After taking 6 flights in close succession between New York and Hong Kong last fall, I became a long-haul packing guru. I developed ways to strategically select items that minimized the bulk of my carry-on and maximized my limited luggage space. I had also mastered the skill of packing for short-haul trips from many a weekend-getaway in my previous life, cutting it down to a handbag and a single carry-on (expandable Longchamp tote, though usually unexpanded). Hell, even for week long trips I’ve gotten away with just that one tote. But now, I am faced with a new challenge: a week long trip to multiple destinations, each with vastly different packing needs (about a 30 degree F differential), at least sartorially speaking. I will share once I figure that out but for now I can at least take solace in the fact that my beauty survival kit will remain unchanged.

I often read about fancy spray-on this and leave-in that on travel beauty lists, especially when advised by celebrities. I don’t doubt the utility or coolness of these products but for a sub 8-hour flight, spray on shimmer and mini curling irons seem excessive…particularly if you intend on being knocked out for most of that time. This is just my philosophy though, which tends to err on minimalist, so I especially enjoy multi-purpose, multi-functional things.

In the past, my travel beauty kit consisted of a handful of samples lying around my apartment, shoved cursorily into a sandwich bag. Then I’d find myself on the plane desperate for something simple like lotion but only having a packet of expensive Diva Oil or Goddess Elixir that I didn’t even know how to use. Countless trials and many errors later, I smartened up and put some more thought into my beauty packing routine. These days, here are some of the affordable and easily accessible (your local drugstore, bodega, whatever) things I do not board a plane without:

 

1) Earplugs. These are Mack’s Dreamgirl brand plugs supposedly designed “for women”. Not sure I buy that marketing, but if we have smaller ear canals that call for softer foam in pink, then so be it! These babies block out up to 30 decibels, and until you use them you don’t realize how loud the base noise level of a plane really is.

2) Time-release melatonin spray. People have mixed reviews about melatonin, but it is a naturally occurring substance in the body that gets depleted when we stare at our various devices (computer, phone screens etc) which we clearly all do. Go nuts on google, there’s a lot of info out there about it, but the key takeaway is that if it works for you, you’ll be asleep for most of the flight that your beauty survival kit won’t even matter that much! One spray, under the tongue, then slosh around for 30 secs and you’re good to go. This usually buys me 6-7 hours on my long haul flight, I’ve never tried taking it on a short haul. The earplugs from 1) will help you remain undisturbed in your slumber.

3) Smith’s Rosebud Lip Balm. I picked this up as an impulse cash register purchase at a bodega in Brooklyn over the summer, after getting caught in a torrential downpour and feeling sorry for my soaking self. This turned out to be a great buy, because it not only reminds me of 10th grade (it was a good year, compared to other high school years) but it also smells and tastes delicious. Oh and it moisturizes your lips but that part was obvious, right?

4) Eye gel. OK so this might sound weird, but it’s just like lip balm or leave-in conditioner…for your eyeballs. My eye doctor gave me a sample tube post-LASIK, and now I use the rest when I fly. Waking up on the plane with drymouth is already bad, but what about those times when you can barely open your lids? Or you walk off the plane and you look like shit with bloodshot eyes? Yeah.

5) Nivea creme. I’ll admit, the old school tin packaging is what got me to buy this at a San Francisco CVS on my last business trip. This has replaced my former all-purpose lotion, a sample Bliss lemon & sage tube of body butter from the W in Taipei. The Nivea creme is much thicker, and though it doesn’t have the lemony sage goodness still smells fresh. Good for face and neck too.

6) Last but not least, good ol instant antibacterial. Imagine all the germs circulating around you in that recycled cabin air. Gross. Short of wearing a mask, which you can only casually do without being judged in Asia, the best you can do is disinfect your hands while you still have the chance.

Upon proofreading, maybe “beauty” survival wasn’t really the right descriptor here, rather “sanity maintenance” or just survival? In any case, you will always find earplugs and melatonin and antibacterial in my travel pouch next to the lotions, creams, and balms.