How to: pack for a long stay trip

Hey guys,

So I recently moved from the warmth of my home country of Israel to the cold and rainy England for university, meaning my trip isn't going to be a few weeks, it's going to be 3 years. When I was packing to go I tried to find advice on packing for such a long trip but didn't find much, so I decided to give you my tips on packing your entire life and moving to another country!

Suitcases, suitcases, suitcases!

First piece of advice is, if possible, to buy another full size suitcase to take on the plane, that is, buy the option for another suitcase from your airline company. That'll make the packing so much easier and you have more room to take more stuff with you. It is another expanse but it's worth it. Make sure your suitcase is light and can expand so you can add more things to it.

Carry ons are suitcases too!

So, on a flight you can usually take 3 bags with you, one full size suitcase, one smaller carry on suitcase and one small bag. Use the carry ons, pack it with clothes as well, things you'll probably use in the first few days-a week. If you can get a hold on an expendable one, again, it's best. As long as you don't go overboard with the weight it's good.

Learn to let go!

It is very hard to decide what to take with you and what to leave behind, but remember these are just clothes and stuff you won't defiantly need. When packing your clothes focus on what you will need right when you land and a couple of weeks after, and get things while you're there. Pack as if you're going on a 2 weeks trip and leave space for things you will absolutely need and require more room.

Learn to divide your things!

So now that you have your suitcases, start with deciding what goes where. It's best to put the heavy stuff in the bigger suitcases and fill up the carry on with more clothes. 

Get stuff in advanced! (if you can):

So in the UK there are a lot of websites offering student packs, it's everything a student needs from bedding to kitchen stuff to stationary in one pack. These website offer a delivery service right to the university halls room. Try and find these types of services if you can and use them! Two websites that I know of are UniKitOut and My Student Pack.

And now for more general travel advice:

Mark your begs!

You have no idea how important it is to do so. Get those little suitcase tags and write down your details inside in case it gets lost. Also, add some kind of marker to your bags so you'll know it's yours, a ribbon, a piece of string, anything that's noticeable and unique. 

Have your documents ordered and safe!

So you know how your mum used to give you this funny little bag to put your passport in? Yeah, use it. It's so important to have everything ready and organised so you can get it whenever you need it.

Shoes! 

This ties in with the last set of advice, but try to wear you most comfortable yet the heaviest shoes you own, for me, these are my doc martins, that way you can take down some of the weight in your suitcases.    

And lastly, here are some back pack essentials: 

No matter if your flight is 5 hours or 15 hours long, you'll get bored. I recommend taking a book with you, a puzzle booklet with a pen and a notebook to keep you busy. 

Speaking of keeping you busy, if you have a laptop this is a good time to fill it up with shows and watch them on the flight!

Headphones are a must, I take 2 pairs, one regular in ear iphone headphones, if i want to sleep, and one pair of big over ear headphones so I can watch stuff on my laptop with no distractions.

Make up wipes are good, even if you go on the flight completely bare faced it's always good to have make up wipes or face wipes with you to freshen up during the long flight.

And that's it! I hope you found this post helpful and if you have any other long travel advice please share it in the comments!

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in my next post!

Yam xx

What's in my make up bag

In this post I will share some of my favourite must have make up products! These are the products I have in my to-go make up bag.

Primer:

For primer I like to use Benefit's The Porefessional. It's a great primer for anyone with big visible pores, it smooths out the skin, it helps minimise pores and makes the foundation stay on longer.

Foundation:

For foundation I use Revlon Colorstay. As you can clearly see it is very well loved. It's a really long wear foundation and does give quite a heavy coverage which I like. It's very buildble and you can go with just a thin layer for a light-medium coverage or go with a heavier layer or a few light ones and get complete full coverage. It's also good as it's own concealer for dotting on problematic areas (such as spots or any redness) and patting it down for full coverage. It comes in a verity of shades with yellow or pink undertones and in formulation for combination/oily skin or to normal/skin so it is very easy to find a match with this one. I'm in the shade 180 sand beige and in the combination/oily skin type.

To apply it I use the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush:

Concealer:

For concealer I use Flormar's Perfect Coverage liquid concealer. It's a full coverage concealer that can be used either on the under eyes or as a spot concealer. As I mentioned I use my foundation as a a spot concealer so I use this only for the under eye. It is a lovely concealer, very brightening and does give a good amount of coverage. It comes with a very nice and easy applicator which helps with an even and precise application. I usually use my fingers to buff it into my skin rather than a brush, but you can use a brush with it. I am in shade 02 though I would sometimes use 01 for extra brightness.

Powder:

I don't always use powder since the foundation I use is pretty heavy and it dries and sets very quickly but for the days I do want this extra matte look or I need a bit more coverage I'll use the matching powder to my foundation, again for the Revlon Colorstay line. It gives a very nice smooth matte finish to the skin and does help the make up stay on even longer. I am in shade Light.

To apply it I use a big powder brush from BH Cosmetics:

Cheeks:

For cheeks I have this lovely Sleek palette. This is the Face Form contouring and blush palette.  I love this palette because it's very small and convenient for traveling. It comes with 3 shades: a bronzer, a highlighter, and a blush. The bronzer is a very nice warm brown tone with just little bit of shimmer, the highlighter is a very shimmery champagne colour and the blush is a lovely pink with some gold shimmer running through it. It is a beautiful palette and it does come in a variation of different shades for different skin tones. I am in shade Fair. One more use for this great palette is actually as an eye shadow. I usually use a wash of the highlighter as an over all lid colour for every day and sometimes I will use the bronzer to give a bit more depth to the crease.

To apply it I use a blush brush from BH Cosmetics.

Eyeliner:

For eyeliner I use Maybelline's Master Precise liquid eyeliner. It comes with a very thin felt tip applicator which helps with a very smooth and precise cat eye. It is very black and very long wearing however despite the promise of it it is not waterproof. 

 Eye pencils:

I don't always use eye pencils in my everyday make up but when i do these are the ones I use:

Kiko Smart eye pencil:

This eye pencil is a very shimmery dark green colour with just a hint of shimmer in it. I normally use it on my bottom lash line as opposed to my waterline as in my waterline it just doesn't stick. This is in shade 811 Mimetic Green.

B Cosmic eyeliner pencil:

This eye pencil is by B Cosmic and is just a plain black eye pencil. It's very creamy and applies very well to the eye. It is one of the only eye pencils that stick and last in my waterline as my eyes are very wattery and most eye pencils just vanish after a few minutes.

(Kiko on top and B Cosmic on the bottom)

Mascara:

Like the eye pencils, I have 2 mascaras in my make up bag.

Maybelline Lash Sensational:

Maybeline's mascaras have always been my favourites, my other go-to mascara is The Rocket which I love. This one does exactly what it says, it gives a very nice flattery effect to the lashes, it helps thicken and makes them longer. Most times, I would just use this one on it's own.

M.A.C Haute&Naughty: 

This one I use mostly for bottom lashes. The idea of this mascara is that you can use it in 2 ways, take off just the top cap for a more simple look or take off the bottom cap for a more dramatic look. I don't like the look it gives on my top lashes but when I use just the top of it on my bottom lashes it looks incredible.

Lips:

For lips I go through phases of wearing something bold, wearing a nude or not wearing any lipstick at all and just using a bit of lip balm. My current obsession is M.A.C's Faux which is just a lovely nude with a satin finish.

I hope you enjoyed this very long post! Links to read more/buy the products are linked in the product name!

Yam xx