Monthly Archives : April 2014

As a child, I traveled a great deal with my parents, mostly to Europe and the Middle East. Whenever we arrived at our destination, the first thing my mother did was take my brother and I to the local pharmacy (or pharmacie). Whether we were in Tel Aviv, Paris, Berlin or Florence, somehow my mother always knew which pharmacy was the best. These outings felt like an adventure: The pharmacies overseas were different from those in New York City. They were fancy and old world and I loved them.

It Was All About the Toothpaste

I was always fascinated by the toothpaste. Each country had different colored and shaped packaging, with writing in different languages that made them seem so much more special than tubes of Aim, Crest or Colgate. My mother would buy 5 or 6 tubes each of several different brands to take home. In fact, I don’t remember a time when we had American toothpaste in the house. I usually brushed with brands like Elgydium, Elemex, Tayadent and Inaden. (At that time you could not purchase Elgydium in the US.)

Banish Hairy-feeling Teeth for Good

For some reason these exotic toothpaste brands were the only solution that relieved my hairy-feeling teeth blues. Not literally hairy of course, but hairy meaning not squeaky-clean feeling. And each brand had its own specialty. Elgydium, from France, makes a whitening or Blancheur version, as well as one for sensitive teeth and gums. Elemex, from Germany, makes a sensitive formula as well but also has a special travel kit with a handy dandy put-it-together-yourself toothbrush. It is incredibly charming! Inaden hails from Greece with a uniquely minty flavor. Tayadent is an Israeli brand that comes in a plastic triangle-like box…in liquid form. It suds up like soap in your mouth! You have never seen anything like it. Many Israelis make fun of me for liking this toothpaste; they would rather use Colgate or Crest. But again, this is another toothpaste that banishes that not so fresh, hairy teeth feeling. If you really want to boost the efficacy of these babies and pack an extra fresh punch, use Vine’s Negative Ion Care Water in conjunction with these brands. You won’t believe how clean your entire mouth will feel.

Insider Travel Toothpast Tip

Most full size toothpaste is actually TSA travel size. Remember any product that is 3.4 fl oz or 100 ml or less is technically travel size. Most toothpaste tubes are 75 ml or less.

Everyone Wants What They Can’t Have

I guess everyone longs for exotic, harder-to-find products from overseas. The grass just always seems greener on the other side of the ocean, and if brushing my teeth with toothpaste from around the world makes me feel a little more special, well, aren’t I a lucky girl!

Transitional weather, like the type that we are experiencing right now, can be difficult on the visage. Skin can change, you may start to experience blemishes, etc. Dryness that you might have experienced over the winter is likely subsiding and you may be finding yourself with a normal or even combination skin tone. The rich moisturizer that you used over the winter to protect yourself from the cold is probably no longer ideal.

Sheer, Luminous Coverage

Now is the perfect time to think about incorporating a BB Cream into your daily routine. B. Kamins makes a fabulous anti-aging one that primes, protects and perfects. It’s lightweight, non-greasy and provides sheer, luminous, natural looking coverage. It’s formulated with vitamins, peptides and antioxidants and counteracts damage caused by stress and the sun. It can be used over sunscreen or layered on top of a moisturizer or serum.

Light Serums for Warmer Weather

Cosmetics 27’s Essence 27 by M.E. SkinLab is a superb, all natural, lightweight, anti-aging serum that is perfect for the summer. This ultra-fine fluid allows for maximum penetration of the effective ingredients. After use, skin appears “plumped up” and feels and looks healthier. This is great for using under your sunscreen or moisturizer.

Another lightweight anti-aging serum option is B. Kamins’ Nia-Stem Serum Kx. It will give your skin just the boost it needs to wake up from the winter cold. It consists of a unique combination of ingredients, including niacin, plant stem cells and B. Kamins exclusive Bio-Maple™ Compound, which detoxifies cells to reveal bright, even-toned, younger-looking skin. This serum is fabulous for reactive skin, as it reduces redness and irritation. Apply it under your sunscreen or moisturizer.

April In Paris: Insider Beauty Tip

April is one of the most beautiful times of year in Paris. If you happen to find yourself there, make sure to visit Cécile Cotten for a heavenly Cosmetics 27 facial at her grotto-like spa, L’Atelier Cécile Cotten, on 8 Rue du Pont-aux-Choux. Tel: 08 80 08 86 77.

Sun Care Lotions for Beach Day Bliss

Ah, the beach…it can be the best of times, but if you get a nasty burn, it can be the worst of times as well. Travel Beauty has created the ultimate collection of scalp-to-sole sun care lotions and products so that there’s nothing but blue skies on your next beach day. Our travel size beach kit contains top-notch sun protection products for your face, lips, body and hair, a super-cleansing scalp brush to de-sand/surf/sunscreen/tangle your hair at the end of the day and skin-cooling lotion for après-sun application. Want more? Shop our entire sun care selection now.

Sun Care Products That Protect and Preserve

Sun Bum products are new additions to Travel Beauty sun care family. In the aftermath of a long day in the sun, you need sun care products that supply hydration and revitalization to your skin. We’d like to introduce you to Sun Bum Cool Down Lotion, a sun protection product enriched with aloe, cocoa butter and vitamin E. Here are some reasons why it’ll leave you feeling anything but bummed:

• It soothes, cools and restores your skin’s natural moisture.
• Helps prevent skin peeling, thus allowing you to retain your tan longer.
• The light, non-greasy formula feels nice on your sunned skin and is also alcohol-free.

A Luxury Sun Care Kit with All the Fixings

The sun care lotions you apply to your body aren’t necessarily the ones you’ll want to apply to your face and lips. Due to the petite nature of the sun care products in our travel kits, you can diversify your protection without bulking up your beach bag.

• Institut Esthederm Bronz Repair Age Control Face Cream SPF 20 is formulated with rice bran oil and active beeswax, both highly nourishing. The result is a sun care lotion that moisturizes and protects your skin from aging, even as it helps you to develop and prolong your tan.
• Institut Esthederm Adaptasun Sea and Tropics Body Lotion SPF 20 delivers sun protection even in the case of prolonged sun exposure in tropical environments. Its anti-dehydration complex will keep your skin supple, soft and comfortable while you’re out tanning, and keep it that way for hours after.
• Kiss chapped lips goodbye! B. Kamins Laboratories Lip Balm SPF 20 will leave you smiling. Why? In addition to helping you avoid sun-related lip sores, this lip treatment creates the perfect palette for applying lipstick and reduces feathering by diminishing and smoothing the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines around the lips.

Under-the-Sun Hair Protection for Beach Combers

To truly enjoy the beach, you’ve got to keep the rays (somewhat) at bay. And when it comes to the sun, hair protection is just as essential as skin protection. The experts at Philip Kingsley have developed an ingenious product called Swimcap, originally designed for the US Olympic Synchronized Swimming Team. Some of its terrific features are:

• Protects against the damaging effects that the sun can cause – say goodbye to sun-related hair breakage and fading.
• It’s called “Swimcap” for good reason! When you don this cap, you’ll combat the damaging, drying effects that can accompany excursions in both chlorinated pool water and salty seawater.
• After your day in the sun, this hair protection product washes out completely. No greasy residue or added weight!

Once you’re off the sand and out of the sun, the hair protection continues! Relax and brush off any lingering entanglements with the help of the S-HEART-S Scalp Brush Mini. This sleek scalp massaging brush is equipped with 376 gentle nylon bristles. Every one of these bristles is dedicated to making your scalp feel stimulated and removing dirt, sun care lotions, seaweed and anything else that may have made its way into your mane and onto your scalp. Work it into your scalp and your post-beach clean up routine!

Our Beauty Kit for the Beach is Just the Beginning!

For a closer look at all of our sun and sand companions, be sure to visit the sun care product section of our site. You’ll find all the latest and greatest sun care products, many of which we offer in a travel size. Beauty products 3 oz and under can board the plane with you, so you can keep your disposition sunny and your skin protected anywhere in the world.

Blow dryers have become an indispensable styling tool to women (and men) everywhere. We here at Travel Beauty would certainly never underestimate the positive effects of a beautiful blowout! Unfortunately, constant blow drying can damage hair, making it look less beautiful over time. What to do, what to do?!

We asked legendary Trichologist and Travel Beauty Expert Philip Kingsley for his sage advice on blow dryer best practices so we can style as safely as possible. You’ll be surprised to hear his stance on blow dry styling – read on!

If you like what you read, please visit Philip’s expert page on Travel Beauty to read more invaluable hair and scalp advice from Mr. Kingsley. You can also check out Travel Beauty’s full collection of Philip Kingsley products, including shampoos, conditioners, scalp treatments and styling products.

Blow Dryer Q & A

Q: Should blow dryers be eliminated?

A: Definitely not! The blow dryer is an excellent tool to help style the hair in the way that is most pleasing. Hair is deeply psychological and a hairstyle you are happy with is a great morale booster.

The poor blow dryer has been unfairly blamed for many hair problems: hair loss, dry hair, breaking hair, dull hair…just to name a few.  However, with correct use, the blow dryer does no damage at all.  It should be held a minimum of 9 inches away from the hair, and as the hair dries, the heat should be reduced until the hair is just dried – not longer.  Damage occurs when the dryer is kept on after the hair has dried.  This will result in the moisture content of the hair cells being depleted – and can lead to breakage and dullness. You can also help protect your hair with a heat protective conditioning spray, like Daily Damage Defence. (If the dryer damage is already done, weekly deep conditioning treatments with Elasticizer will go a long way in restoring hair health.)

Furthermore, it’s important to remember that the styling brush you use can do a great deal of damage. I have seen many cases where excessive pulling of the hair and scratching of the scalp has resulted in mass hair breakage and traction hair loss, as well as a sore (and sometimes damaged) scalp. In terms of the hair, it is technically dead tissue once grown, and therefore does not regenerate itself once damaged like the cells of your skin do. Hair needs to be treated with consideration! Careful use of both brush and blow dryer will give you happy hair days!

First Impressions

Your first trip to Yasmine Djerradine Institut de Beauté can be a curious thing…a bit like entering a secret club. You walk through a building lobby to a plain white door that in no way belies the oasis waiting for you behind it.

A Beauty Haven

But an oasis it is. The Moroccan-themed skin care mecca is a lush, intimate space filled with hanging lanterns, exquisite tile work and some of the best facialists in town. I saw Lilly for a 90 minute Remodeling Facial, the spa’s hallmark treatment. In the immaculate treatment room I was given a stylish pinstriped robe to change into, a welcome departure from the plush housewife-type usually given at spas. Lilly pulled my hair back in a headband and got to work.

The Treatment

A staple of spa facials is steaming to open pores and ready skin for extractions. Yasmine Djerradine Institut de Beauté skips the steam, though, as it can be too much for more sensitive or reactive skin types. Instead, Lilly cleaned my face and then applied Biologique Recherche’s purifying Mask Vivant to my face, mixed with a bit of baking soda. Can a mask adequately replace steaming, you ask? Oui! Mask Vivant is a probiotic mask packed with live yeast extracts, amino acids and Vitamin B. It deeply cleanses pores and dissolves blackheads. A few minutes in the mask and my pores were open and extraction-ready.

A Note On The Top Notes

A personal preference that was pleasantly appeased during my treatment was the overall olfactory experience. I’ve long abhorred super perfumy-flowery scented skin care. I’ve always felt that putting fake-smelling schmutz on clean skin was akin to dirtying my skin up again. The scents of the products used at Yasmine Djerradine Spa are the antithesis of that fake-floral. They smelled clean, earthy…almost medicinal. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I loved it. Even the lotion Lilly used for my shoulder massage (more on that in a bit) was very lightly scented.

Ex-Squeeze Me

Lilly’s extraction technique was gentle yet thorough. She used lancets, a comedone extractor, and of course her fingertips. However, when she squeezed a spot, it wasn’t the usual long, hard squeeze that many facialists use to get all of the gunk (technical term) out. Rather, she administered several small, quick squeezes. This gentler approach left my pale skin less red than it usually is post-facial. As I mentioned, Lilly also gave me a wonderful shoulder massage. This is always welcome as I hold nearly all of my tension between my shoulder blades.

Electric Youth

With the deep cleansing done, it was time for the remodeling. If you’ve never had a remodeling facial, it is thus called because it uses electric current to revitalize, reshape and tone the muscles and skin of the face, as well as activate circulation. It’s totally painless; in fact, this portion of the facial was so relaxing I fell asleep for most of it! Unlike the metal prongs used in other microcurrent facials, the machine Lilly used was equipped with thick, round sponges. Lilly massaged my face continuously with these, concentrating on the contour of my jaw, around my eyes, etc. Because she was constantly massaging my face with the pads, it was very soothing…hypnotic, really! The result was more pronounced bone structure, reduced puffiness and a youthful glow. Magnifique!

Imparted Wisdom

While complimenting me on the overall condition of my skin, Lilly did say I was “congested” around my nose and chin. Go tell it on the mountain – I’ve been dealing with that for decades! She offered some new advice on this old problem, however: Don’t use a moisturizer with SPF in it as the first layer you put on your skin. The SPF will clog your pores, leading to congestion. She advised applying a moisturizer without SPF first, so it would lay between my skin and the sunscreen, therefore preventing the SPF from clogging my pores. Good to know!

Parting Gift

Though she asked me what products I currently use on my skin, there was no hard sell at the end of my treatment. Though I appreciated this, I’ve yet to leave a facial empty-handed, so I made sure to pick up the Biologique Recherche cult favorite, P50V. This is the toner to end all toners that skin-savvy sisters across the globe are gaga over. I already love mist toners like Vine’s Care Water and Institut Esthederm’s Eau Cellulaire, so I thought it wise to add a more astringent-type toner to my collection.

If you are looking for a special treat for yourself or another, or a solid surgery and injectable-avoidance strategy, the Remodeling Facial at Yasmine Djerradine Institut de Beauté will not disappoint.