Tiny Trio; skincare samples

I am very OCD about my skin. I cannot go a single night without my skincare routine. Forget sleeping with makeup on. I will never and have not. I will at least lazily remove my face with cleansing water or makeup wipes. Last time I went travelling I lugged my entire skincare routine with me (most in miniature form) but sometimes this isn’t reasonable. I don’t want to have to pack my whole bathroom every time I can’t sleep in my own bed. I slept over a friends place this past weekend and I pared my skincare needs down to three small items. I decided all I really needed was makeup remover, cleanser and moisturizer. These are the essentials of any skincare routine (even if every blogger, myself included, will tell you that you need it all. Even though I also believe I need it all). I packed three gentle products that I had used before and that I knew worked for my skin (On my last trip, I packed a few new products and something broke me out. Worst).

If you’ve been here for a while, you will know that I am beyond obsessed with cleansing oil. I wear waterproof mascara every day so a makeup wipe just won’t do it for me. I haven’t found anything that will remove waterproof mascara as flawlessly or as easily as a cleansing oil will. When I ordered my full-size Shu Uemura cleansing oil I received this Shu Uemera Whitefficient Clear Brightening Cleansing Oil as a sample. It is a decent size and has already lasted a couple uses. Shu Uemera makes a great cleansing oil; they are kind of the cult favourite. My personal favourite is Mac Cleanse-Off Oil but this one works just as well. To cleanse my skin I packed the Fresh Soy Face Cleanser. It is a nice gentle, foaming cleanser that I received in a 500-point perk package earlier in the year from Sephora. It works well to remove makeup and doesn’t upset or overly dry my skin. Finally, as someone with dry skin a moisturizer is a necessity. Earlier in the month a friend gave me her sample of the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel and I fell in love with it again. It is a super light feeling moisturizer that makes your skin feel fantastic and it is so gentle. I had a terrible break out earlier in the month and this helped to sooth my skin and maintain moisture. I am debating buying a full-size, but plan to keep this on hand for traveling for sure.

Sometimes I get so wrapped up in having every mask, lotion, serum and potion that I forget skincare doesn’t need to involve everything and the bathroom sink. For my day to day I love to use my lotions and potions, but for a few nights away something simple and gentle does the trick.

Do you pare down your skincare routine when you go away? What can’t you live without in your skincare routine?