Beauty Terrorist
Story Highlights
- Surviving Security
- What You Can Take
- What You can buy
- Dual Purpose Sick Bags
Surviving Security
It’s one thing for backpackers to support the new luggage restrictions, brought in to prevent the terrorists terrorising our mile high industries, but it’s quite another to let these measures cause bad breath, body odour and blemishes.
That’s why this month I took a look under the bonnet of the hot rod hand luggage restrictions and put together a little beauty prescription about what you can and can’t get away with, when it comes to hand luggage and European airports.
Surviving Security
According to the popular budget airline Ryanair, all liquids, gels, pastes, lotions or liquid cosmetics must be presented in a transparent, re-sealable bag of no more than one litre capacity (20cm by 20cm).
I bought a transparent, re-sealable bag of no more than one litre capacity (20cm by 20cm) and in line with the new restrictions, I filled it with products that contained no more than 100ml. However when I got to the security gate at London Stansted all that careful planning went out the window when the product police proclaimed across a vast marble floor that my bag was too big.
After holding up the queue, an little argument, the presentation of an inventory proving that the collective products were less than 1 litre and the transfer of all my pots and tubes into a special Stansted Airport bag (which was pretty much identical to my own) I cleared security.
Twenty minutes of de stressing later, I proudly went through my transparent bag and here’s what I managed to get through, without having to pay extra to store luggage in the hold.
What You Can Take
Lynx do some very funky mini aerosol deodorant sprays that only add 35ml to your litre total.
Multi purpose hair clays can be picked up from most supermarkets and you can usually get them as small as 75ml. Wella is a good choice.
Non brand 50ml shower gels can be stolen from hotels or purchased from Tescos for less than one English pound and the same can be said for 50ml toothpaste tubes.
Foam Burst face wash can be canned in 50ml packages, which is a little bit exciting and you can max out your moisturising needs with a 100ml tube of Atrixo.
Tresemme cater to your hair’s every whim with 60ml bottles of shampoo and conditioner and you can even get mini 50ml pots of shaving gel from Gillette to get rid of the hairs that grow in places you don’t want them to.
Finally you will be pleased to discover that most perfumes and aftershaves are 100ml or less and face wipes don’t count so you can put them in non transparent bags to you heart’s content.
Touch of Lip which plumps and puckers up your lips and also protects them from the bitterly cold mood swings of the British weather
What You Can Buy
Of course if you use more products or you’re someone who can’t live without the makeup you’re going to need an affordable way of restocking when you reach your destination.
I chatted to some clever backpacking ladies and found out what’s on offer when budget travellers fly into the UK.
Touch of Cosmetics is a nice little range of affordable make up that celebrities like Danni Minogue, Kate Bosworth and Kim Cattral like to use. They range includes four nifty, pocket sized products.
Touch of Light hides those nasty bags under your eyes by reflecting the pesky revealing rays of light.
Touch of Lash is a funky clear mascara that you can also use to shape your eyebrows into perfect crests. It’s a less greasy alternative to Vaseline.
Touch of Blush brings some colour to those tired backpacking cheeks and makes sure that the pasty faced image of the night before, isn’t too apparent.
The final of the four is Touch of Lip which plumps and puckers up your lips and also protects them from the bitterly cold mood swings of the British weather.
While we’re talking hair you can pick up some deliciously fragrant hair care treats from John Lewis, Holland & Barrett, GNC and Waitrose. I can definitely recommend the Australian Organics Intensive Care Shampoo and Penetrating Conditioner, to counter the after effects of too many days in the sun and exposure to the European winter. Both bottles are 350ml and cost £3.99 each.
If you feel like treating yourself to a facial but can’t quite justify an extortionate £60 luxury, look into the Medik8® range. The Foaming Cleanser doesn’t feel like it’s actually doing anything but after you have a bit of a scrub with the k8 Heavy Sponge and wash everything off, you will be left with skin that is softer than a baby’s bottom. The cleanser will set you back £19 and a pack of two Heavy Sponges with a Muslin cloth costs £7.
The final fun thing to pick up on a trip to the UK is a pair of the LA-TWEEZ™ Illuminated Tweezers. These clever stainless steel contraptions have a built-in light to illuminate your face, a built-in mirror and a ribbed handle. They also come in pink, blue or black lipstick-size cases.
Dual Purpose Sick Bags
My final product isn’t one you can pick up just anywhere. For this little beauty you have to place your bum firmly in a seat on a Ryanair flight. After flicking through the riveting in flight magazine I was bored to the point where I started to read the copy on the side of the sick bag. After reading the first line the boredom began to disappear over the horizon because this wasn’t just any sick bag. It was a: “Dual Purpose Sick Bag”. You can empty the contents of your stomach into it or you can use it for a half price, film processing, trial offer at Klick Photoprint. I wonder what would happen if you did both.- Rob Savage
