Must-Haves for Packing a Light Makeup Bag for Travel
Do you think you could narrow your makeup bag down to 10 items or less? The fact of the matter is, packing makeup for travel can be stressful. You’re trying to throw in anything you may be in the mood to wear, products that are easy to store, all without going overboard.
Instead of trying to stuff every go-to you can think of into your travel makeup bag, being thoughtful about picking products will allow you to seriously streamline. From double duty to compact and cute, these picks— which are carry-on friendly, too— will help you pack light while still traveling with everything you need for a full face.
Click the picture of the item to find it online.
This foundation is great for all skin types, and offers buildable coverage to deliver on both light makeup days or for full face glam. It’s comfortable, contains SPF 20 to add sun protection, and has a fresh skin finish that’s neither matte nor dewy, but naturally radiant.
When traveling, you want to bring a concealer that can do it all. This gem of a concealer is full coverage and long lasting, and will hide undereye bags or blemishes without contest. It has a matte finish that doesn’t look dry or crease, which also makes it great for using as part of your eyeshadow routine as either a primer or to help cut you crease.
Instead of packing a brow pencil, pomade and gel, bring along a product that can help define and hold in one step. This brow gel is heavy duty— pigmented, long lasting and waterproof to boot. The angled brush helps you shape your brows while the spool brushes the product through, and as it sets you won’t have to worry about a hair out of place.
A neutral palette is always the way to go when you’re trying to pack a light travel makeup bag since it will be versatile enough for any situation. I love the 12-pan palettes from Milani. While compact, they house enough shades for a ton of different looks and include a large mirror that will help with your entire routine.
As someone who hardly ever skips tightlining, I need both a pencil and liquid liner for most of my looks. To eliminate the need to pack multiples and juggling products, this 2-in-1 takes care of all my lining needs! This double ended liner has both a liquid felt-tip for precise cat eyes, and a twist-up crayon pencil for either the waterline or smoking out on the lid.
While it’d be a stretch to say that this is a one-mascara-fits-all situation, but the Flourish by LashBlast mascara lifts, separates, volumizes and lengthens all while looking natural without clumpiness. It’s great for everyday drama: it’s not over the top, but definitely adds noticeable definition to enhance your eyes.
Packing individual compacts for your contour, blush and highlight products can get really bulky. Pack a sleek palette that will give you everything you need to finish up the face. Choose one with a neutral blush color that you can layer up for more dramatic looks, or blend out for a subtle wash of color. This palette from Maybelline comes in two versions to cover most skin tones: Light/Medium and Medium/Deep.
These have been my favorite travel lipsticks for years now. Double ended lipsticks allow you to pack a larger variety shades so that you don’t feel limited without weighing your travel makeup bag down.
How much makeup do you typically pack while traveling?
