Travalo

 

If, like me, you like to top up your fragrance throughout the day, you'll know how doing so isn't always practical.  As beautiful as many perfume bottles are they're not the safest things to carry around. Even the smallest and most compact bottles could still easily smash, ruining your handbag,  your perfume, and risk cutting yourself. Not good! 

This is where the Travalo comes in. It's basically a miniature, refillable spray bottle (or perfume atomiser if you want to get technical!) that makes taking your favourite scent with you so much easier, wherever you go. Originally designed with air-travel in mind, the Travalo is made from aeroplane grade aluminium, and contains no glass parts. However  whether you're a frequent flier or not, the Travalo is SO handy. Its tiny, less than 9cm, size means it can fit into pretty handbag. It's super sturdy too and has withstood many a night out, train journey and shopping trip with barely even a scratch.

There are a few different variations of the Travalo,  but I think mine is the excel model. I paid around £10 in House of Fraser for mine, but you can find them cheaper online.  Regardless of which one you have, they all fill up in the same way.  Simply take your perfume of choice and remove the little metal spray cap; it goes back on, don't worry! Then place your Travalo onto the little spout where the cap was.  All you need to do then is pump it up an down and your Travalo will fill up. You can keep an eye on how full it's getting through the little 'window'. It's important not to fill it more than 3/4 full as this can stop it from working properly.   That's all there is to it! This particular model contains around 65 sprays which would easily last you a trip away. 

Travalo is available in a variety of colours, and as I've said, a variety of styles. I definitely want to pick up a few more in different colours. If you like your perfume, then this is something I can't recommend enough.

Handbag Makeup

I've never been one for carrying that much make up around with me on a day to day basis. For the longest time, it was simply my lipstick of choice.  These days I do tend to carry slightly more around with me, although if I'm honest I don't touch up my make up all that much while I'm out and about, but I guess it's good to know I have a few essentials handy in case I do need them.

I've mentioned this concealer and powder many times before, and pretty much every blogger has raved about one, or both, of these.  The Soap & Glory One Heck of a Blot powder is one of the best powders I've used, and is the only one that doesn't go cakey on me.  Similarly, Collection's Lasting Perfection is my all time favourite concealer.  I don't feel the need to carry foundation around with me, these two are all I need to cope with any blemishes that may appear during the day.  I also carry my Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray which is great for refreshing the skin, and giving an instant pick me up.  As you can see, I have a number of lip products; I tend to just throw in whatever I'm wearing that day and don't take them back out again so there's always a bit of a collection in there.  I'm loving Benetint by Benefit at the moment.  I use it mainly as a lip stain, so don't really need to apply it to my lips again, but I may use it on my cheeks if my blusher starts to fade.  This miniature bottle is perfect for carrying around and I really wish you could buy them separately.  I also have a Revlon Lip Butter  (Berry Smoothie) and a L'Oreal Rouge Caresse (Aphrodite Scarlet) as well as a Maybelline Baby Lips (Cherry Velvet) which I like to layer over the Benetint.  Lastly for make up is an Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Bourbon which I use mainly on my lower lash line. Apart from my Real Techniques Powder Brush, the only other thing I carry is my Travalo which at the moment contains my current favourite perfume; Viva La Juicy, La Fleur.  It's much easier and safer than carrying around a full size perfume bottle and I keep meaning to get a couple more for all my different perfumes.

I used to just have all these bits floating around the bottom of my bag, until I came across this little makeup bag while having a bit of a clear out.  It was one I got free from Clinique when I bought some skincare items a couple of years ago.  It's the perfect size for throwing in my handbag and keeps all my little bits and bobs in one place.  I absolutely love the colours and the print, and it's a wipe-clean too so there's no need to worry about getting make-up marks all over it! 

What makeup do you tend to carry around with you?