Friday, February 16, 2024

Face of Flying

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: This is going to be an extremely female-oriented topic, so I apologize in advance to our many male readers. As anyone can tell after hanging around here for even a short period of time, the Reds are travelers.  I probably fly the least of anyone - not having had a book out in mumble mumble years, and I still easily average four or five round trip flights annually, between conferences and family visits. 


In the past several years, travel has come to intersect with my increasing, shall we say, dedication to skin care. I was blessed with good genes, and didn’t have to bother with much more than scrubbing away make-up and slapping on sunscreen - and even that wasn’t until moisturizers with SPF became common in the early 90s. (I remember getting my first 30 SPF face cream as a gift from a friend - they were expensive back then!)


However, time marches on, and I’ve discovered that since menopause, my face has a tendency to resemble ancient animal skin parchment unless fed a steady diet of retinol, vitamin C, Niacinamide, moisturizer, etc., etc. And flying tends to exacerbate every issue, right? First off, it’s stressful. Crowds, security, standing in line for Starbucks, wrestling your luggage into the bathroom stall. If you’re on business or book tour, you inevitable have to get up at 5am after a not-so-great night’s sleep. Maybe you’re wearing a mask because who knows what germs are traveling alongside you? Then it’s two or four or six hours in a tube with a humidity level as low as 10%. The average humidity level in the Atacama Desert of Chile, widely considered the driest place on earth? 15-40%. Uh huh.


So I’m trying to follow the suggestions of flight attendants I’ve read. Drink two bottles of water per hour of flight time? That’s easy, especially with a collapsible travel bottle. Mist your face? Okay. Go without makeup? That’s a no from me, especially when traveling on business. Avoid alcohol? No problem, I don’t like to drink on flights anyway. Avoid caffeine? Oooo. That’s going to be a REAL hard one for me.


I did like the idea of thoroughly washing your face and putting on a fifteen minute mask (or masque) once you’ve reached your hotel. I LOVE those Korean face masks.


How about you, Reds? What’s your go-to skin care when traveling, generally, or flying specifically? 


RHYS BOWEN:  Flying without makeup, especially when I’m on book tour and I’m going to be met by a driver then at a fancy hotel? Not going to happen. I do drink water but not so much that I’m up and down to the bathroom. I mist my face. But I also accept that welcome Prosecco when I board. I like to relax. 


As for the perfect skin care routine, my skin has become so sensitive recently that most products aggravate it. So it’s the most simple moisturizer and occasional mask. I have been given lovely sets of LancĂ´me and Clinique but hardly dare to use them


HALLIE EPHRON: “Welcome Prosecco”??? What? Where? How did I miss that?? 


My “skin care routine” is usually one step, flying or not: I wash my face once a day. When it’s super dry inside I use a moisturizer because it feels good. Vaseline on my lips. Sun block if I’m going to be in the sun. 


Beyond that, my go-to skin-care solution involves trying not to look in the mirror. Time marches. 


HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I use Dove sensitive skin soap, morning and night, without fail,  and sometimes a bare trace of Vaseline for moisturizer on my eyelids and face if it’s a little dry. I have not put a mask on my face in my entire life. My face has not been in the sun without massive sunscreen for 30 years. No makeup on the plane? Ah.Yikes. Nope. Not unless I am on the way home and no one will see me. (And wearing a mask is such a boon in those circumstances.)


I rarely drink on a plane, but will never (crossing fingers) give up caffeine. (Except I will not drink airplane coffee. Yuck.) And in hotels,  I try to sleep on my back so the decoratively piped hotel pillows don’t leave welts on my face. (And I burst out laughing about wrestling the luggage into the bathroom stall. EVERY time. My suitcase is like..one  impossible inch too big.)


DEBORAH CROMBIE: Weirdly, I never thought too much about my face being dry on planes. It’s my eyes, the inside of my nose, and my lips that really suffer. Lots of dry-eye drops, and lip balm, always. I wear my usual make-up, a tinted moisturizer. 


Should I admit that I don’t normally wash my face? I have to use a foaming eye cleanser morning and night, so my face gets warm water then, and if I’ve worn more makeup than usual I’ll take it off with a bit of that. I also use loads of Clinque humectant face care stuff; a spray mist, a gel moisturizer, and either a sunscreen moisturizer or a night one, all in layers. Absolutely no soap!


I cannot imagine how anyone can drink two bottles of water per hour on a flight unless they intend to barricade themselves in the plane toilet for the duration!

 

LUCY BURDETTE: I don’t think too much about skin and planes either, though I don’t drink alcohol or caffeine while flying and do try to hydrate. Skin care: I use an enzyme wash, then Olay with SPF 30 in the morning and my favorite Alaskan lavender skin moisturizer at night (Alpenglow.) I bought some of that at a farmer’s market in Homer, AK years ago and have been ordering it ever since. I’m very lazy about makeup, but if someone would tell me how to remove mascara efficiently, I promise I’ll try harder!


JENN McKINLAY: I’m like Debs - it’s my lips, nose, and eyes that get dry when I fly. So, Aquaphor (a Beiersdorf product) as lip balm, for sure. It’s like Vaseline but has a healing agent in it. Saline nasal spray and eye drops as needed (my seatmates love me - lol). I do drink water and airplane coffee but no alcohol. I don’t wear makeup except for mascara when I travel, and for my skin I apply Eucerin Q10 (another Beiersdorf product) which is my daily moisturizer. Overall, I’m pretty low maintenance. 

 
JULIA: How about you, dear readers? Any go-to tips for putting your best face forward? Or, if that's not your thing, share what you use to make travel more comfortable for you.

 

Photo of woman in plane by Pexels (freerangestock.com)

74 comments:

  1. I tend to wear minimal make-up when traveling . . . definitely coffee and I'm good with lots of water to stay hydrated . . . the simpler the routine, the better.

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    1. I've found that to be so true, Joan - and in addition, you don't have to fit a lot of stuff into travel-sized containers if you keep your skin routine simple.

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  2. I've cut way back on my travel, especially the airline kind. The luggage in the bathroom comment made me laugh. My husband is a grouchy traveler and rarely goes with me, but the best part about having him with me in an airport is letting him watch my stuff while I head to the restroom.

    As for skincare, I can't use retinol. I have a scar from the chemical burn it gave me once. Or maybe it was an interaction between the retinol and other products. Either way, even a tiny bit creates a nasty reaction. I use Olay foaming cleanser on my face and Avon Platinum Anew moisturizers. I was just at my dermatologist for my annual freckle check and he told me I have great skin, so I guess I'll stick with what works for me.

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    1. Trust your derm, Annette! You do have great skin. And I use Avon Anew facial wash - my mother, who also had beautiful skin, swore by Avon and I still have products she gave me.

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  3. I'm with Hallie, and with whoever said never soap on the face. When my face feels dry, I use whatever sensitive-skin lotion I use on the rest of my skin, but I save the makeup for when I get to the conference (nope, never - yet - been picked up at the airport by my book tour escort). I love my Burt's Bees lip balm, and use sunscreen before I go outside for any length of time.

    The collapsible water bottle looks intriguing - what is the brand, Julia?

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    1. It's Que, Edith, and you can get it from Target and other spots. It's silicon, collapses down to about the size of a vitamin bottle, and for $5 more you can get the screw-on top with a D-ring, so you can clip it to your luggage or purse strap.

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  4. I really don't think about changing my skin care on flights since it doesn't seem to be affected by the dry air on planes. Like HANK, I wash with Dove sensitive skin soap. And I use Aveeno or Eucerin moisturizers, and Burt's Bees lip balm. Minimal makeup, just iT Cosmetics foundation powder.

    But my next 6 upcoming flights in April/May are all long-haul trips (5.5 hrs to 16.5 hours long) so I will definitely hydrate a lot more during my travels.

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    1. One tip from a flight attendant that I found interesting, Grace - she "preloads" the day/evening before by drinking lots of water and adding electrolyte supplements. I can't vouch for the science, but I'm going to try it before the next trip I take. It kind of walks the line between getting enough water and not having to lock yourself in the toilet!

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  5. Thank you for sharing and bringing a I've-been-there-done-that smile to my face.

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  6. When I fly, I worry about my feet and ankles, not my face. Now I just feel upside down.

    My skincare routine and makeup hardly vary from "going to the supermarket " to "going to the mayor's ball."

    I wash and moisturize with Estee Lauder products. I use brunette powder in my eyebrows and a thin line of eyeliner on my lids. For dressier occasions, I add eyelash primer or mascara and lipstick, sometimes eye shadow. I don't use any foundation. When flying, I use the minimum.

    As for drinking, I try to drink some water and I don't turn down the coffee. No alcohol.

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    1. Wise to think about feet and ankles...don't they say you can get blood clots three from sitting so long. So getting up and moving around a little while you hydrate and moisturize...

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    2. I have a friend who swears by compression stockings on flights, Judy. Nowadays, they come in nice colors and designs, so you don't have that "diabetic granny" look you used to have to settle for.

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  7. Between children and animals, I rarely travel. (We're taking a 40th anniversary trip to France next fall and though the children are now grown and gone, I'm already starting to plan care for the livestock.) I have been a farmer and aside from washing the dirt off my face and using a scrubbie on my hands, I have never had a skin-care routine. I've worn a baseball cap in the summer and tried to remember sunblock but I was far more assiduous with the children. The result of many years of working outdoors in Carhartts and t-shirts has been a semi-permanent farmer tan. I have beautiful alabaster skin -- on my belly and legs. As for the rest of me: last year I was a little taken aback to receive a summary from my neurologist that began: "Patient is a tall, thin woman of 63 with sun-damaged skin." I have always told myself maybe I would age with the beautiful wrinkles of a Hopi woman I met decades ago. However, since I'm a freckly person whose ancestry is entirely from Great Britain, it does not appear to be in the cards. (Selden)

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    1. As an AZ desert dweller who was not good with sun screen, I feel this. I have some permanent dog walker tan lines. It is what it is. :)

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    2. As a sister Northern European, Seldon (100% UK and Germany) I sympathize with you. I have good skin texture, but oh, boy, the dark spots and red blotches drive me batty. Not enough to, you know, actually spend hundreds on laser resurfacing - I am a New Englander, after all!

      I have a theory that the reason white European-descended folks have been so awful to people of color around the world is jealousy that everyone else ages so much better than we do.

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  8. Water, water, and more water when I fly, and hourly trips to the bathroom from my aisle seat. I wear a mask and no makeup. Cera Ve products including a heavy night time moisturizer and vanicream on my body.

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  9. Good topic, Julia. (Sorry, Jay, et al!)

    I only use a mild soap on my face roughly twice a week, and a silicone scrubber to exfoliate. Other than that I gently wash off makeup, etc. with a bamboo wipe rinsed in warm water, followed by any old moisturizer, usually Almay.

    As a teenager I started just using plain water on my face, and moisturizing at night, religiously. My mother and her sisters all have/had beautiful skin, and I was lucky enough to inherit the genes. I use a little concealer and mineral blush, along with a swipe of mascara. I always, always wear lipstick, and for the last 15 years or so it's been Revlon ColorStay with shea butter. It stays on all day, most of the time, and moisturizes nicely.

    When traveling I take a full bottle of water on our way to the airport and try to drink it all before I hit security, as pre-hydration. Then I have an empty water bottle through security to fill in the terminal. That and all the water offered during the flight keeps me hydrated. It staves off the usual air travel constipation, too. For long flights I keep a small bag in my carryon with a cleansing wipe, sample size of moisturizer, and a bit of blush and lipstick for refresh and touchups near the destination.

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    1. The reason I wear the mineral blush is that it is a natural sunscreen.

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    2. Karen, I don't usually do foundation these days, but I'm experimenting with brush on mineral bronzer (in a very light shade) because it offers a little bit of color (so welcome in the dead of winter) and that protection from the sun.

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    3. My face never tans, so I need a bit of blush or I'm your "white face blob" twin. Never have worn foundation, unless I'm going out for a special occasion, like mother of the bride or meeting the King special. The mineral blush is very sheer, but seems to have staying power.

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  10. I use Vanicream gentle facial cleanser and Vanicream facial moisturizer with broad spectrum spf 30 every day. It’s made here in Rochester, MN.
    https://www.vanicream.com/about/our-story

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    1. Brenda, you're the second person, after Margaret, to recommend this. I've never heard of it before, but I'll have to check it out.

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    2. All of their products are specifically designed for sensitive skin.

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  11. Since COVID I’ve flown exactly once. And it involved one flight so late I missed my connection, resulting in spending six hours in Philadelphia, breaking a crown, and being forced to sit next to a man in a red baseball cap who called me everything but a liberal commie pinko for wearing a mask. The absolute last thing on my mind was dry skin

    I haven’t worn foundation since I retired Or mascara. It makes my now sparse lashes look like spiders. I use some form of Clinique moisturizer after washing my face with soap and water. I’ve always had good skin, a blessing, but the skin on my butt is the same age as that in my face. No contest that sun has taken its toll. Make up is limited to eye shadow and maybe liner if I’m feeling adventurous. As I’ve got older, I find less is more.

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    1. Less makeup really is more, Ann. When I was young, I slathered it on and barely paid any attention to my skin. Now it's a little under eye cover-up, eye powder on my brows and lining my upper lids, sheer blush and lipstick or tinted lip balm. Takes me three minutes. I spend MUCH more time (and money) on the skin care!

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  12. Makeup? What is that?

    I'm not being facetious. I rarely wear it these days. Only when I have to put on my "public" face and traveling doesn't qualify. Too much bother.

    My daily skin care regiment consists of washing with CeraVe (I prefer the Burt's Bees Refinishing cleanser, but it's hard to find these days) and moisturizer (Burt's Bees Refinishing, which is SPF30). I did have a hyaluronic serum at one point, but I ran out and was too lazy/cheap to get more. Lip care is generally Blistex Medicated lip balm. Sometimes (those public occasions) I'll use lipstick. More frequently it's a Burt's Bees tinted lip balm.

    The Girl tells me my light use of makeup is why I have great skin, so...I guess it works.

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    1. Right? The proof of the pudding is in the tasting, Liz, and the right skin care is whatever makes you look good!

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  13. Oh Jenn I love Aquaphor too—in all forms! It’s magical.

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    1. Hank, I will have to try that. Diana

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    2. I discovered it when the Hooligans arrived and my pediarician said it was the only thing to use on diaper rash or any skin rash/irritation anywhere on anyone. LOL.

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    3. I have a purse-sized squeeze bottle I carry around for my hands in the winter. I use it everytime I wash or sanitize.

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  14. I'm definitely a less is more type of person. A little blush and a brush through my eyelashes and eyebrows and makeup is done. Unless I can remember to get a tinted moisturizer with SPF-it's been a few years. I also wash my face with CeraVe morning and night. Occasionally I'll do a sugar scrub--heaping teaspoon of table sugar with a couple squirts of facial cleanser--scrub face, rinse off, pat dry. Skin glows. Lip balm, preferably tinted, when I remember. Haven't flown in a while, but oh those bathroom wrestling bouts with luggage, especially frustrating when you really need to go. NOW. And you had to wait in line.

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    1. My first husband's mother had the most beautiful skin. I asked her once what her secret was, and she said Camay and sugar. Turns out sugar is not just a good exfoliant, but it's also a naturally humectant, and draws moisture to the skin.

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    2. Humectant?!? A word for the day... Thanks, Karen!

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    3. I have a sugar scrub I've been using on my feet! Maybe I need to get another one for my face...

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  15. There was a time when I wouldn't go outside without make-up. Now I don't go outside with make-up. Years ago I (as well as my 2 daughters) had ezcema and my dermatologist suggested using a soap like Dove or Ivory rather than most of the harsh commercial soaps, as sometimes eczema can be from contact with something that is an irritant on the skin. Bingo! Using Dove worked and I haven't eczema since. I should have bought stock in Dove years ago.

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    1. Dove seems to be a VERY popular skin care product around here, Anon. Maybe we should try to get them to sponsor us! :-)

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  16. Good morning!

    Julia described the skin exactly the way my skin is now. I need to see my Dermatologist and I am waiting for a Referral from my Primary Doctor.

    When travelling, I do wear Makeup. I also wear a Mask since the Covid Lockdown. Since Covid, I refuse to drink or eat anything on planes. Before Covid, I would have Apple Juice. I fly once or twice a year. It depends on if I am going to a mystery conference. And I fly shorter distances (three hours or less) these days. I rarely wear Makeup these days, which means I do not travel often.

    Always wear Sunscreen because with my freckles, I have to protect my skin. Always got sunburn as a child. I have Dry Eyes so I always bring eyedrops. I always have Chapstick with me. I try to drink more water since I often am dehydrated and get massive headaches because of dehydration.

    Diana

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    1. Upping my water intake has been a game-changer for me, Diana. I used to get headaches often, and would feel tired and run-down. Now I put six refillable bottles of water in the fridge every evening and try to drink them all by bedtime. I make sure I have a bottle of water before I start in on my morning tea, and intersperse tea and water the rest of the day.

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    2. Julia, thank you. May I ask if you had any allergies when staying in hotels with carpets since starting menopause?

      Diana

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  17. Well, blogger. You published my comment a few hours ago and then ate it. Not nice.

    I said I was with Hallie on keep it simple, and with whoever said no soap on the face. I use the same sensitive-skin lotion on face and body, Burt's Bees beeswax lip balm, sensitive-skin sunscreen, and make up only when I'm at author events or a special dinner.

    Never yet picked up at an airport by an author-tour escort, but a girl can hope!

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    1. Also, Julia, what's the brand on the collapsible water bottle? Are they lightweight?

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    2. Fixed it, Edith. Oh, Blogger, how you vex us all.

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    3. Merci, danke, obrigada, and arigatoo!

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  18. I follow Hallie, and since I rarely fly (read once in 25 years), here is my regular routine. Use Dove for Men - pumice in the shower – it is still gentle on the skin, and washes off – the women’s takes longer to wash off than the hot water tank has water. Never have worn any make-up – ever. No eye liner, mascara, blush, anything even for my wedding, and if they put it on me when I am dead, I will come to and choke them.. Use Blistex lip balm after most meals, and in the evening – it stops me licking my lips. Rarely if ever use SPF – I know, I am going to die. Tan like a son-of-a-gun.
    Wrinkles – a few, but not a real prune, enough for my age. Grey hair – all my own.
    My secret must-do-vice – my feet. After I have my shower, I let my feet dry, and then slather them with (preferred) Jergen’s lotion, and put on my socks. My feet are perfect, if I do say myself – no bunions, corns, heel grunge, anything. It was something that I learned early on from working in the lab, or in rubber or work boots.
    I don’t have any high heels, either.
    As for face masks – when we were teen-aged kids, in the summer and bored, we would mix up a mess of egg and oatmeal and slather it on our faces. Then we would go and lie in the sun, and toast a while, as the stuff hardened to a cement cake, trying not to talk or laugh which would crack it, and it was so much better to wait until it became really hard, and then you would scraggle up your face and make it crack – picture a cartoon crack rippling through cement – fun!
    Now the best part – we would run down to the lake, and dive in. I wish I had a picture of the oatmeal trailing off. But wait – there is more: we would lie in the water, with our faces submerged, and as the oatmeal trickled down, the perch would turn up and gently munch on the oatmeal. It tickled!

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    1. Margo, the delight and contentment of your perch-feeding skin care routine sounds better for your overall health and beauty than any professional treatment or product could ever hope to achieve!

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  19. Here's what I don't like: LOOKING like I'm wearing makeup. But for events I do wear makeup because there will be photos and photos are forever.

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    1. YUP - 100%! I am the same. I'll slap it on for photos but I much prefer my natural no make up state.

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    2. Hallie, that is what I call my "public" face. Will there be photos? LOL

      I will put it on if I'm cantoring at church, but not if I'm just sitting in the pew.

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    3. I've found I have to use so much more than I normally would for Zoom! Unless I use bronzer and so much blush I look like I've got scarlet fever, my face is just an undifferentiated white blob on the screen! :-)

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  20. I have severe dry eye, and my eyes water all the time. It gets worse on a plane so I put drops in before I get on the plane. I generally use a tinted moisturizer with SPF and wash my face at night. I use Olay Regenerist at night and Carmex medicated lip ball.

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    1. Lucy, I've used Carmex before, because I tend to lick my lips (so hard to stop!) and I've actually gotten infections as a result of over-drying the skin. Carmex is great at stopping all that.

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  21. I need color, so don't go out of the house without some lip color and blusher. More public face, add a little very light eye makeup. I was just thinking about the pancake makeup most of us wore when we were teenagers. Ouch! No wonder we had acne....

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    1. I know, Debs! I look back at pics of myself in my early twenties, and wouldn't go down to the corner store for a quart of milk without foundation and a full face of makeup. And I think, "You were so beautiful! Why did you think you needed all that glop!"

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  22. I mainly take long flights (Switzerland--US), and I endure them by (1) bringing water to drink (but not two bottles an hour!); (2) having LOTS of wonderful new books on my Kindle that I'm dying to read; (3) setting my watch to the time of the place I'm going as soon as I get on the plane and trying to eat and sleep according to the new schedule; and (4) taking a powerful sleeping pill on every night flight I take and sleeping from take-off to landing. I still feel pretty awful for a week after a night flight with jet lag, but I'd feel even WORSE if I hadn't slept!

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    1. Kim, those are some pro-traveler techniques there. Sleeping pills hit me WAY too hard, so my s.o.p is to bull through the first day on the ground, knowing I'm going to feel brain-dead, and try to wait until a reasonable bed time to finally sleep.

      Both my daughters take after their dad, who could drop off as soon as the landing gear was up and sleep like a baby until we made our final descent. I'm SO jealous of that ability!

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  23. While in high school I used to sell cosmetics on Friday nights and Saturday at the Hudson’s Bay Company at Portage and Memorial Boulevard in downtown Winnipeg. I have never used moisturizer and because I have rosacea, since birth I have washed my face with a bar of Ivory soap! My skin is fine. When flying, which I do often for pleasure, I drink a bottle of water with an AirBorne tablet dissolved in it to keep me hydrated and also help keep germs away. Airborne was invented by a teacher who lived with many germs in her elementary classroom every day! Being a retired teacher myself, I understand germs!
    I continue to fly wearing a mask except when I am drinking or eating. You would think people had learned new hygiene habits during covid. Unfortunately, many have not.
    I fly premium class and enjoy my mimosa too! You can’t take your money with you so why not treat yourself.

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    1. Dorothy, If I were in first class, I'd definitely bend my no-alcohol stance! I'm a big fan of Airborne when I travel as well. Taking it daily and hand-sanitizing like Lady Macbeth really helps keep the germs away while at a conference. Ordinary germs - for the biggies, I rely on up to date vaccines and masking.

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  24. I laughed out loud at Julia’s comment about wrestling her luggage into the bathroom on the plane 🤣l’m flying home from Florida today and I will keep my eyes open for anyone wrestling with a suitcase coming out of the washroom!

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    1. Honestly, the best part about traveling with someone else is being able to trade off luggage when you need to go!

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  25. My makeup routine is pretty much the same, whether traveling or at home: wash face every day with regular soap (Palmolive or Dove), sunblock, a dab of makeup on my nose, and powder to take off the shine, a dab of pale lipstick. Gave up eye shadow, mascara, eyeliner, eyebrow pencil, long ago. And I try to stay hydrated and walk a lot.

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  26. Hi everyone, I am mostly a lurker but just love this blog and all the comments! I will be flying on a trip in May so have enjoyed the advice. Also I wanted to give a shout out to my favorite facial cleanser, Purity Made Simple by Philosophy, and no, I don’t work for them, but have been using it for at least 20 years everyday. Great product!

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    1. Terri, and skin care that gets a shout-out from an Arizonan is worth checking out! AZ has got to be one of the most challenging skin environments in the country.

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    2. Thanks, Julia, and I have really tried to avoid our hot sun!

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  27. Vaseline is a petroeum product and is absorbed into your skin.
    You might consider an alternative like Burt's Bees.

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  28. I like Purpose for facial cleaning; it’s soap-free and doesn’t irritate my eyes so I can use it to remove makeup. I use Thayer toner with rose petal and witch hazel then Olay 2-in-1 firming and anti-wrinkle serum. Olay tinted moisturizer with sunscreen for protection. After having several spots removed by the dermatologist I am much more careful about sunscreen on my forehead and nose. Minimal makeup usually just light pencil on the brows and light touch of mascara.~Emily Dame

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  29. Everyone had a lot to say! And most of it useful, too. Thanks for the reminder to spritz my face on planes. I always forget and think I need to. Otherwise: dry skin even when I was a teen, so moisturizing cleanser and moisturizer lotion w/ sunscreen every day. . (CeraVie these days, dr. recommended) Dermatologist recently said cream is more effective than lotion, so that goes on at night (doesn't have sunscreen for daytime). I occasionally use the fancy multi-step skin care - feels very indulgent- but honestly, I don't know that it does anything. I do find that an at home facial mask occasionally does make a difference as I age. On plane? Purse packed with face and hand moisturizer and nasal spray ( I use it daily now). Ah, heavy hydrating? TOO risky with all that getting up to the rest room and back! :-). Unless it's a special occasion, makeup just means lipstick these days.

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  30. When we fly, I will only drink bottled water with no ice to avoid any contaminants. Never any caffeine as it does more to dehydrate my system! I carry sealed alcohol pads to clean my area when we arrive. I keep Thayers Facial Toner with me as my forehead gets very greasy. Maybe it is the stress of flying. Usually, I use LaRoche Posay Normal to Dry or Normal to Oily in the morning. If I am travelling, I usually need a "stronger" cleaner and use Clean & Clear facial cleanser Morning Burst which has little scrubbies in it. During the day, I apply LaRoche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer with SPF 30. At night, after I clean my face (see morning process) I moisturize with Pevonia Ligne Rose RS2 Care Cream as I have very sensitive skin, freckles and a mild case of Rosacea. To thoroughly clean my face after a "heavy" travel, I use a Blue Lagoon Mask! I also owe the current condition of my face, so to speak, to regular facials which began when my company moved my work location to Boston.

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  31. I have always used Noxema. For a long time, I used it both to clean and then put a thin coat on as a night cream. For a while I used Mary Kay moisturizer. For the past 20+ years I have used Noxama to wash with Olay moisturizer with SPF in the daytime and Olay night cream. It seems to be working just fine.

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  32. It’s interesting to read all your skin care tips! Also nice that we’re in the same age bracket so my skin care needs are pretty much the same: dryness! Neutrogena was recommended by my dermatologist so that’s my moisturizer for daytime. A Clinique “defense” product with SPF follows moisturizer. Minimal makeup, just concealer and powder; no mascara (stopped wearing because I just don’t like it!) Clinique nighttime moisturizer.
    I fill an empty tumbler with water after going through security at the airport. I don't drink airplane water or anything made with it after reading flight attendant tips. I will get up and walk on a plane because of a personal risk of blood clots.

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  33. I've been "putting on my face" since I was 14 and I'm now 73. I can't imagine venturing out of the house without makeup although at my age who am I kidding?! ;) It's probably more out of habit than vanity. Strike that...I do care. Years ago when I slipped and fell on wet ceramic tile in my kitchen late at night I did a balancing act in front of the bathroom mirror putting on my face before heading to the hospital emergency room. The x-rays revealed a broken tibia and as I was being wheeled off to my room as an inpatient the nurse had a chuckle over the fact that despite excruciating pain and unable to stand on my own I still took the time to put my makeup on before leaving the house. After nearly half a century of it being part of my daily routine I just never thought to do otherwise. Although I certainly hope if I was having a heart attack I wouldn't call 911 and ask them to give me 15 minutes to get ready before they sent rescue...boffola!!!

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