I've decided to split this post into 3 parts to try and prevent too much photo-spam.
I already had the Cancer Council sunscreen and the small sample from one of my beauty boxes, but the other sunscreens I bought especially for the trip. Husband and I both tried the SunSense Sensitive Skin formula and agreed that we didn't really like it. It was extremely thick and left a white residue on our skin that took about 5 minutes to rub in! The SunSense Invisible Tint Facial Sunscreen was pretty disappointing as well. The cream was tinted yellow, but unlike the brand's Invisible Tint Anti-Ageing Sunscreen (which I love), it left no tint on my skin whatsoever. I ended up using it on my arms/body instead, and used the Nivea Facial Veil combined with my BB Cream on my face. I didn't use as much sunscreen overall as I thought I was going to - I didn't end up going swimming as much as I would have liked, so didn't need to re-apply as often.
I have to admit, this is perhaps one area where I did over-pack a little. I'm glad I did though, because the new products turned out to be not what I wanted/needed, so I had other products to fall back on.
Knowing that heat and humidity can make skin break out, I made sure to bring very light products, like the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Gel. I gave the Avene Eluage Eye Contour Cream sample a go as well. I did notice my dark circles reduced over the course of the week, but I'm not sure if this was due to the cream, or getting more sleep! I also brought along the Witchhazel Blemish Stick, but thankfully didn't need to use it. (Though it came in handy for Husband at one point!)
One of the things I look forward to when travelling is the free products you usually get in the hotel room. (Does that make me a true beauty junkie??) This place supplied shampoo, conditioner and body lotion, and we received a second set of each part-way through, as we were there for 8 nights. They were pretty standard products, with no distinct smell to speak of. The body lotion was a very thick formula with a white residue that took a lot of rubbing to sink in (much like the sunscreen above!). I didn't want to just abandon it though, so I mixed it with my own White Tea and Ginger Body Lotion which is detailed next.
Months ago I bought a couple of gift packs to stash away especially for the trip (beauty junkie, moi?). One of them consisted of these White Tea and Ginger scented products, and they were quite lovely to use. The Shower Gel in particular was a good substitute for the sneeze-inducing hotel soaps (though I couldn't help snaffling 2, as you can see here!) I also used the Body Lotion to mix together with the hotel brand to reduce the white residue and add a fresh scent. And of course, Aloe Vera Gel is a must for after-sun care!
Stay tuned for part 2!
