Travel Beauty :: 4 Products You've Never Heard Of

[trip style = any]

Have a vacation coming up and want to look your best for the trip? Here are some unique products that will get you gorgeous and glowing in no time! {left to right}

Get Your Complexion In Shape: Ladi Avokanto by Sponge Skincare I can't say enough about this amazing product with a very cool name. Made with pure organic olive oil and avocado oil, this potent oil serum is chemical-free and really does create radiant skin. Start using it a few weeks before your trip, day and night. Sponge is an impressive company from Greece that was started by a doctor who created these natural products for his pregnant patients. The entire line is hypoallergenic and uses powerful organic plants and herbs.

Get Your Lips, Nails, Elbows and Feet (plus a million other things) In Shape: Egyptian Magic Cream This miracle balm softens ANYTHING and even helps heal stretchmarks! It's natural and made primarily of olive oil, beeswax and honey, and has a thick, rich texture. Use to heal cuticles, soften hands, get smooth lips, soften dry cracked feet---you name it!

Get Your Hair In Shape: Huile D'Ales Intense Hydrating Oil Treatment There's something very serious about anything that comes in an ampoule, and this is no exception. This super-hydrating oil treatment is applied to dry hair and can be left on anywhere from 30 minutes to overnight. I left it on overnight and was very impressed with the results---my hair was so soft and felt so healthy. Plus NO parabens, phthalates, sulfates, or any harsh chemicals. Sexy vacation hair is only an ampoule away!

Get Your Skin In Shape: Skin Trip by Mountain Ocean I came across this delicious coconut oil-infused lotion at my favorite beauty store in Los Angeles, Larchmont Beauty Center. It's made by a family-run business and is totally organic and natural. It smells like a just-broken coconut {not that artificial scent} and hydrates the skin like nothing else. Slather it all over the body after your bath or shower and I guarantee you'll have baby-soft, beach-ready skin in no time.

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert, is already whipping up her next concoction post!}

Related {Travel Beauty} In-Flight Essentials Q&A with 3floz Founder Olive Oil-Inspired Skincare

Travel Beauty :: 3Floz

For this month's travel beauty fix, we're excited to interview a gal who knows what she's talking about when it comes to travel beauty. After constantly globetrotting for work, Alexi Mintz wondered why it was so hard to find carry-on size versions of her go-to beauty products. Turns out, the answer to this question lead to the co-creation of 3floz, a website dedicated to top travel beauty brands all 3floz or less---compact enough for a weekend trip style or an epic adventure! Alexi dishes on 3floz, her favorite trip styles and go-to travel beauty products.

1. How did you come up with the idea for 3floz.com and how does it work? Co-founder Kate Duff and I traveled together all the time when we worked at Archipelago Botanicals. She always checked huge suitcases filled with full-sized beauty products, and I just carried on and skipped bringing travel-sized products because I could never find my favorite brands. We realized that our bad packing habits were the result of a void in the marketplace. We need one convenient location to get all of our favorite brands in travel sizes, so we created the online store 3floz.com. We ship from our offices in NYC. *3floz has been mentioned in a host of news outlets and mags from BBC Travel to In Style, and we're proud to have featured the company back in August as part of Travel Beauty Month.

2. What are your favorite trip styles (beach vacations, adventure travel, etc...) and why? I like to alternate between adventure trips and beach trips. If I only have 4 or 5 days for a vacation, I look for a spot that is a 3-4 hour flight from NYC so I don't waste a whole day traveling. It is hard to see a destination in 4 or 5 days, so I usually chose a beach vacation for shorter trips. For a longer 7+ day vacation, I usually opt for an adventure trip. I can spend a day traveling and not feel like it is cutting into my trip. I love exploring new places and I don't want to feel rushed. Recently I spent 14 days in Vietnam, moving around each few days to a different spot. The vacation was the perfect hybrid between adventure (I went on a jungle hike!) and beach.

3. What are your go-to travel beauty products and why? Cucumber Towelettes are in every travel bag I own! The wipes are my favorite multi-use towelette: face cleanser, make-up remover, and sweat remover (for my jungle hikes). In Vietnam they even came into the bathroom with me (they aren't big on TP in Vietnam). Another travel beauty must is First Aid Beauty 5-in-1 lotion w/spf 30. Less is better when I travel. This product covers all my moisturizing needs, and has SPF 30 so I don't have to think about an additional sunscreen.

4. Do you ship to Canada? Yes we ship to Canada for $18.99. {Trip Styler Tip: Order a bunch of products at once to test what you like best. Take advantage of shipping once versus multiple times!}

PS - Stay tuned for a fabulous 3floz.com giveaway! Details coming soon!

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert is already whipping up her next concoctionpost!}

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Travel Beauty :: Olive Oil Inspired

{This week: enter to win a gorgeous fleur de lis necklace, details here.}

I have a bit of an olive oil obsession, which started long before my trip to the Italian Riviera, and I go through a bottle at a frighteningly fast pace. Not only do I cook with it at every meal, I even bake with it {try this recipe for olive oil cake---it's fantastic}.

Olive oil is packed with nourishing ingredients like Vitamin E and Omegas 3 and 6, and has been a beauty secret women have relied on for thousands of years. You can rub it into the hands and feet to hydrate dry, cracked skin, use it as a rinse-out hair masque, and even apply it to the face directly for a natural, ultra-moisturizing anti-aging treatment. Or...you can indulge in new Olive Essence from Spa de Soleil---a Certified Organic, natural skin care line that is formulated with pure olive oil and nourishing 24K gold---another age-old beauty secret that Cleopatra is said to have used to stay young and gorgeous.

This USDA Certified Organic collection fights aging naturally with an impressive list of ingredients that really is chemical-free. My favorites include Organic Gold Healing Nutrient; a silky formula that infuses olive juice, fruit extracts and amino acids into the skin to help it recover from environmental stresses {and living in LA I have enough of those!} and Organic Gold Peptide Complex, which is an intensive formula with powerful antioxidants in a unique oxygenated delivery system to fight premature aging. The Organic Gold Facial Peel leaves skin feeling soft and glowing. All formulas are scented with a delicate, fresh fragrance and absorb instantly---definitely a must-try! All of my favorites come in travel-friendly sizes.

Olive Essence is priced accessibly, with the most expensive item being only $32.99. Available online at www.homespacollection.com.

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert is already whipping up her next concoction post!}

Travel Beauty :: The Beauty of Arcona

[trip style = spa]

TLC I was recently lucky enough to experience a facial at the Arcona Studio in Santa Monica, CA. I have to admit, I’m one of those people who starts a different skin care regimen every week. But my skin had been acting out and was in need of some TLC, so after hearing about Arcona from several friends, I decided to give it a try.

Radiant Complexion The studio itself is very intimate and tranquil with dim lighting, eggshell-hued walls, classical music, and with talking only at whisper-level---it’s no wonder celebs like Natalie Portman, Vera Farmiga, and Katherine Heigl are fans. The studio is more about serious skincare than ultimate relaxation, so if you’re expecting lots of bells and whistles, this place isn’t for you. But if you want a glowing, radiant complexion, don’t walk…run fly!

No Overcooking Arcona products are made without parabens, petrochemicals, binders or fillers, sodium lauryl sulphates, perfumes, or dyes, and are infused with healthy ingredients like enzymes, antioxidants, amino acids, plant lipids, essential oils, vitamins, and minerals. The key to their unique formulas is the ingredients are cold-processed in small batches at low temperatures, keeping them effective and active. They compare this process to how most nutrients are lost when overcooking vegetables.

Basic 5 Arcona is based on 5 simple products. You use 3 steps in the morning and 2 at night. The Basic Five Program aims to speed up, strengthen and enhance the skin’s renewal process. My Basic Five was for Normal Skin and included Cranberry Gommage---a morning exfoliant, Magic White Ice----a daytime hydrator, Desert Mist---a protective spray that shields skin from environmental damage, Toner Tea Bar---a nighttime cleanser, and The Solution---a lactic and hyaluronic acid-filled nighttime treatment. The Basic Five comes in a set for normal, sensitive, oily, dry, or aging skin and is available in full and travel sizes. I recommend the travel kits which are a great way to try the brand, and to take on vacation.

If you are in search of an eco-friendly skincare line that actually works, try Arcona. I am now a convert.

Editor's Note: I'm heading to LA in a few weeks and even though I have a love/hate relationship with facials, a trip to Arcona might be in order! Thanks Lauren.

PS - Men, there's also a specially formulated men's line.

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert is already whipping up her next concoction post!}

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Travel Beauty :: Something to "Screen" About

[trip style = sun & everyday] Vacay in the Sun There’s nothing more relaxing than vacationing in the sun. Just the thought of it makes me want to take a nap. I agree that everyone looks better with a tan and don’t you always hear about how essential Vitamin D is? So just a little sun can’t hurt…WRONG! With skin cancer rates on the rise, a little sun can hurt. A lot. If that doesn’t make you nervous, I’ll appeal to your vanity: wrinkles! And don’t even get me started on sun spots.

So What To Do? Use sunscreen. Every. Single. Day. Especially while on vacation when you’re more likely to spend longer periods of time outside, but also on cloudy, rainy days and every day in between.

Not the Answer I haven’t been impressed with the sunscreens on the market. Many of them leave a thick white sheen and an extra shiny finish---definitely not the way you want to look while on vacation.

Enter Neutrogena’s Ultra Sheer Liquid Sunblock SPF 55. Wow. I applied this product on clean skin before moisturizer. The lightweight liquid formula absorbed instantly and left no residue, white sheen, or greasiness. You would never know that I had applied sunscreen that day. I didn’t even wear much makeup and my skin looked great. I was impressed! This sunscreen contains both UVA (aging rays) and UVB (burning rays) protection under the name Helioplex, which is Neutrogena’s proprietary complex (i.e. a marketing term) featuring Avobenzone and Oxybenzone.

Some Guidelines When buying a sunscreen, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends that you look for the following ingredients, which ensure broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) protection: Avobenzone, Cinoxate, Ecamsule, Menthyl anthranilate, Octyl methoxycinnamate, Octyl salicylate, Oxybenzone, Sulisobenzone, Titanium dioxide, and Zinc oxide. In addition look for something with an SPF of 30 or higher. This Neutrogena product has it all.

Did You Know? UVA rays can penetrate car windows! Just one more reason to wear sunscreen every single day.

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert is already whipping up her next concoction post!}