Beauty Tips: Traveling Light

I visited my sister in the UK this spring for two weeks, and decided to travel super-light, as in no checked luggage. Air Canada, in their infinite wisdom, have allowed for two carry-on bags per person; one bag up to 21.5" long and one bag up to 17" long, plus your purse (up to 10" long-can you say wee?).

I brought the 21" wheeled carry-on that I usually take when I travel. It's old and I often think about replacing it, but it's quite lightweight and durable, and it can be crammed full of gear and still fit inside the airline carry-on measuring cage. Because I wanted to bring my laptop and do some writing, I bought a fantastic backpack from Targus (CityGear Chicago model # TCG650). This bad boy fit my 15" MacBook Pro, camera, my makeup bag, toiletry bag, a change of clothes, and a few other essentials. When I was in London, this bag came everywhere with me, hauled my laptop and snacks and a raincoat.

For clothing, I splurged and took extras:

• 2 pairs of jeans (light silver-grey and dark blue)
• tan cotton chinos
• short dressy skirt
• long cotton skirt
• 2 tank tops with built-in shelf bras
• 2 long-sleeved tee shirts
• dressy vest
• denim blazer
• waterproof jacket
• 3 pairs of undies
• 1 convertible bra
• 3 pairs socks
• 1 pair stockings
  
• leather clogs
• Aerosole boat shoes

Since my goal was to go small, I decided to go light on makeup & beauty items. My sis told me to borrow her shampoo & conditioner. I took only minimal makeup and small, airline-approved tools. The Revlon Beauty-Tools-To-Go was awesome; it was easy to clear through airport security and the curler worked perfectly.

For makeup, I brought:
Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Custom Eye Enhancing Shadow & Liner Cover Girl Volume Exact Waterproof Mascara
MAC Select Sheer Pressed Powder NC15
MAC Select Cover-Up Concealer NW15
Maybelline Wet Shine Lipcolor in Gem Crushed Merlot
MAC Lipglass Viva Glam VI SE
Quo brow/liner brush
Quo travel powder brush
Quo powder brush

Product Lust: Charlescraft Spa Reflectives Floor Stand Mirror

Confession time: I don't have a makeup mirror. I never used one before, just a mirror and natural light from my windows. I even spent a few years waiting to get to work to put on makeup. It just seemed to make sense to put makeup on in the fluorescent lights where I worked.

Well, I'm finally breaking down and getting one. But my house is small, so I need to keep my furniture and use of counterspace to a minimum. I was looking for a wall mirror, when I found this: Charlescraft Spa Reflectives Floor Stand Mirror ($180).

How frickin' cool is this? The good stuff:

• Almost 173 cm (6 ft.) tall
• Includes an electrical outlet
• Hair dryer holder, glass tray and towel bar
• 22 cm (11 in.) illuminated mirror is glare-free, fog-free and dual sided (one side is regular, one side is 7x magnification)
• Satin nickel finish

I don't know if I want to shell out 180 bones for this, but it's tempting...