IF you have ever had to sit on your suitcase, required help to zip it shut, or joined the excess baggage queue at the airport, you're probably – hang on, definitely – a hopeless over-packer.
Join the club; it seems people have a habit of piling heavy toiletries into their luggage. Women pack an average 15 full-sized products to maintain their regime abroad, according to a recent survey by Eurostar.
The solution? Switching to 'takeaways', aka mini versions of your can't-be-without faves. Here are the shrunken essentials, so you can travel light – without compromising on cosmetics – this summer...
FLIGHT KIT
Stow a sleep mask and mini hydrators in your hand luggage, and you'll step off the plane looking like you've just had a long afternoon in the spa.
:: No need to worry about messy oil spillage with This Works Skin Deep Beauty Oil. Target dried out plane skin exactly where nourishment's needed, with the clever mini rollerball, £20 for 8ml (thisworks.com).
:: Condense your lip salve, beauty balm and recovery cream into one wonder tin, with Ouli's Ointment Original. You can even use the all-purpose balm to soothe insect bites and tame humidity hair once you've landed, £13 for 50ml (oulis-ointment.com).
:: Stave off aeroplane bugs and anxiety with de Mamiel Altitude Oil. Recline your plane seat, inhale the energising elixir deeply, and you'll instantly feel transported to first class, £28 for 10ml (demamiel.com).
HOTEL HAUL
Keep your holiday bathroom clutter-free, packing only the bare essentials you'll use every single day of your trip.
:: Ditch the full-sized, heavyweight toiletries for the carry-on approved Malin+Goetz 1oz Essential Kit. It's top-to-toe cleansing via luxe little bottles, including shampoo, conditioner and face and body cleansers, £20 for six 29ml minis (malinandgoetz.co.uk).
:: Want holiday relaxation to extend to your hair-washing routine? No problem; just be sure to pack a nifty little Batiste Dry Shampoo On The Go in Tropical. The mini can instantly refreshes, adds volume, and makes hair smell like coconuts, £1.50 for 50ml (Superdrug.com).
:: Sunglasses off? Get into sundowner mode with Code VLM Mini Volumising Lengthening Mascara. The oh-so-portable mini creates a big lash impact, with a fibre-based formula that won't flake, smudge or budge in the heat, £10 for 3.5ml (code-beautiful.com).
:: Switch your cumbersome high-tech toothbrush for the Sonic Chic Urban - a compact (and super-bright) electric toothbrush that still gives you 22,000 strokes a minute, currently reduced to £7.49 from £14.99 (Boots.com).
BEACH BAG
Whether sight-seeing or pool lounging, leave more room for books with clever applicators that save on space.
:: Wave goodbye to messy, bulky SPFs and hello to Nivea Sun Protect & Moisture Roll On SPF50. Delivers just the right amount of lightweight lotion, exactly where you want it, £4.99 for 50ml (Superdrug.com).
:: Lose the sweat moustache and beady brow in seconds, with NYX Fresh Face Blotting Paper. These handy sheets instantly mattify and freshen clammy complexions, when loose powder isn't an option, £5 for 100 sheets (www.asos.com).
:: Go from daybed to bar with one slick of Charlotte Tilbury Beach Stick in Moon Beach. Use the rose gold colour stick on lips and cheeks, or to add subtle sun-kissed highlights, £30 for 6.5g (www.charlottetilbury.com).
TRIED & TESTED
:: Lisa Haynes takes the shortcut to longer hair in minutes
'Just my usual trim, please,' is what I'd asked for. Twenty minutes later however, and half my hair was staring back at me from the salon floor! I'll admit; I cried a bit. With some big summer diary dates approaching, I wanted my hair back – and fast.
Extension Professional's Clip-Ins were the convincing SOS to my impromptu chop. The creation of hair guru Louise Bailey (basically the David Copperfield of extension wizardry), these aren't your average clip-ins. Housed in a luxe white 'hair closet' box, the clip-ins are applied as two simple parts, rather than lots of fiddly strips: a double-wefted bottom row for major thickness, and a single-wefted top row to seamlessly disguise where real and faux hair meet. Both wefts are pre-cut so they're thinner at the ends, which makes them look and 'behave' more like real hair. Louise expertly colour matches my hair to the extensions, so that even I can't tell which is which.
She gets to work sectioning my hair and backcoming along the roots, to give the two clip-in wefts some extra grip and prevent sliding. After 10 minutes, and a quick blast with the hairdryer to give the extensions some movement, I'm the proud (temporary) owner of some insanely glam, tumbling locks. Like my old hair, except 10 times better, these clip-ins give you Rapunzel-like hair for daytime (sleeping in them isn't advised). Now I can happily switch between long bob and red carpet hair in the time it takes to paint my fingernails.
:: Extension Professional 17-inch Clip-In Hair Extensions, available in 21 shades, £165 (veryexclusive.co.uk). Bespoke fitting service available at Urban Retreat, Harrods, £245 (0207 893 8333/enquiries@urbanretreat.co.uk).
BUY IT NOW
The rose gold jewellery trend just extended to skincare, and Origins' new Energising Duo promises to perk up complexions a treat. Like molten bronze, the GinZing Peel-Off Mask (£24) refines and polishes skin, while the GinZing Energy-Boosting Treatment Lotion Mist (£18) adds radiance. Available from July 1 (origins.co.uk).
BEAUTY BULLETIN
:: APPY SCENT
Forget wrists and blotter strips; technology's doing the perfume testing for us. Sniff out The Fragrance Shop's new mobile app, MyFragranceApp. You input your current scent favourites and personal style traits, and the app uses a complex algorithm to come up with your unique scent profile. Clever! Download it for free by searching 'MyFragranceApp' in your app store.
STEAL OF THE WEEK
For haircare that won't break the bank, lather up with Garnier Ultimate Blends Mythic Olive. It tackles dry hair without weighing it down, and each jumbo bottle gives you change from a fiver: Shampoo and Conditioner, £3.89 each, Weightless Nourisher Balm, £4.49 (Boots.com).
