what's in my holiday toiletrie bag?

It's important for me to always be prepared which means that I can sometimes be a bit of an 'over-packer' so I thought that I would show you what I pack in my summer holiday toiletry bag so you can see that a little bit of (almost) everything, can go a long way. I have some little packing tips and talk about the things that you don't need as well as those you do. This is part of a little series I've been working on so if you'd like to see what I pack in my summer holiday makeup bag click here.

I try not to take a lot of facial skincare with me because the sun does my skin a world of good so I like to keep it as natural as possible. These little things are the most important but I won't necessarily need to use them everyday.

face moisturiser
Seeing as I like to use as little base as possible on my face and it's important for my skin to be moisturised I like to use the tea tree skin clearing lotion from Body Shop so that it's treated for spots at the same time.

cleanser and toner
I take a travel pot of my Clean and Clear cleanser with me to get rid of the daily grime, dust and oils that build up throughout the day. A little goes a long way with this cleanser so I try not to take too much of it along with me. Just incase there is a leak I always pop liquids like this in a knotted sandwich bag before packing them.

makeup remover
I try not to wear too much makeup at all but I still need something to remove all traces of waterproof mascara, eyeliner and so on that will leave my face completely bare at the end of the day. My favourite oil based makeup remover is Clinique's take the day off so I put a little of the product in a small travel pot to take with me as you don't need to carry huge tubs around unnecessarily.

eye cream
Mini benefit products are perfect for travelling as I mentioned in my 'what's in my holiday makeup bag' blog post, so the little pot of benefit eye cream from one of my gift sets is the ideal moisturiser to take away.

spot treatment
My go to spot treatment is a simple bottle of essential tea tree oil or blended tea tree oil with a cotton bud, it's small, easy to use and effective!

skincare accessories
To work alongside the cleanser and even makeup remover you always need cotton pads or cotton wool so I take enough for two pads a day along with a handful of cotton ear buds to use for the tea tree oil as well as my ears. I also take a disposable shower cap or two for those times when I need to shower but there's no need to wash my hair, a holiday should be as easy as possible and relaxed so sometimes it's good to avoid the fuss of washing and styling your hair when it's just not needed.

toothbrush and toothpaste
I couldn't find my fold away toothbrush for this photo but I think it may be locked away in my suitcase, I always take a foldaway one because it's easier to keep clean when packed. I also take a mini tube of toothpaste which lasts the full holiday for both Shaun and I, doesn't weigh much and takes up little room in the bag compared to a full size tube.

mouthwash
I always like to have mouthwash around but as with most other products it's better to have a travel size item than a full size one so this mini bottle of CB12 mouthwash is ideal. CB12 is especially good because it is promised to last 12 hours leaving you with fresh breath all day.

medicine
To me medicine is an obvious and important travel essential but not everyone thinks about it. I've only photographed a couple of things but I always take the following with me: 1 pack of paracetamol, 1 box of ibuprofen, hayfever tablets and some indigestion tablets just in case. I also take glucose tablets with me as I have been known to faint on occasion when too hot and these bring me back to earth.

essentials and other bits
Ordinarily you'd take things like insect repellent, bite treatments, plasters etc too but I know that we already have these things at the villa so I don't need to pack them. I do however take 'feminine products' with me as you always should.

shampoo
I tend to buy whilst out there because I love a couple of the european shampoos but I'll take a mini Aussie shampoo to start off with before buying a new bottle.

conditioner / treatment
I'll only take a deep conditioner because again, I'll buy a standard conditioner from the supermarket over there. This small squeezy tube of avocado oil conditioner in Garnier nutrisse hair dye is amazing so I like to have one to use half way through summer holidays. The sun, sea salt and chlorine can take a toll on your hair and dry it out, this works wonders to keep it in good condition.

hair accessories
It's not really hair care but I always put my hair bands, headbands, bobby pins and hair brush in with my shampoos and conditioners - To me it makes sense to have everything for your hair all together. My daisy and sunflower elastic headbands are from Primark and my purple rose headband is from Crown & Glory.

sun creams
A variety of suncreams is a good shout and it's okay to take full size bottles out because they shouldn't be full when you come home! I say spray bottles are the best because they make it a little easier to apply, less fussy and they often seem to last longer without being super greasy but there are exceptions - I love the Hawaiian Tropic silk hydration and it only comes in a squeezy bottle because of the thickness. I take a moisturising spf 30 (the Hawaiian Tropic one), a standard spf 40/50 for beach visits and for Shaun to use (probably Nivea but I've not yet bought it) and I also like to take a low spf oil with me, in this case the Piz Buin oil spray in spf 15.

oils
Oils are my favourite when on holiday so I take two - coconut oil to moisturise non-sunburnt skin and the Garnier ultimate beauty oil for further along the holiday as it promotes and prolongs tanning.

after sun
I love love loveeee aloe vera oil as an aftersun, it's soothing, moisturising and smells pretty good too. I'll never go back to the lotion after using the Banana Boat aloe vera gel.

body moisturiser
Although I'll have the coconut oil and/or garnier oils I will always take a normal body moisturiser that isn't so greasy and can easily be worn under clothes without any grease marks. The Vaseline spray and go is one of my favourites for this because it's light (as is the bottle), it sinks into the skin quickly, doesn't have a strong smell and is really quick and easy to apply.

shaver and cream
A two in one razor and shaver is the perfect space and weight saving combination for your pins and all important bikini line. I recently bought the new Wilkinson Sword quattro bikini razor and it's perfect for this. To work with this I take a mini bottle of Soleil shaving cream rather than the full size.

deodorants
Lastly and possibly most importantly, deodorant. One year I forgot my roll on deodorant and had to stop off and buy some on the way down to the villa. It's so important when hot and sticky that you have deodorant and body spray to hand. I say body spray because when I've taken a mini perfume in the past it has just attracted bugs to me, this body spray doesn't seem to do that.


That's all from me. I hope you liked this blog post and the 'what's in my summer bag' series I'm doing because I have another one planned. :)

♥ abby