Travel Beauty Month :: Pre-Trip Primping

[trip style = any]

{Editor’s Note: In addition to our regularly scheduled content, each week this month we're doing a Travel Beauty feature. Don't forget: today is the last day you can enter to win ONE of FIVE Oxygenetix travel-sized moisturizers. Details here.}

What are your pre-trip beauty rituals?

The ones I choose depend on my trip style and the amount of time I have before I leave. For example, last fall when I trip style = sunned in Maui for an extended weekend getaway, the trip was really last minute and there was no time to prepare, so I did my toenails on my hotel room's lanai {review of the Fairmont Kea Lani} when I got there. And while we're on the topic, don't ever try to open a nail polish in-flight, Heather our Travel Fashion contributor found out the hard way it isn't allowed! When I have a little more time to prepare and am going to do an active, beach, or glamping trip style, I usually take a quick visit to the spa for a lash and/or brow tint to make sure my eyes appear bright with or without any makeup.

Here are a few pre-trip primping ideas we've complied, either for planned indulgences and last-minute alternatives:

Hair Planned - Make an appointment at the salon for a cut and colour, or blowout. ////////// In A Pinch - For a colour refresh, try one of these temporary solutions: Rita Hazan Root Concealer spray {Sephora, $24} or Oscar Blandi Pronto Color Root Touch-Up & Highlighting Pen {Sephora, $23}. Bonus: both come in travel-friendly sizes.

Eyebrows Planned - Get your eyebrows shaped/threaded, or tinted. ////////// In A Pinch - Use clear mascara, vaseline or {tinted} brow gel to shape and tame, and a brow pencil or shadow to fill in, complete or darken.

Eyelashes Planned - Visiting the spa for a lash tint adds a little more 'natural' oomph to your peepers. ////////// In A Pinch - Use clear or waterproof mascara at the beach, pool or on a nigh flight, and regular mascara for day-to-day.

Teeth Planned - See the dentist for a quick teeth whitening session {approx $400}. {Trip Styler Tip :: teeth whitening is always offered via Groupon for a much cheaper price, just make sure to thoroughly check out the dentist before you go}. ////////// In A Pinch - Use Crest Whitestrips {buy at any drug store for $35}, add a little baking soda on top of your toothpaste or try Pearly Wipes {$7} to maintain a glow on the go. *A few years ago when I was waiting in Heathrow Airport to fly back to Vancouver, I read a fascinating article in a UK women's magazine interviewing 5 ladies in the beauty industry about their top tactics for keeping a youthful appearance. The one I'll never forget is a bright smile...

Nails Planned - Do a traditional mani/pedi, or for something that looks nice and lasts much longer, consider a soak-off weightless gel lacquer {approx $30 for a manicure at the nail bar}. ////////// In A Pinch - Use a nail buffer {we LOVE Revlon's new Crazy Shine nail buffer, $7 at any drug store} for a natural gleam or bring polish with you for a steady-handed DIY attempt {we LOVE Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri Nail Polish, $6 at any drug store}!

More Travel Beauty Oxygenetix Moisturizer Giveaway NYC’s Best Beauty Dr. Murad Interview The Best Fragrance For Each Trip Style Q&A With tarte Cosmetics Founder

[photos sourced from web, graphic put together by @tripstyler]

Tech Tuesday :: Rico Suave

I'd like to introduce you to Rico, the pantless spokes-muppet-squirrel for Air New Zealand wearing nothing but a crisp white shirt and a Saturday Night Fever-inspired purple polyester vest. He's been around since fall 2010, but continues to heat up the internet and garner millions of views with his saucy brand of advertising rhetoric expounding the benefits of the airline, its home country and culture.

Gen X and Yers, you're supposed to listen to him, but not take him too seriously as he delivers humour-ridden key messages about his preferred airline. With two little fang-ish teeth, oversized bright green googly eyes, fur like my old teddy bear and a tail much longer than his entire body, his semi-cute looks let him get away with A LOT of free-spirited chatter.

Rico's chochy-meets-cute look says it all, he's suggestive, he's spicy and even though he speaks with a Spanish accent, he's born in New Zealand---a culture where advertising takes a few more liberties than in North America, hence Rico's less regulated internet {vs more regulated TV} platform. In case Rico's genre of humour-meets-advertising is offensive to you, don't forget that it comes from the Airline who's done flight safety videos with body painted flight attendants, a streaking grandma and Richard Simmons.

Love or hate the airline's furry fiend with a penchant for r-r-r-olling his Rs, Air New Zealand is all about attention, and they do it well. Really well, always staying on message, aside from the innuendoes. In their words {thanks a recent social media strategy video} "when you're a little airline from the bottom of the world, you have to throw out the marketing rulebook of you want to get noticed on the international stage."

Every time I watch one of these videos I'm a little shocked {which is the point} by who {think Lindsay Lohan and David Hasselhoff} and what they feature in a segment called "on the skycouch"---a play on the Airline's revolutionary fold-out seats-turned-beds in Economy. Yet no matter what celebrity raps or chats with Rico, I cant stop laughing.

Kudos to Rico for making me laugh---sometimes to the point of crying---and constantly reminding me that New Zealand is a country on my travel bucketlist I'd like to visit by way of a Skycouch!

{Trip Styler Tip :: Air New Zealand, flies direct to Auckland from Vancouver and LA. Note there are multiple other departure points with Air New Zealand's Star Alliance codeshare partners.} 

Starring Rico, Videos Rico with Giulinana Rancic

Rico with David Hasselhoff

Rico with Snoop Dogg

Rico Expressing His Love For Kim Kardashian

PS - check out this funny {as always} travel tech interview with Rico by ZDNet Australia. Order your meal via personal touchscreen, message other passengers and use your cell phone in-flight. Wow, what a concept, especially in comparison to planes with overhead monitors every 30 seats.

Related Sweet and Saucy Travel Videos Sassy Flight Safety Videos

From the Archives :: PEI

[trip style = sightseeing + beach] {more pics below}

{Editor's Note: For August's From The Archives, we decided to take you east, to a summer destination known for its sand dunes decorated with wispy grasses, pastoral landscapes reminiscent of Anne of Green Gables fame, multi-day Confederation Trail biking excursion and oceanfront setting. Canada's smallest province won't let you escape the sea spray, the 1770 km of coastline won't allow it. And if you forget---just for a second---you're on an island, the 50+ lighthouses protecting the cliffs and white- and red-sand coastlines will serve as a flashing, but not flashy, reminder.}

PEI Highlights {The first vista we saw when our ferry from Nova Scotia was docking. Exactly what I’d expected!}

{First stop. PEI’s only winery {Rossignol} to taste their varietals and buy a fish-shaped bottle of Isle St Jean White.}

{Charlettetown’s harbour area at sundown.}

{While touring the island, we discovered a parking lot on a beach in North Rustico.}

{This gorgeous setting was right in front of our car as we pulled onto the beach.}

{North Rustico gift shop.}

{More of the town.}

{Road trip stop # 2: Red sand cliffs on the East Coast.}

{Road trip stop # 3: dunes near Cavendish.}

{Front side of the dunes.}

{More of Cavendish Beach Park.}

{Road trip stop # 4: you know, just another typical road-side view.}

{One of PEI's signature lighthouse settings.}

{Fishing town near the lighthouse.}

{Enjoying a refreshing lemonade in Victoria by the Sea before crossing into New Brunswick to fly home. Set in the town’s old grocery store/post office, don’t let the Landmark Cafe’s quaint appearance fool you, the food is to die for.}

{The 12.9km Confederation Bridge–built with a slight curve so drivers are more likely to pay attention and less likely to have accidents.}

Related Halifax :: Beer n Boats St. Andrews by the Sea Montreal Je T’aime Ottawa :: Canada Day

[photos by @tripstyler]

Removing Travel Wrinkles From Garments

[trip style = any]

{Editor's Note: It's Travel Beauty Month. This week we're giving away FIVE Oxygenetix Oxygenating Moisturizers, enter here.}

Whether you're weekending, backpacking or heading to a posh private island, nobody's clothing is immune to wrinkling while travelling---unless of course you use a LV trunk to hang garments... Since most of us like to travel a little lighter than that, creased clothes are a traveler's way of life. Getting the wrinkles out is what sets you apart from the pack!

Even with all the right packing tricks---rolling or the fold-once method with tissue and dry cleaner bags---like aging, a few creases are bound to appear even in the most savvy traveler's suitcase! Who wants to go out with a polished outfit looking like it's been tie-dyed by your luggage? That's no way to travel!

How To Remove Garment Creases In Your Hotel Room {when the dryer or steam cycle isn't an option}

1. Out - Take everything out of your suitcase or travel duffel right away; before your meeting, the pool, or the hotel bar! Hang items you want refreshed in the bathroom, ready for when you take your next shower...{Note: If you're city-hopping, I know it is annoying to pack and re-pack, so in this case, prioritize removing only your crease-prone garments.}
2. Hang - Once your clothes are hanging at the end of the shower rod {away from water splatter}, give them a steam bath or sorts. The more you shower, the more the moisture will lessen travel-induced crinkles.
3. Spritz - Lightly wet your hand or use a mini spray bottle to moisten lightly creased parts of the garment. Slap or shake it out.
4. Release - Early this year I tried Downey Wrinkle Releaser and was shocked by the results. It actually makes scrunched fabric smooth! As a result, I now keep a travel-sized spray in my clear toiletries case every time I go away. Note, always test on a small, less noticeable part of the garment before heavy use! {Trip Styler Tip :: make wrinkle release spray yourself by placing one part fabric sofener to 10 parts water in a small spray bottle with a light mist nozzle. Test the concentration until you find the perfect mixture.}
5. Hot/Cold - Use two items most resorts, hotels and motels always have on-hand: ice and a hairdryer. Start with a bucket of ice and rub a few pieces on top of the garment where creased, use the hotel hairdryer to dry and straighten up the area. Note that a straightener works well for relaxing smaller areas with significant creasing.
6. Towel - Use a damp towel---preferably a new one you just showered with or slightly wet---and place on top of the garment for 10 minutes. Fight wrinkles like you really mean it by placing the towel on the bed, the garment on top and rolling it up for 10 mins.
7. Iron - If all else fails, or maybe this is your preferred method {imagine that}, whip out the hotel iron and go for it like you're June Cleaver!

Do you have any garment de-wrinkling tips to add?

Related Using Hotel Room Amenities Like MacGyver Packing 103 Packing 102 Mastering the Art of Packing {Packing 101} Travel Essentials for Any Trip Style High Rolling :: To Roll or Lay Flat? A Summer Weekend Packing List Go-To Carry-On Toiletries Travel iPhone Apps :: PackingPro The Art of Carry-On Travel Going Away? Packing and To Do List

[image created by @tripstyler with photos sourced from the web]

Oxygenetix Giveaway

[trip style = any]

{Editor's Note: In addition to our regularly scheduled content, August is Travel Beauty Month.  Lauren, our beauty editor has curated and collected tips and products for keeping that flawless glow on the go!}

Unblemished skin is essential while on vacation and we have discovered the perfect product to give you a radiantly healthy complexion, Oxygenetix new Oxygenating Moisturizer.

Giveaway FIVE lucky readers will win an Oxygenating Moisturizer and be glowing in no time! Read below for how to win.

The Oxygenetix brand, founded by cosmeceutical designer Barry Knapp, was created to help improve the appearance of skin and minimize scarring post-cosmetic surgery. The line first launched with their Breathable Foundation, a breakthrough product created to camouflage, heal, and minimize procedural scars and other skin conditions from acne to rosacea using Ceravitae; a super-charged oxygen complex that promotes collagen and connective tissue growth in both aging and damaged skin. Following the success of their foundation, the brand recently launched a new moisturizer which also contains the same healing properties and benefits of the foundation.

Packed with skin-loving ingredients like nine Hyalaurons, which contain anti-inflammatories and promote cell regeneration, as well as PCAs derived from amino acids to hydrate and protect the skin, the company’s brand new Oxygenating Moisturizer (1.5 oz. $85) creates the softest, smoothest skin and the perfect canvas for their Oxygenating Foundation. Many moisturizers aren’t absorbed by the skin, and just sit on the surface, suffocating your complexion by blocking the vital flow of oxygen. Oxygenating Moisturizer has a breathable formula that immediately absorbs into the skin for instant hydration. “The healing properties and unparalleled benefits of Oxygenetix products have applications beyond just moisturizer and foundation and we are excited to share what we’ve been working on with the rest of the world,” says Knapp.

How To Win

• Like Trip Styler on Facebook {the fan page, not a single post} & comment below that you've done so.
• If you already like the Trip Styler fan page on Facebook, comment on any Trip Styler post {this one or any other} to notify us of your entry.

Details Open to residents of Canada and the USA. Entries will be accepted Aug 18 – 24, 2011. Winner will be chosen at random and announced Aug 24. After prizing notification, winner has two days to make contact.

More Travel Beauty NYC's Best Beauty Dr. Murad Interview The Best Fragrance For Each Trip Style Q&A With tarte Cosmetics Founder