I started writing my Clinique campaign post but then got caught up in preparation for another huge milestone in my blogging career - my first ever "influencer" trip with none other than BECCA Cosmetics who were one of the first brands I ever received a product from back in 2012 (see blog post here).
Since then I've been a huge fan of their Shimmering Skin Perfectors which cater to pretty much every skintone (my fave shade being Opal), and I love how the powders are super soft and creamy as they're made with pearls and pigments mixed in a liquid formula and pressed into a creamy powder (unlike other highlighters!).
So many of you took time to message and congratulate me saying you felt proud to see a hijabi on a brand/influencer trip, so I felt inspired to write about it and include my experience as a hijabi for anyone who may be wondering what it could be like; ideally I hope this inspires others and gives an insight <3

Travelling Essentials!

As you may or may not know I've recently come back from holiday (Malaysia this time), so I thought I'd share some of my updated travel essentials.

Not a lot has changed since my holiday saviours post back in 2011 (here), I've in fact updated and expanded on these since, as you'll see below.
I've decided to split this post into 2; the first is my personal carry on essentials i.e. allowed on the plane to get you through a journey. The second part includes my makeup essentials for holiday/travelling but of course I take a bit more sometimes depending on whether I'll be dolling myself up for restaurants or not.

Carry on essentials:

Bearing in mind my last flight lasted over 14 hours I found these to be absolute saviours on the plane (and off it too of course!).

1) Elemis Tea Tree S.O.S spray - this is a total all rounder natural antiseptic; from helping insect bites/cuts and grazes, to spots and refreshing and deodorising tired feet, this spray is handy to carry around everywhere let alone just on the plane! Available at department stores or at HQhair & lookfantastic.com for £19.40.

2) Avene Thermal Spring Water - this year I couldn't find a small bottle of the usual Evian spray I usually carry with me in Boots so I picked up this Thermal Spring Water can instead. Another all rounder, but this can be used on the face when it feels tight (all that AC being pumped in the plane tends to dry me out) or handy for carrying in humidity on the beach as a refresher for the face. It's many uses are endless, including toner, soothing sunburn, acne, rashes and razor burn. It also doesn't interfere with makeup and actually helps set makeup! Available from Boots for £3.15 (50ml) or £6.50 for 150ml (not allowed on the plane).

3) Body Cream - I tend to not make use of the deluxe creams I get with perfumes so chose this one on my last trip, but general body creams come in handy for travel; again the aircon tends to dry out the skin so it's always good to carry some sort of moisturiser for hands and feet at least.

4) Dental hygiene products - If you're not lucky enough to be flying business or first class chances are you'll need to carry your own dental hygiene. Rinsing the mouth out with mouthwash or brushing teeth usually helps me feel awake again especially if you're constantly eating/sleeping on the aircraft!
 
5) Concealer kit - This Wild About Beauty concealer has two different shades perfect for finding the right match for your skintone which also contains skin calming and nourishing ingredients and no nasties. Shade "Medium" suits my NC35 skintone best and the bottom also holds a HD translucent setting powder underneath, which can be used to keep shine at bay too if needed. Available at Debenhams and House of Fraser for £19.50.

6) Lip products - Vaseline Lip Therapy (£1.99) is a must as it's another all rounder; I use it around my nose to prevent myself from getting ill from the germs that circulate around the plane (I'm a real germophobe!) as well as conditioning lips/dry areas of the hands/body. I adore carrying Carmex Moisture Plus around to also condition the lips whilst adding a tint of colour. Available at Boots for £4.49.

7) Badger Balm - If you find sleeping above cloud level a chore like me, you'll be needing something to help you along your way so I recommend the Badger Balm which contains Lavender and other essential oils to help clear your mind. Available at feelunique.com for £6.99.

8) Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair - Dabbing a couple drops of this wonder serum to tight skin instantly hydrates the skin whilst also keeping it smooth. Can also be used over makeup that has been dried out by aircon. Available for £44 for 30ml at all Estée Lauder counters including Boots, Debenhams & House of Fraser, but I carry a trial size on holiday!

Makeup essentials:

These are my absolute essentials for holidays to hotter/humid climates, of course there can be more if absolutely needed but when on holiday I like to wear the absolute bare minimum if poss!

1) Waterproof mascara - whether you wear eyeliner or not, chances are you wear mascara at least to open up your eyes and give volume or length. My personal everyday favourite at the moment is the Kiko Unforgettable waterproof mascara; its curved brush gives a curl to the lashes whilst volumising too and doesn't get everywhere come rain or shine. Available for £7.20 online or in Kiko stores in both Westfields in London.

2) Waterproof eyeliners - I have a vast range and array of colours in the Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencils (approx £14 each) so I tend to take a couple of these on holiday with me, but recently I've discovered that Chantecaille have released their 24 hour waterproof liner which also is creamy and long lasting and the bronzed brown shade in Oolong gives just enough definition to the eyes to not be overpowering. Urban Decay pencils are available in Debenhams and House of Fraser stores and Chantecaille liners are available at Liberty, Fenwicks, Space NK and Harrods.

3) Tinted moisturiser - A must for those who don't fancy baring all and want even skintone but without wearing heavy coverage. I like this tinted moisturiser as it gives a decent coverage and has a high SPF of 20. It does oxidise a little so you may need to go a shade lighter than expected. Available from £12.66 at HQhair to £20 at the usual department stores.

4) Concealer kit - see above for description of this Wild About Beauty concealer kit.

5) Urban Decay All Nighter setting spray - if you do decide to wear either powder/mineral, liquid or cream foundations, this setting spray keeps makeup on for up to 16 hours.. perfect for those long days or evenings when you don't want to touch up on makeup.

6) Carmex Moisture Plus - as above, this tinted lipbalm comes in handy before lipstick or by itself for a hint of colour.

7) Urban Decay Razor Sharp Powder - aside from this powder helping skin feel smooth, it also helps keep shiny-ness out of your holiday pictures, with just a puff and buff on. I got this mini size from a Limited Edition box but you can buy the full size for £21 at Debenhams & House of Fraser as well as Lookfantastic & HQhair.

8) Wild About Beauty mattifying balm (£21) is great to use as a primer before applying makeup due to it's slippery nature; although it states it can be used after I find it works much better applying under a tinted moisturiser or foundation, and then topping up with the above Razor Sharp powder if needed. If you're shiny but don't like the drying feeling of powder then this also is the product for you! Available at the Wild About Beauty website and Debenhams and House of Fraser.

So there you have it! Obviously SPF is a major factor in holiday packing, but there are so many brands out there, the highest SPF is always best, 50+ is best if you have really sensitive skin.
These are my most essential saviours for travelling, hope this has helped you consider some products you may not have thought of using on your travels/holiday!

Do you have some holiday must have products you'd recommend? Please feel free to share them with me, I always love to use new things on holiday!

 

Dubai Haul

So a few of you have mentioned they'd like to see my holiday haul.. it wasn't a huge one so I didn't plan to blog about it unless I did a makeup look or something, but here goes!

First I picked up a Victoria's Secret perfume from Heathrow, for about £30 or so..

I also bought a Victoria's Secret compact:

  

The compact contains 3 eyeshadows, 3 lip colours and 2 face colours - a pinky blush and bronzer colour.
I also bought another two compacts with 4 eyeshadows and 2 lip colours, from a makeup store in one of the malls. The brand name is 22k (or 22karat) and the inside packaging is fitting - it looks like a block of gold.

The compact on the left is Night Divine and the one on the right is Plum Fantasy

I haven't had time to swatch these, but I'll try and use them for a makeup look sometime soon.. otherwise they'll be added to my kit!
I did manage to try the red lip colours from the Night Divine compact and they seemed pretty pigmented and I like the fact you can create your own shade with the two lip colours.

I hope you liked my short but sweet haul from Dubai, I chose things that aren't available in the UK, they have almost everything there; as you can see there by the small amount of things bought lol!

<3

I heart Dubai

Since my holiday to Dubai a couple weeks ago, I haven't blogged as much as before and I do apologise! I'm defo working on it though and aim to have more frequent posts of both makeup looks and product reviews, so watch this space!

I thought I'd share some of the pictures from Dubai, as I've only managed to upload them all (it took so long with the big files!), but for those of you who haven't been I would definitely recommend going there as it's an amazing country, with so much to offer!

The weather was still very hot at the beginning of September (41 degrees was the lowest temperature in the week that we were there!) so if you're looking for a holiday with a guaranteed tan, Dubai can offer it.

I managed to shop a bit of beauty too; bought a Victoria's Secret perfume at duty free on the way there (why we don't do VS in London is beyond me), and also some makeup whilst in Dubai.

Now for some pictures of the views:

 Ladies Taxi!

 JBR - Marina Walk

 Waterfall inside Dubai Mall

 Tallest building in the world - Burj Khalifa

 Burj Khalifa at night

 The Dancing Fountains

 Beautiful Architecture

 At The Top - Burj Khalifa view

  At The Top - Burj Khalifa view with dancing fountains below

Posing in the desert!

 Safari shisha

 Atlantis at night

Atlantis by day

Skyscraper view from our speedboat

 World's 7 star hotel Burj Al Arab and Jumeirah Beach Hotel

I loved every bit of the holiday, so much so that I'd like to live there for a while sometime in the future!

Have you been to Dubai before? And if not, which holidays would you also recommend?

<3