10 liquids is always a real struggle for me. Especially when those liquids must include the bare essentials, such as sunscreen and toothpaste. That's two slots gone. I've noticed lately that my collection has migrated into more solid-based alternatives for this very reason.
I was cheeky this time round, as I was travelling with my partner, who, despite my attempts to turn him onto real skincare routines, only packs antiperspirant and prescribed acne medicine. Meaning, I had a few more liquids to play with. Dream come true.
I'm also now a little more switched on with what I can and can't include in my liquids allowance. Two months back, in my trip to Barcelona, Spain (full breakdown here), I squeezed Lanolips Golden Ointment and PapayaGold Moisturising Balm into my liquids container. I didn't do that this time. Maybe I was pushing my luck a little, as they are balms/liquid-esque, but nobody seemed to bat an eyelid.
The Organic Pharmacy
I considered a short city break the perfect opportunity for me to pick up some conveniently small travel-sized products, while trialling some new items that I've had my eye on for some time. In hindsight, I see that this was just an outright mistake:a) I always prefer to test full-sized products, to fully form my opinion
b) Playing with new products I haven't tested with my skin before is always a dangerous gameI picked up The Organic Pharmacy Discovery Travel Kit from Naturisimo, and you know, it wasn't all doom and gloom, in fact, I am now inspired to pick up the full-sized version of the Carrot Butter Cleanser and the Double Rose Rejuvenating Face Cream.
The Organic Pharmacy / Carrot Butter Cleanser is a balm based cleanser which melts into a creamy, rich oil when warmed on skin. This product is absolutely scrumptious. It's smooth to touch and delicately glides over skin. Make-up is lifted by the oils and then easily wiped away with the supplied muslin cloth. £39.95 / 70ML full-sized product. 10ML is incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy / Herbal Toner as spray toners go, this one is fairly fast and clumsy. It's quite a heavy liquid that comes out with starling force, clumping on your face in thick droplets. It requires a sweep over with a cotton pad to spread evenly. It is lovely and refreshing and it definitely leaves my skin hydrated. It's just all too thick for me, It has a tendency to feel heavy on the skin. £31.95 / 100ML full-sized product. 10ML incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy / Double Rose Rejuvenating Face Cream is possibly my favourite of the bunch. It has the most divine scent, followed by a silky and creamy texture. It's always cool to touch and spreads wonderfully across skin. It's super nourishing, leaving my skin feeling enriched and hydrated after use. £39.95 / 50ML full-sized product. 10ML incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy / Antioxidant Face Firming Gel, now, as gels go, I don't like gels, and this makes no exception. Gels, such as this, are greasy and thick and heavy and never want to absorb. This product likes to sit on skin, leaving a very uncomfortable slick trail behind. I stopped using it in the daytime, as I just could not get it to absorb. I will not comment on its effects, as the trial-sized version did not offer enough product for me to take notice. £54.95 / 35ML full-sized product. 5ML incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy / Antioxidant Face Firming Serum is something I could just not get along with. This kit wants me to just pile on face product after face product and I'm left in layers of liquids that just don't want to absorb. This serum is very thick and greasy. It happens to just sit on my skin, giving me this horrible thick and sticky face. No thank you. I will not comment on its effects, as the trial-sized version did not offer enough product for me to take notice. £75.95 / 35ML full-sized product. 5ML incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy / Muslin Cloth, I actually already own this cloth, and have been wanting to pick up another for a while. So, winner-winner, right? This cloth has such a wonderfully soft texture, yet has a nice slight grit to it, enough to pick up any debris or oil. It's gentle to touch, never abrasive to skin. It's one of the thickest cloths I've come across, meaning it can retain a good amount of water. £3.95 / 1 PIECE. 1 PIECE incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy Discovery Travel Kit can be purchased from Naturisimo for £45.00 and contains 5 travel-sized products and 1 full sized muslin cloth.
The Organic Pharmacy / Muslin Cloth, I actually already own this cloth, and have been wanting to pick up another for a while. So, winner-winner, right? This cloth has such a wonderfully soft texture, yet has a nice slight grit to it, enough to pick up any debris or oil. It's gentle to touch, never abrasive to skin. It's one of the thickest cloths I've come across, meaning it can retain a good amount of water. £3.95 / 1 PIECE. 1 PIECE incl. in the Travel Kit.
The Organic Pharmacy Discovery Travel Kit can be purchased from Naturisimo for £45.00 and contains 5 travel-sized products and 1 full sized muslin cloth.
Then The Other Liquids
Every other liquid I took in my liquids allocation was an absolutely dream or saviour in some way. A lot of the products here are already staples of mine, products that I utterly cannot live without. I am so thankful for travel sized containers. It really saved my bacon this holiday.
Bee Good / Honey & Propolis 2-in-1 Cream Cleanser I've said in length before (full review here), that I just absolutely adore this cleanser. It's lovely, creamy, rich and really cleanses your face in such a nourishing and caring way. My skin is fresher, clearer and smoother after use. Bee-liss! £4.95 / 30ML Travel Size from Bee Good.
Skin & Tonic London / Brit Beauty Oil This oil is a real winner with me. It's so bloody conditioning for my skin. I feel softer and look smoother. It's jam-packed with so many intelligent ingredients which my skin absolutely just eats up. Any inflammation is soothed, my skin is brighter, plumper and I am utterly well-conditioned. £28.00 / 30ML Full Size from Skin & Tonic London.
Egyptian Magic / All Purpose Skin Cream I'm a sucker for multi-purpose products and this is absolutely no exception. 5 of the 6 delicious ingredients are incredible bee-byproducts. While a solid yellow balm to begin with, when massaged into skin it melts into this wonderful nourishing and moisturising oil. I use this on nipple, eczema and any bits that chafe, need soothing or nourishment. £16.00 / 59ML Travel Size from LoveLula.
Our Tiny Bees / Über Balm As we know, I suffer with psoriasis. Burden, burden. This little tin contains the most delicious smelling honey-based balm which absorbs quickly into skin and leaves my dry elbows and knees wonderfully moisturised all day long. Not greasy, but utterly nourishing. I'm not flaky, I don't need to itch or fight, I'm soothed and calmed. Absolute staple. £7.95 / 45ML Full Size from Our Tiny Bees.
La Roche-Posay / Anthelios XL SPF 5 Dry Touch Gel Cream As someone with incredibly fair and sun-intolerant skin, I can't ever go lower than factor 50, especially in a ~35°C climate such as Budapest. This product offers perfect protection for both UVA and UVB rays. However, it is really difficult to spread. Seriously difficult. It's a dry touch gel, so it dries almost instant. You really have to work it into your face quick, or, you guessed it, white patches! £16.50 / 50ML Full Size from Boots.
Solids
Substituting some of my products for a solid alternative really is doing myself a solid. It saves me a lot of liquids allowance and means I can cater to a lot more of my skin needs. A lot of the products featured here are quickly becoming staples, products that I just cannot live without. Looking at you, BLOOM POLISH.
PureChimp / Super Cleanser I've said it before, and I'll say it again: this is my favourite cleanser ever. As a solid cleanser, you take a piece into your hands and mix it with a little water. It turns into this lovely thick mush, which you then massage into your skin. It is creamy and thick enough to get really stuck into my pores. My skin is so wonderfully soft after use, I have never had smoother skin since.£11.95 / 80G Full Size from PureChimp.
BLOOM Skin Essentials / POLISH Okay, this is a product I just cannot go without. Sense dictates that it's too clunky to be carting around in your hand luggage, and a face mask is a bit of a luxury I can skip... But really, I just can't. I had to take this with me. This fine powder can be mixed with water to form a paste, I then leave it on my skin for 10-15 minutes. It completely decongests my skin. I get heavily blocked around my nose, and after using this mask I am clearer and brighter. My skin is completely balanced and soothed, any inflammation has completely disappeared. $32.00 / 6OZ. Full Size from BLOOM Skin Essentials.
Lanolips / Golden Ointment Another solid favourite. This is one of the best moisturising balms I've ever used. It forms a lovely thick and nourishing barrier around skin to protect it and feed. It really helps with any wild dry patches that appear, as it's totally soothing and utterly calming. I like to use this around my eyes as they can get very tight in the corners. It's great for sleeping in. £17.99 / 50G Full Size from Boots.
PapayaGold Moisturising Balm I use this every day as part of my not-make-up-make-up. It's a really lightweight multi-purpose balm and I like to use on my eyebrows as an eyebrow wax. It's completely invisible and doesn't solidify or leave a trace. I also rub a little just below my eyebrows as a highlighter. As mentioned, it's very lightweight, so it catches light very subtly. £5.99 / 25G Full Size from PapayaGold.
Crystal Spring / Salt of the Earth Deodorant This deodorant features one little ingredient: potassium alum (mineral salt). I simply need to wet my underarms and rub this stick on as I would a roll-on deodorant. This is super effective at keeping away odour, but as it is only a deodorant, not an antiperspirant, I found I caved in the hot climate. It's perfect for cooler weathers. £4.96 / 90G Full Size from Crystal Spring.
LUSH Vanillary For me, the act of putting on a solid perfume is so graceful, that I can't help but revel in the experience. This fragrance is so divine, subtle and perfectly vanilla. It's lovely and creamy and melts just easily into skin. I place it behind my ears, along my clavicle and both wrists. £8.00 / 12G Full Size and in-store only from LUSH.
LUSH Trichomania This solid shampoo is perfect for my hair type. It's so beautifully nourishing that it puts both my hair and my scalp in wonderful condition after use. It has a very subtle lather, which turns into a fairly creamy texture when massaged. £5.75 / 100G from LUSH.
LUSH Jungle The ends of my hair are fairly frizzy and dry, and this solid conditioner just did not meet the grade. It's fairly difficult to spread onto hair, and what is there is relatively heavy, making hair appear lank after washing. It's difficult to use and not very effect, sadly. £3.50 / 55G from LUSH.
LUSH Porridge I just love this soap. It contains little oats which help to very gently buff and exfoliate the skin. It has a very creamy and rich lather which really moisturises skin. It smells divine and it does divine. This soap is perfect to combat a long day of beating sunlight and layers of SPF. £3.10 / 100G from LUSH.
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