So this weekend, the hubby and I went on a little break down the South Coast.  Both of us were so ready for some downtime, and just to spend the time together.  Sure, we work together, and therefore thanks to our day jobs, we see each other every single day, for most of the day, but we aren’t interacting or getting that quality time that is so important in a relationship.

Now, I know a lot of people prefer the North Coast, for Ballito and the like, but we have always preferred the south – it’s a little less commercialised, and there is just SO MUCH to do.  Think the Waffle House (decadent gourmet waffles), Pistols Saloon (I love anything ‘country’, so our best is to each get a Jack Daniels on the rocks and play our picks on the jukebox, in this old school western-themed bar), Beavercreek coffee farm (duh – for the coffee!) and MacBanana, with the best food and wine emporium (like a farm stall on steroids) and entertainment (the butterfly farm, paintball, barnyard, adventure golf, pancake and waffle bar) you can find.

Yes, I’ve noticed that my version of entertainment revolves largely around eating and drinking.

But anyway – we stayed at the gorgeous Margate Sands luxury self-catering apartments, and I loved the sea views and fresh ocean air.  I’m usually a winter-lover over summer, but there’s just something about being at the beach that makes you sleep better.

While I was packing, I decided I’d do a fun little ‘What’s in my Bag’, and show you what’s in my toiletry bag, and what skincare/hair-care/body-care Itook along with me!

**Please excuse the photos for not being my regular quality.  It was at night, and I wouldn’t have time to take pictures in the morning before work.  Because I barely have enough time to eat breakfast in the morning, never mind do a mini photo-shoot!

BODY CARE 

I’ve already spoken about my precious Paco Rabanne Olympea Intense, so there was no doubt that it would be coming with me.

I love when you get the Dove original deodorant in this mini form in magazines – I keep them in my travel drawer for when we go away, as they just take up so much less space in my toiletry bag.

We took a regular bar of Dove soap, but I like a nice shower gel or cream.  I still have half my bottle of my Lush The Comforter shower cream, that I bought in a small bottle for our honeymoon.  Yum!

My absolute favourite lotion in the world – favourite for effectiveness, consistency and scent – The Body Shop Raspberry Body Butter.  The huge tubs take up so much space, and I’m hardly going to need that much body butter for a weekend, so I decanted some into this travel tub I bought from The Crazy Store.

HAIRCARE

I love me some decanting – it means I can fill up my toiletry bag with all of my best products, and so I don’t have to only use the very basics.  I had a relatively small toiletry bag, that still had some space left in it, and I didn’t leave behind a single product that I would have wanted to bring!

For shampoo, I used the Schwarzkopf Gliss Magnificent Strength shampoo.  It comes in the beautiful copper bottle, and the shampoo and conditioner together smell to me like Zoo Biscuits.

I didn’t packed a conditioner, as I was only going to wash my hair once, and I wanted to treat my hair while we were on a bit of a break, so I decanted some of my Garnier Ultimate Blends The Ultimate Repairer Balm, and used this as a conditioner/mask treatment.

I got this little mini bottle of Moroccanoil Light Oil treatment in a Retail Box Secret Box absolute ages ago.  It’s become my go to oil to take away with me, and because such a little goes a long way, it’s lasted me for so long, but I think there might only be one or two weekends away left.

Finally, because I was going to be blow drying my hair, I took a little heat protectant with me, the L’oreal Hot Straight cream – it might be for straightening your hair, but it keeps my hair safe and smooth.

SKINCARE

I bought some of these Dove Liquid Cotton cosmetic wipes to just remove the first layer of makeup in the evenings, and to use as hand wipes.  They weren’t great but they were gentle, took off the initial bit of makeup, and doubled up as hand wipes for the drive there – all that car-snacking leads to sticky fingers!

In the little Clinique sample tub at the top, there was some of the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm, to remove the rest of my makeup.

In the pump bottle, was some Garnier Skin Naturals Softening Cleansing Lotion, for a second and/or morning cleanse.

I had some rose water to tone my skin and to use as a hydrating spritzer.

In the 3-stacked tub at the top, was Bioderma Hydrabio mask, in case my skin felt a bit tight and dehydrated in the evenings (I then use it as a night cream).  I still had this in the tub from our honeymoon, so brought it along for this weekend as well.

I also had my Avene Hydrating Serum in the middle of the stacked tub, and the very last bit of my Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief gel cream in the bottom tub.

I took some of my Skin Creamery Every Day lotion with, in case my legs got super dry, and to use as my night cream, as it’s rich enough to really hydrate, as well as absorbing nicely into my skin.  I bought mine from The Beautiful Store, and their service is FANTASTIC – I’ve never had such good after sales service, as they send you a Facebook message and an email each step of the way with tracking.  They even send you an email to get a review on the product once you’ve tried it.

In the little bottle was some of the last of my dr.dermal The Omega Oil, which I adore.  The bottle is supposed to be travel friendly, yet it always leaks.  Plus this teeny bottle is easier to travel with for it’s size.

I took a few of my Wow Jude face clothes with, to use in the evening when removing my makeup and cleansing.

There was part of a The Comforter bubble bar from Lush in the black paper wrapper, but I didn’t end up having time to indulge in a bubble bath unfortunately!

I’ve been using this Clicks Sun Protect Sensitive SPF 50 Face and Neck cream, but even though it says ‘light and non-greasy’, it still leaves my skin a bit greasy, so once I’ve finished this tube I don’t think I’ll be repurchasing it.  I just need to use it up, because, well, money.

I always take one of these dr.dermal Texture Correction Pads with me, but I didn’t end up using this.  I’d given my skin a bit of an exfoliation the night before we left, and I only ended up using this pad on the Sunday evening after we got back.  I try to only use these once a week.

I always take Zambuk with as it’s a multi tasker and it’s great to put onto a pimple at night.  Cheap and cheerful trick!

Eyedrops are always a must have.

This Eucerin Hyaluron-Filler eye cream is a newbie, and I’ve been using it for about 2 weeks now.  And it is by far, the best eye cream I’ve used!  I can use it day or night and it’s rich enough to combat my dehydration lines under my eyes, yet light enough that my makeup sits nicely on top of it and doesn’t crease.  I’ve been battling to find an eye cream that works for me, and so far this has worked better than any other I’ve tried.

What are your holiday skin/body/hair care must haves??