Skin aid kit for beginners

I am not a frequent flyer and I have had precisely two long haul flights. And by long haul I mean really long ones, where you need to have stopovers and cross an ocean before reaching your destination. For the first trip, I didn't have any in flight skin care kit. I was travelling with my cousin and both of us had stuffed our face with chicken rolls before boarding the flight. Once aboard we consumed copious amount of complimentary wine and had middle of the night meeting in front of the toilet with my mom and aunt where we proceeded to make fun of my father who was sleeping with his mouth open. Suffice to say, by the time I reached Down Under, my face had a distinctly puffed look. In my defence, this was a pre youtube era where a long haul skincare vid wasn't de rigour.

My next long haul flight was a totally different ballgame. For starters, I had an extremely painful and angry cyst on my cheek which no amount of concealers could cover. I was also travelling in the peak of winter, from a sub zero temperature to a certainly plus degree one in Miami. And so when push came to shove, a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do. I plugged into the staples, Caroline Hirons, Makeupalley and Ruth Crilly and made my own skin aid kit. The list is as follows:

Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm decanted into tub with spatula. Hot towel would be kindly provided by the airlines (not ideal, but I refuse to carry a dirty wet towel in my bag). La Roche Posay glycerin based toner, decanted into stopper. My most effective under eye gel by Ole Henriksen, a glycolic based treatment in a travel friendly tube. Indeed Labs Hydraluron, a hyaluronic based serum for maximum moisture retention followed by a travel sized cream (I used the Alpha-H hydrating cream). And finally a bit of Elizabeth Arden eight hour cream for lips, elbows and cuticles. All popped into a clear zip bag to prevent the grope in the bag syndrome. 

And yes, I was a good girl on the flight. No wine, I compensated by having two ice lollies while watching Pitch Perfect, and no my husband wasn't interested in the nail art of the 65 year old twins who were sitting on the aisle seats. Men just don't get it, do they? 

Queen Mary room @Liberty London

I had been eyeing the Omoravicza night cream for more than a year now but its steep price always acted as a deterrent. However last month I finally made the commitment and bought the cream. I am saving it for the winter days though so can't report on its performance. But what I can do is give you the low down on the treat of buying the brand from Liberty. Unlike Harrods, which I do love, Liberty has a more pared down version of luxury which lacks the OTT glitz of Harrods.And I find the service in Liberty more personal. Case in point Bouchana, the SA for Omoravicza at Liberty. After cutting the ice with a long chat about Illamasqa pigments, hair cuts and bad London weather, she gave me an excellent deal: a one hour facial in the Queen Mary's room and the booking fee redeemable against purchase. There was a last minute cancellation and if I wanted it, the spot was mine. After five minutes of dithering I took the deal and hands down had the best massage of my life.

The complimentary facial does not include extraction which was okay for me because my skin was pretty clear at that time. What I was looking for was a bit of relaxation after a long day of strolling around V&A. And Dominica, my facialist has the bloody best hands in the business. After I got wrapped up in towels and lay down on the heated bed with a hot water cushion for my acing shoulders, she cleansed, toned and massaged my face with what I can only describe as pianotage, tapping of fingers around the face along with lymphatic drainage movements. An hour later I was literally glowing, sort of a combination of a good nap and an intense orgasm if it makes sense. If you are ever thinking of investing in a luxury brand, try booking a session at the Queen Mary's room first. Seriously its worth it.

Cleansing ritual or what I do to prevent the face going south before forty, hopefully

You know what I miss most during weekends in the UK, a bit of pampering in my local beauty parlour.  My favourite was a teeny tiny parlour in Kailash Colony called Muskaan. Come to think of it, it was actually discovered by one of my roommates Meetu- she had her pre wedding skin prep done from there. Location wise, it was a dud. A run down room with hardly any place to stand but with a proprietor who was an expert facialist. That was good enough for me and boy was it cheap. For me it was the ultimate girls world on a budget. Cleanses and facials with cheap “herbal brands” or Shahnaz Hussain, the amma of skincare in our part of the world. How much any of the so-called creams did for my skin I don’t know, but those facial massages were heavenly.

In an ideal world I would be able to get tri-annual facials at the hands of expert therapists with non mineral oil based products. But if I can’t get the therapist then the least I could do was to get good products and use my own ten fingers. And to that effect I have been using these two products for my cleansing. 

The first one is Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm which is my favourite and the other is the Alpha-H Age Delay Cleansing Oil which I reserve for days when the weather looks like this. 

Both are oil based cleansers, plant not mineral oil.  Mineral oil is Vaseline, it has its uses but you won't like to wash your face with it would you? I am bad with instructions, which means I don’t follow the usage directions given on the pack. So I always apply the cleanser on a dry skin, I feel the oils stick better to a non-wet surface. Logic right. But I do heat up the product in the palm of my hands adding a bit of water for slip. And then I massage and clean off the gunk with a facecloth. And finally a good old splash of water to round off everything and I am done. I follow it up with a toner, under eye cream and night cream. And if there are any girls reading this, do develop your own cleansing ritual. Seriously it’s the most relaxing thing you will ever do at the end of a day. And if you want any incentive, look at this clip. And be prepared for some major girl crushing.