My Makeup Must-haves for Travel

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

As I discussed in my post How to Always Looks Cute While Traveling, I really make it a point to look good when I am traveling. For me, this means that I always have at least my makeup basics on hand, even when I am traveling in a more minimalist way. I applaud women who can look amazing without a trace of makeup, but I really enjoy trying out new things and completing my looks with some fierce winged eyeliner. Obviously when I am traveling, I don’t carry every eyeshadow palette and lipstick I own with me, so I have compiled for you all a list of my cannot-live-without makeup items that I always travel with to hopefully help you the next time you are trying to decide which Naked Palette you should pack for your trip(Hint: the answer is none of them; its the Jaclyn Hill x Morphe Palette).

Face

• Shape Tape Concealer

Tarte’s Shape Tape concealer is a godsend for concealing my undereye bags and other problem areas. Shape Tape is at the top of most concealer rankings for a good reason. It’s effective, doesn’t crease and comes in so many great shades. Shape Tape is honestly my favorite product.

• Primer

When I start packing my makeup for a trip, the first thing I put in my makeup bag is my Benefit Poreprofessional primer. When I am traveling, I tend to wear makeup almost every day and this primer helps keep my pores from getting clogged and for longer days it keeps my foundation looking flawless for hours on end.

• Liquid Foundation

So I cheat with this one a bit. I am lucky to have mostly clear skin, most of the time so I rarely wear a full-on foundation. I alternate between the E.L.F. BB cream on days when I want lighter coverage and my Supergoop! Correct CC cream on days when I need a bit more coverage.

• Pressed Powder

I recently was in need of a new pressed powder because my old one was nothing but pan and so I went to Ulta and discovered the Tarte Double Duty Beauty Confidence Creamy Powder Foundation. This stuff is AMAZING. I was a little insulted that I needed to buy the palest shade, but its winter so I guess thats okay. It provides great coverage and adds a perfect matte finish to my foundation.

• Blush

My favorite blush of all time is a benefit blush that they no longer make called Bella Bamba, but until it is completely gone it will always have a place in my makeup bag on trips. A close alternative that I also love is my Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour blush in Paaarty, which happened to be my free Birthday gift from Sephora last year. I love how pigmented it is and the small size makes it easy to fit into my makeup case.

• Highligher

This may make me sound as basic as can be, but my favorite highlighter is my Kylie Jenner highlighter. I have both her pressed powder highlighter in Cotton Candy Cream and her loose powder ultra glow in Tahiti. I tend towards pink toned highlighters because they go best with my skin tone. However, if I am packing ultra-light, I will forego packing a highlighter(GASP!) and use a metallic eyeshadow as an alternative, but I will admit this rarely happens.

 Eyebrow Essentials

• Pencil

For days where you just need a tad bit of definition to your brows, or if you need to outline them before you go in with your gel, I love the Benefit GoofProof Brow pencil. Its angled tip is easy to use and the different shades available are great for a wide variety of brow colors.

• Cream Gel Pot

For bolder brows especially at night, I love a good cream gel because it lets me have creative license over how bold I want to make my brows. The Benefit Cosmetics ka-BROW! Cream-Gel pot is my favorite and it comes in 6 different shades from blonde to black so there is a color for every brow tone!

• Gel

My eyebrows, like most things in my life, have a tendency to be a bit of a mess. As a result, I always have either a clear or tinted eyebrow gel to help keep them from looking crazy. The Benefit 24-HR Brow Setter Shaping & Setting Gel is my current favorite for clear gels and I also love their tinted “Gimme Brow” gel (which they recently renamed 3D Browtones) for days when I want super easy color and taming.

Eyes

• Palettes

I am an eyeshadow palette hoarder, but obviously when I travel I must be selective. If I have the space, I pack the Jaclyn Hill x Morphe Palette because it has every color I could possibly need and the colors are extremely pigmented and amazing. If I don’t have the space, I will instead choose my LORAC Unzipped palette for more natural looks and then add in my Kylie Jenner Burgundy palette for more dramatic looks.

• Liner

For regular eyeliner, I actually just use the darker colors from my eyeshadow palette and an angled brush, but I do always carry a felt-tip liner with me for those days I want to attempt a winged eyeliner look. I really love the Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner because it is easy to apply(most days) and it really does last all day, which is key when you are out sightseeing from 8am until 11pm.

• Mascara

I absolutely swear by Benefit’s They’re Real Mascara. I know I talk a lot about Benefit products in this post, but I swear they aren’t paying me too, I just really love their stuff and this mascara is no exception. While I love the original black, I am actually really enjoying the Brown They’re Real Mascara lately for more “natural” daytime looks. I also really like Buxom’s Lash Mascara as its a bit easier to get off at the end of the day and still leaves my lashes looking unreal.

Lips

• Balm

In my post on Carry-on essentials for Long Haul Flights,I talked about how dry my skin gets on flights, well my lips dry out too. I always, always, always carry lip balm with me. I really love Nivea’s Moisture Lip care because it is hydrating without feeling like I just coated my lips in Vaseline.

• Lipstick

Let me talk some more about my love for Kylie Cosmetics for just a second. Her lipkits are LIFE CHANGING. They are the first matte lipsticks that havent cracked on my lips and atually last as long as they claim. Her Velvet collection is even better because the velvety texture doesnt dry out at all. Now, they are pricey soif you want a good dupe for them, Colourpop’s Ultra Matte Lip is close in formula and Victoria’s Secret Velvet Matte Lipsticks might even be better thank Kylie’s.

Brushes

My must-have brushed to get me by are my Powder brush, a brush for Blush/bronzer, a standard Eyeshadow brush, and an angled brush. I used to swear by the iT cosmetics brushes, but I recently tried some of the Ulta Brand brushes and they are just as good and significantly cheaper so I may be using solely those from now one. My current go to’s are this Blush brush, this eyeshadow one, and this angled brush. I am still using my iT cosmetics Kabuki brush, but if something happens to it, I am going to save myself some money and replace it with this Ulta Brand one.

For all those other makeup junkies out there, what are your necessities for when you are traveling? Do you have a hard time limiting what you bring? Tell me below in the comments! And be sure to check out all my favorite products on my Shop my Favorites Pinterest Board.

From one misguided millennial to the world, these are my makeup musthaves when I travel!