Travel Glam

January 28, 2023 7:13 AM

I'm finally traveling again - I'll be heading to Los Angeles in mid-April for a film festival. This also means a week with solo access to a bathtub (my NYC apartment tub is too shallow, and I have a roommate), so I've decided to really lean into that and the whole "Hollywood" thing with a nightly bath-and-beauty ritual. What your recommendations for things I can bring to do that (on a plane, in my carryon)?

I've gotten out of the habit of this kind of foofy beauty thing; I've had male roommates for the past several years, I spent my 40s underemployed, and the tub in my current apartment is too woefully shallow for a bath. So I wanna really lean into it with baths and masks and potions and unguents and tonics and the whole shebang; I am going to be in Hollywood for a film festival, after all, I wanna glam up. But I'm both a little overwhelmed by options, and picky about one or two details. Here's the deets:

* I can get a little fussy about "cheap" and "scent". I tend to shy away from most floral scented anything, especially if the florals are cloyingly sweet (lots of the drug store "rose" or "lavender" scented things are WAY too fake smelling). But a REAL rose scent can work very nicely. I also avoid fruit-scented stuff (these things sounded awesome, until I saw that the only scents the come in are "blueberry", "lemonade", and "cotton candy"). Woodsy, herby, grassy, mossy stuff all works (unless that smells super-fake too). And I DO NOT know why bath stuff seems to cram vanilla into everything; I want my sandalwood soap to smell like sandalwood, not a pound cake. So please no vanilla.

* I'm only going to be able to use stuff in the hotel; single-use stuff like bath bombs, or small travel-sized things, are best. I don't want leftover containers that I have to either throw away half-used or drag home and have them clutter up a tiny Brooklyn space.

* This stuff has to come on a plane, and I do not check my luggage ever; so any liquid/gel/cream thing would have to find space in my carryon. So anything that is solid or is something I add water to in the bathroom is preferred.

* I know about Lush, but for pricing and political reasons I'm leaning away from them a little.

* The biggest issue is: my own ignorance! Which thing should I only do once a week, and doing it daily would be bad? What's the difference between a "clarifying" and "deep-cleaning" sheet mask, and how do I decide which one to get? How much exfoliating is too much? Is there any particularly super-cool thing that is new on the scene I really need to try?

I'm already planning on prowling Sephora and a couple other foofy beauty places over the next couple months, collecting a small stash of things like sheet masks and solid perfumes; I also saw this solid face stick and that seems ideal for both glam and travel-suitability. I've also got some trace DIY scrubs I've made of ground oatmeal and various herbs, and they'll all be coming too. And I could make bath salts and things out of powdered milk; but I want to mix in a few bubble-bath options in as well; the glam-er the better. (And yes, I know about using candles to set the mood; I have a stash of travel candles already I always bring on trips anyway.)

Thanks!

posted by EmpressCallipygos to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (19 answers total)

Best answer: I can personally vouch for these bath salts, they are my favorite! They smell really nice and you get very luxurious foamy bubbles. I find I use a lot of them for one bath, so you will make a pretty good dent in the bag if you’re using it all week.
posted by cakelite at 7:23 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: I like these lavender bath salts that come in small packets.
posted by pinochiette at 7:35 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: I've been really enjoying Attitude Living products which are solid skin care products. They have trial sizes of 0.3oz and still have all the fancy feeing things like oil in milk clensers, eye creams, serums and face oils. They do tend towards unscented, I'm not sure if that's a bonus or not for you :)
posted by platypus of the universe at 7:38 AM on January 28, 2023

How are your feet? If you're going to be soaking in the tub, this would be a really good opportunity to moisturize them and put on nice socks afterwards. You can get those special spa socks that are infused with moisturizer but I say get some nice cushy regular socks. My recommendation is to use an exfoliating foot moisturizer and the, the next and subsequent days, gently use a large foot file/callus remover. I use either Aveda's Foot Relief lotion or a lotion that has salicylic or glycolic acid. Don't use a really greasy, occlusive thing like Bag Balm for this.

Do this for a couple of days running and your feet will be ecstatic. (Just be gentle; you don't want to unevenly remove calluses. (My feet were mad at me for months after a misadventure with Baby Foot.)
posted by BibiRose at 7:45 AM on January 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

Depending on where you're staying and how much time you have around the margins of your film festival, it could be fun to buy some beauty supplies at a physical shop (which would also get around the airline issue and let you smell things in person).
posted by LadyOscar at 7:48 AM on January 28, 2023 [2 favorites]

Go to a nearby drug store and pick up a bag of unscented epsom salts. Use, like, the whole thing. You can throw in other scented items if you like. Your muscles will feel AMAZING!
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:52 AM on January 28, 2023 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Just a quick re-direct on a couple points:

* I know I can buy stuff there, and plan to do that. I want to a) have some guidance on what to look for, and b) bring some things in case I don't get to shop until day 4 or whatever.

* I know about Epsom salts and that's going to be one of the things I'm bringing. Epsom salts don't make bubbles, though.

* I'm not looking so much for "what to do" (i.e., "don't forget your feet') so much as I am looking for product recommendations (i.e., "Shop X has this trial size lotion that's amazing" or "Shop Y has this powder that you just mix with water for a foot mask that smoothed my feet in 2 days" or whatever).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:57 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: Clay masks (I prefer French Green clay, but you can also get red) is sold as a powder you add water to. Travels well, and is a nice mask. You use it typically once a week, so bring enough for one mask. You can buy a small amount in the bulk section of many herb and natural food stores. Also a pumice stone for your feet. You can use this daily depending on how your feet are feeling, and you can get a small one so you aren't lugging a big rock around with you. This scrub is also really nice - works well, you can use every day with your bath and has a really pleasant, mild odor. I've never used it for my hair, it works great on the body though.
posted by Toddles at 8:52 AM on January 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: If you're in the neighborhood in LA, the Larchmont Beauty Center is a great place to prowl.
Enjoy your tub adventures, I'm also in need of a proper long soak.
posted by winesong at 8:53 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: I really like the Japanese mineral bath salts. They’re single packet, come in a box with different versions and emulate the natural hot springs that I’ve always loved there. They’re explicitly not scented just different mineral compositions.
posted by artificialard at 9:03 AM on January 28, 2023 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Most hydrating sheet masks have the same basic ingredients and you can use them daily if you like. I’m tempted by the Dr Jart sampler here but any random sheet masks are about the same as any others, in my experience.

Would a Babyfoot peel be of interest?

I’ve done some good hotel room pampering with Origins mini masks and moisturizers and they tend to be pretty fresh-smelling.

Are you interested in bath oils? How about nail polish/manicures?
posted by music for skeletons at 10:00 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: On what to do: US Sephora should also have a 'Beauty on the Fly' in its physical stores - they tend to have better selection than even airport shop minis. Do you guys have a points system? Check out what your available points can get you. Basically, if they have this section: start with that first, esp if you're feeling flush. And since they're minis they're resealable. ah, here's a current list.

On what to get (I have bought these at Sephora):
- just to be on-theme, the GlamGlow masks set. There's a set of 4 tiny pots, so you can fiddle with each on a different night. Is masking every night too much? Not really, just layer the ingredients appropriately (clarifying before moisturizing for example)

- Laneige's water gel line or Clinique's Moisture Surge. You can use these in lieu of sheet masks (also a personal favourite) for a more subtle option from your trip on the plane itself.

- Sephora's own foot and hair masks, while you soak in the bath. They also do bath salts but I've never gotten them.

- noted brands for a spa day out that I've tried from there: Saturday Skin; Drunk Elephant (if their exfoliant is available in mini form, get that for every other day); their house brand.


FWIW: I've been back to air travel for work since last year.
posted by cendawanita at 10:52 AM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: This 10min soak hair treatment (travel size).
posted by St. Peepsburg at 12:08 PM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: Oh! Bring a nice nail file, cuticle scissors etc and really take care of those fingers and toes.

I like those biore charcoal masks that pull out your pore gunk too.

You can get samples of this luxurious face cream
posted by St. Peepsburg at 1:03 PM on January 28, 2023

Best answer: Please note that bath salts can register as explosives as your carryon goes through the X-Ray machine. I once received an extremely thorough airport search for this reason.
posted by rednikki at 2:46 PM on January 28, 2023

Response by poster: Rednikki: Yikes, good to know! (I'm still reeling in embarrassment from when I won a "wine tote bag" on a corporate trip at an old job, but didn't know it had a corkscrew in it until the nice TSA people were pulling me out of the line....)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 2:53 PM on January 28, 2023

If you are in NY, take a trip to K-town to stock up some great sheet masks! I find that hydrating sheet masks are lovely and can be used daily. There are two shops - BesFrend Beauty on 5th Ave and 32nd, and then The FaceShop and Kosette Beauty mart on 32nd in between Broadway and 5th. They have a lovely selection of moisturizing sheetmasks (look for collagen, aloe, ceramides, in your ingredient list) from brands like Dr. Jart, CosRx, Mediheal, or SkinFood.

For non K-beauty, LaRoche Posay just came out with a Cicaplast sheet mask that I have not personally tried, but is supposed to be very gentle and hydrating and all around lovely. After a long flight, hydration is key!
posted by something_witty at 6:15 AM on January 29, 2023 [1 favorite]

saavy is based in LA county...I'm here now and just saw some of their products at a bristol farms.
posted by brujita at 6:16 PM on February 12, 2023

They're at sprouts too
posted by brujita at 1:10 PM on February 16, 2023