4 road trip beauty looks that make you look polished but not high maintenance

Date May 12, 2016

Victoria Day long weekend is just around the corner and we couldn’t be more excited. Aside from some much needed R&R, the long weekend is also a good time to step up our beauty game. Whether we’re roughing it outdoors, “glamping” or road-tripping across Canada, we want a look that’s effortlessly chic.

To help us, we’ve asked our Beauty Panel to tells us their must-have beauty products when they’re out camping or on a road trip. From side braids to sunscreens, cleansers to concealers, flip through to see their go-to road trip beauty looks.

Challenge 117: What’s your go-to beauty look on a road trip? See the answers now! »

Have a beauty question you want to see the panel answer? Send it our way at [email protected]. Read on for the answers to this week’s challenge and for more goodness, get to know all contributors on our Beauty Panel hub page.

Katie Elwood
Vancouver | Katie Elwood

Whenever I am bound for a weekend away, there are a few items I always pack. My go-to look is minimal eye makeup, glowing skin, lip gloss and a side braid. Here are a few essentials that help me achieve this look.

Skin basics
I like to even out my skin with a tinted moisturizer then give myself a healthy glow with bronzer and blush.

Eye makeup
I usually bring a shadow palette with only a few shades so that I don’t have a ton of loose shadows in my bag. To step up my eye look, I always pack a kohl eyeliner pencil because I can easily smudge it at my lash line for a more glam look.

Dry shampoo
Since I try to avoid packing too many hair tools, a side braid is easy to manage, while still looking cute. Dry shampoo guarantees I will have fresh looking hair. It will also give your hair a bit of texture to make styling easier.

Products used: Laura Mercier Oil Free Tinted Moisturizer in “Nude,” Urban Decay Naked Flushed, Smashbox Photo Matte Eyes Palette, Smashbox Eyeliner in “Java,” Kevin Murphy Fresh Hair.

Colleen Conroy
Vancouver | Blush Rouge

It is so exciting that camping / road trip season is upon us! However, being on the open road or out in the wilderness makes for more interesting times when it comes to skincare and beauty. Here are some of my must-have products that I make sure to bring with me during all of this fun!

First and foremost, I always make sure I have sunscreen with me wherever I go. Don’t forget to reapply often for the best protection. I like to go fairly light with my makeup during this time of year, because when it gets hot and sticky, the last thing you want is heavy makeup. Keep it clean with just a smidge of concealer wherever you might need it. Then I like to use a tint for cheek colour. I find that it lasts longer, and it can always double up for a lip colour as well. When I like to put as little effort in as possible, but still look pulled together I go straight for an easy bright lip and just a swipe of mascara. For longevity, my faves are the Nyx Full Throttle waterproof lipstick formula, Blinc’s amplified mascara and Blinc’s brow mousse. All are basically life-proof and will even last through a quick summer dip! An awesome straw hat can make any state your hair is in look complete (I practically live in mine throughout the summer months).

At the end of a long day camping or road-tripping, it can be tricky to make sure you get a good cleansing in of your skin. I like to pack face wipes with me, and then just rinse with a little water afterwards. Finish off with a drop of hydrating serum and I’m a happy camper!!

Products used: Kinesys SPF 30 Alcohol-Free Sunscreen, M.A.C Moisturecover Concealer in “NC20,” Benefit Lollitint Lip & Cheek Stain, Benefit High Beam Liquid Face Highlighter, Nars Laguna Bronzer, Nyx Full Throttle Waterproof Lipstick in “Jolt,” Blinc Mascara Amplified in “Black,” Blinc Eyebrow Mousse in “Light Brunette,” Neutrogena Naturals Makeup Removing Wipes, Éminence Organics Stone Crop Serum.

Julie Martinson
Toronto | Julie Martinson

When summer hits, I turn most of my long weekends into mini vacations. And because I’ve planned out a lot of air travel this year, I need to find a way to efficiently pack my carry-on to meet plane regulations and not feel like I’ve left too much behind at home.

Don’t dry out
Plane rides are notorious for dehydrating skin, so I always make sure I have a skin mist and a hydrating lip balm or tint within arm’s reach. Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist is perfect for your carry-on and makes skin feel so fresh!

Look for travel size
I am a bit of a skincare junkie, so it’s always hard for me to narrow down what to bring. Luckily, Dr. Roebuck’s has a cute little travel size set with everything I need for cleansing and moisturizing.

Test out those samples
If you’re anything like me, you have a cache of skincare, hair care and makeup samples. Well now is the time to dig them out and take them on vacation. I typically go through five to ten of my beauty samples while away and often fall in love with a few, enough to buy full size when I get home.

Make things multi-purpose
One of the easiest ways to cull down that makeup bag is to bring one ridiculously efficient palette. I love my Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette because I can use it as highlight, bronze, contour, setting powder, eyeshadow, brow powder and more.

Bring your beauty staples
The worst feeling is eliminating something from your “packing list” in the name of saving space only to realize you can’t live without it. I always make sure I bring my favourite primer, concealer, foundation and mascara with me. Dermalogica makes a great primer that calms redness and has SPF20!

Pro tip: I don’t want to worry about fixing up chipped nails while on vacation, so I always bring a set of press-ons. The imPRESS brand is great because you don’t need acetone to remove them.

Products used: Nyx Highlight & Contour Pro Palette, Dermalogica Redness Relief Primer, Dr. Roebuck’s Travel Set, Impress Gel Manicure, Covergirl Clean Matte foundation, Glamglow Gravitymud, MAC Versicolour Stain in “Tattoo My Heart,” Benefit They’re Real Mascara in “Beyond Blue,” Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Concealer, Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist.

Shawna Friedberg
Toronto | Spill the Beauty

When going away for the long weekend, makeup has to take a back seat because my priorities are hair care, skincare, sun care. To take care of my colour treated hair, I use Garnier Whole Blends Argan Oil & Cranberry shampoo and conditioner – it’s affordable, smells amazing and protects my blonde locks. For skincare I make sure to apply The Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum-In-Oil, followed by any mild face cream before I go to bed. And most importantly, sun care! I use Sheiseido Ultra Sun Protection Lotion SPF 50, which gets even stronger when it gets wet, so you don’t need to worry about re-applying it after taking a dip in the pool.

My go-to road trip beauty look is fairly simple. I like to wear minimal makeup when I go on road trips, just because it’s so much easier to pop on sunglasses and a baseball cap than to go full-on glam. My look begins with applying a tinted moisturizer that I mix myself, using any mild facial lotion and three drops of Cover FX Custom Cover Drops in “P20.” Then I quickly do my brows using Maybelline Define + Fill Duo in “Blonde,” and coat my lashes with Lash Princess Volume Mascara. I top off my look with Nyx Butter Gloss in “Angel Food Cake” for a hint of colour on my lips.