I Tried Celebrity Travel Beauty Hacks On A 22-Hour Flight & Ooft, They’re Good
Celebrities are just like us, except they’ve mastered the art of looking respectable when they step off a plane. Until now, we simply didn’t know if it was thanks to witchcraft, good genes or maybe even expert travel beauty and skincare tips.
Recently, I was getting ready to fly to Walt Disney World in Orlando, a 22-hour flight for which I prepared by downloading The Office to my laptop.
And then I realised that there’s more to long-haul flights than being entertained. Skincare is just as, if not more, important than binge watching a series I’ve already finished four times. So I turned to the experts — celebrities.
hey sorry i’d love to stay the night but i really can’t afford to let my skin care routine suffer
— GVBBY (@dvbbygvbby) August 5, 2018
I scoured the web, and my Instagram, to find some travel beauty tips from celebrities I could try during the flight. My criteria was simple: it had to fit in my carry-on and had to be easy and relatively cheap.
I settled on the wise words of J.Lo, Paris Hilton and Margot Robbie, and soon I was in my seat and ready to pamper my skin at altitude like never before.
Here’s what my experience was like trying celebrity’s travel beauty tips IRL:
Whatever you say, J.Lo
According to her makeup artist Kate Best, J.Lo uses a SK-II Facial Hydrating Mask when she gets on a plane.
I use SK-II face masks because I was told Jennifer Lopez uses them and I will do whatever she does in the face realm with no shame.
— christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) May 28, 2012
If it’s good enough for J.Lo and Chrissy Teigen, it’s good enough for me. However, a 6-pack of SK-II face masks goes for $165 at Sephora, which: yikes. I thought trying to claim that as an expense would be unwise.
Instead, I picked up a few of the Sephora Collection lychee face masks, which promised to moisturise and brighten my skin and cost me a much more reasonable $6 each. Sorry, J.Lo.
As soon as my seat neighbours were asleep and I’d cleaned the last bits of makeup off with the warm wipe that the cabin crew gave me, I threw the mask on.
No surprises here, but J.Lo is totally right. I left it on for 15 minutes and my skin felt better than it ever has on a flight. I used another mask on my connecting flight from Los Angeles to Orlando, and by the time I arrived at my hotel I felt like a powerful queen ready to face the paparazzi, and not an oily shell of a human.
Eyes like Paris Hilton
Not only is she the star of the best show on YouTube, Paris Hilton is also a wealth of information when it comes to travel beauty tips.
The socialite told The Telegraph that she uses Patchology eye patches when she travels, so I picked up a 5-pack of the Patchology Eye Revive in Mecca for $23.
Always fly everywhere with my pink blankie. 😉 Keeping comfy on the 10 hour flight to Hong Kong. ✈ http://t.co/0VenWQuEZj
— Paris Hilton (@ParisHilton) September 20, 2013
Hilton says eye patches are great for when “I’m doing my make-up and putting on my lashes,” but I decided to use them when I woke from a nap after my Miss Congeniality and The Princess Diaries double feature.
Tired: waking up from a nap.
Wired: using an eye patch soaked in caffeine and collagen.
These patches would be even better just before you step off the plane. They made my face feel so fresh that it was almost a waste to use them in the middle of the flight. But if you get puffy eyes and want to not have puffy eyes during a flight, then Paris and I will both recommend you slap on an eye patch.
Margot Robbie, Aussie queen of travel beauty
The actress told Coveteur: “I use Aesop Ginger Flight Therapy on my temples and wrists. It’s meant to help with jet lag — I don’t know if it does but I like the smell of it so I do it anyway.”
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That was enough of a commendation for me. Plus, my friend very generously let me borrow her roll-on, which normally costs $33.
Anyway, if you’re reading this Margot Robbie, I think this product does actually work as advertised. Even with a 16-hour time difference, I got over my jet lag after a day. I even settled into a sleep schedule that was even better than my one back home, tbh.
“Are you prepared to survive a zombie apocalypse?”
First of all, a zombie apocalypse would really put a dent in my skin care routine.
— Betty (@BoomBoomBetty) October 20, 2017
Verdict?
When I wasn’t putting on masks, soothing my senses or watching The Great British Bake Off, I drank water every time the cabin crew came round. I also relished the (also regular) warm wipes and snacked at every possible opportunity.
And let me tell you, I’ve never felt as comfortable on a flight, or as fresh-faced after one, as I did when I flew from Sydney to Los Angeles and onto Orlando.
I probably won’t repeat all three steps the next time I fly. Maybe I went overboard, but now my hangover is cured, my student debt is repaid and my skin is clear, literally.
I’ll definitely bust out the eye patches for any future early morning flights. I might even splurge on a clay face mask instead of a sheet mask the next time I’m flying international. This routine was probably overkill, but it made an already comfortable flight even better.
Wow, celebrities — is there anything they can’t do?
(Lead image: Lev Radin / Shutterstock)
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Our writer was a guest of Walt Disney World and flew with Delta.
