For the last week I’ve been in Morocco, which was a life-altering place to visit.
The main thing I took from my experience there was that societies exist in this world that have a deep commitment to beauty. If something could be made beautiful, Moroccans will do it. I saw gorgeous painted ceiling roses over the entranceways to old carparks, filigreed toilet brush holders, bins painted with roses and vines and outdoor taps with beautiful brass handles. Things that are seen as functional in the societies I’ve lived in, Moroccans make into a piece of art. The streets are full of brightly painted walls and buildings created by this commitment to beauty.
Moroccan people aren’t afraid to wear colour either, be it flowing lime green kaftans or the bright red lip stain created by using Aker Fassi, which are small terracotta pots imbued with poppy and pomegranate powder.
My holiday allowed me to exchange the cold Irish winter for a few days, and enjoy the sun and mid-twenties warmth of the African continent. It seems I’m not alone in my sun seeking – the plane from Dublin was packed and lots of people are booking sun holidays at the moment, so this week I’m covering travel skincare and makeup.
I put my makeup on at 6am in Donegal. I was expecting to have it running over half my face by the time we got to our hotel in Marrakech at 10pm, but I tried out a new setting powder and setting spray by iconic Irish brand Kash Beauty, and I’m now a convert. Kash Beauty promise a twelve hour hold, but my makeup still looked fantastic sixteen hours after I’d put it on. The next time I have a wedding, photoshoot or red carpet event, I’ll be using the Kash Beauty setting products – they are incredible.
For travel skincare I like to collect all the little pots and bottles you get in beauty advent calendars or when skincare companies run promotions. I find those little bottles are the perfect amount of product for a five to seven day holiday.
I also save the pots when I’ve used all the products and re-fill them with whatever product I’m using. For my trip to Morocco I used Clinique Moisture Surge Auto-Replenishing Hydrator on my face and Rituals Ayurveda lotion for my body. Instead of taking foundation I opted for Nivea SPF tinted moisturiser and I used a bit of the Kash setting powder to make sure I wasn’t too shiny. I kept my beauty needs simple, I just took the setting powder, mascara, eyeliner and lipstick with me for the trip.
One travel skincare item I can’t go without is hand cream. I use a lot of hand sanitiser so the hand cream helps to offset the harshness of the sanitising lotion. My go-to handcream is the L’Occitane Shea Butter hand cream. I also took the L’Occitane intensive foot cream with me which was a dream to put on every night after a long day walking the souks and backstreets of Marrakech.
Wherever you go on your holidays this year, try and keep your beauty needs as simple as possible, make sure you have everything you need to keep your face and body hydrated and most importantly of all – don’t forget the sunblock.
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