9 Essential Items For A Weekend Getaway

Are you taking a weekend escape this summer?

I'm quickly packing for a long weekend and want to show you my 

9 Essential Items for A Weekend Getaway.

1. The Denim Jacket
This year it's perhaps my favorite go-to piece. Mine is relatively fitted, so it has a nice streamlined look, and works with absolutely everything, giving a chic, smart casual look.

2. Gucci Aviators
I love my Gucci Aviators! They are bigger than your average aviator, and I adore the detail at the hinge. Mine are in gold.

3. White Sandals
This summer I'm wearing mostly white. I love layering white on white (the denim jacket looks fabulous layered with whites), and a white or gold sandal looks lovely with it.
I love crisp, white sandals with shorts or skinny jeans, and they look perfect with sundresses too.

4. Turquoise Scarf
I've never considered myself a scarf person, but I picked up a bunch of these as gifts in a market in Paris last year, and ended up keeping some for myself.
Again with the white on white wardrobe I'm wearing this summer a bright scarf is fun,, and if the evening gets cooler a scarf comes in handy.

5. Stephanie Johnson Miami Collection Cosmetic Bags
I am obsessed with these for travel! I have all 3 sizes, and rotate them around depending on my needs. They are perfect for any airline travel as the TSA can see through them without you having to pull them apart and put your skincare/cosmetics/haircare into ziplock bags in the airport screening lines. Being that they are made by Stephanie Johnson you have the added benefit of their brilliant construction - everything arrives to your location in one piece, not broken and leaking through your luggage. And they look incredibly chic.

6. Oribe Travel Sized Hair Spray
I have 2 that I travel with. The first is the Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray, which adds texture like a dry shampoo and the second is the Oribe Anti Humidity Spray which gives you control and eliminates humidity frizz, but also is malleable so you can still work with your hair.

7. Neals' Yard Travel Sized Products
My winter was owned by the amazing Neal's Yard Wild Rose Beauty Balm, my summer is all about 3 travel ready beauty products from Neal's Yard.
Neal's Yard Organic Facial Wipes,White Tea Facial Mist and Organic Argan Oil
(click on each link for a product breakdown)

Neal's Yard Organic Argan Oil

Intensely nourish and sooth skin, hands and hair with 

Neal's Yard Organic Argan Oil.

I love Neal's Yard Organic Argan Oil.

It is sourced from South West Morocco, the only area in the world where the argan tree grows.
in 2007 a small co-op of women started up and use traditional skills to collect the world's first Fairtrade Argan oil. The income from this co-op helps improve the socio-economic conditions of the region and provides valuable income for the community. And I love to support that!

The Neal's Yard Organic Argan Oil can be used on cuticles, can be warmed in the hands and masaged into the face, or can be used to de-frizz, replenish and revitalize hair. It gives glorious shine and bounce and makes hair both look and smell divine.

Packaged in 1.69 fluid ounce bottles makes it perfect for travel too!

Neal's Yard White Tea Facial Mist

Neal's Yard White Tea Facial Mist is a gentle facial mist to calm, refresh and rehydrate the skin.

It's a fabulous product to spritz onto the skin when on long flights!


Whit Tea Facial Mist is infused with antioxidant white tea, calming aloe vera, aromatherapeutic organic essential oils and soothing Bach Flower remedies.
It feels lovely after any outdoor activity, any time your skin needs a little extra hydration.  You can also use it to breathe new life into your makeup when you are transitioning from day to night, or whenever you feel like you need a little boost.

Purchase at www.nyrorganic.com

Neals' Yard Organic Facial Wipes

Neal's Yard Organic Facial Wipes are a fantastic travel beauty product, and make it onto my list of Essential Travel Beauty Products.

This is a vegan, organic product and is both super gentle and loving to your skin. You can use these wipes daily to remove makeup and impurities. They are very soothing too, infused with gentle aloe and antioxidant white tea. I also like that they are made from biodegradable organic cotton.
There are 25 wipes to a packet, and they retail for $9.00
Buy them here

Mascara - 5 Tips To Fabulous Lashes

During the summer we want to wear less makeup than during the rest of the year, so we cut back on most things, but one product that stays essential is mascara. You can have a nearly bare face, but still look totally pulled together if you've taken care of your brows, lashes and lips.

With lashes being so important at this time of year today I'm giving you Mascara - 5 Tips To fabulous

1. Curl Them
The first tip to perfect summer lashes is to curl them.
Curling lashes opens up the eye and keeps you looking brighter.
Use a great eyelash curler such as Shu Uemura, and rather than a single quick crunch, hold for an extra few seconds, and pump the curler. I normally give 5 pumps with a little extra hold on the last one.

2. Start At The Inner Corner
You want to create a perfect fan of lashes, so start at the inner corner, where you'll catch little lashes you didn't even realize you have, and then work your way out to the outer corner.

3. Build At The Root
One of the big mistakes people make is not getting mascara all the way at the base of the lash. Start at the base and then work your way out. Just applying mascara to the mid-lengths or ends looks awful and clumpy.

4. Use 2 Formulas
Want to really build some big, full lashes? Try using 2 different formulas. Start with a couple of good coats of your first mascara, then do a third coat with a different mascara. It works like magic creating a thick fringe of lashes.

5. Use 2 Tones
If you're going to use two formulations, try using two different shades to really enhance the eye.
I like to build a lash with black mascara, then go over it with an aubergine hue to really spark the eye color. Purple/eggplant tones look gorgeous against any eye color, making the eye and the eye color itself stand out, which is what we are trying to achieve anyway.

Sea And Sun ~ Laetitia Casta For Madame Figaro

French actress and model Laetitia Casta gets sultry by the sea
for the cover and an editorial in the July 2014 issue of 
Madame Figaro.

 Casta was photographed by Nico, soaking up the sun divine in summer chic. 
I love summer/beach stories featuring dark haired beauties.

10 Carry On Essentials For International Flights

I spend a lot of time on planes. I'm always flying somewhere.
I like to travel light, but when it comes to long haul international flights I have a list of essentials that absolutely must come in my carry on with me.

In light of the fact that I'm about to lead the first ever 
Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour, and that these items have made it onto the list I'm giving the ladies on my tour, I thought you might like to check them out as well.

1. My Pashmina.
Actually, I have a few. But this giant pashmina is the one I travel with. I recommend buying real pashmina instead of a big scarf. Pashmina is super light and thin, so it packs down well, but it is also incredibly warm. 
Airlines give you blankets, but they are nasty. My son's airline blanket last year was full of moth eaten holes - it was awful! So I circumvent any potential problems or violent skin disorders by bringing my own.
My pashmina is big enough to use as a blanket, but also can be a chic accessory or great option instead of a bulky jacket.

2. Compression Hose/Socks
Before you die laughing, know that 20 years ago I was given a pair of these by a major model prior to embarking on a trans world flight. It was one of the best gifts ever.
The theory is that on long flights when you are stuck sitting there for hours, blood, lymph and other fluids pool in your calves, ankles and feet. It can be painful, the swelling is definitely ugly, and getting into your shoes can be really tricky. 
Compression socks/hose keep the fluids moving. Deep vein thrombosis is a definite risk with long flights, and compression hose are recommended by doctors to lessen that risk.
You can actually get full hose that come up to the waist, but that looks like too much drama for me, so I just use the sock version, and swear by them. 

3. Bose headphones.

Mine aren't the noise cancelling ones, but they are still brilliant, both for their Bose audio quality, and for their ability to knock out an enormous amount of cabin noise.

4. Travel Sized Lysol Spray
I've just added this one in for all airline travel, both domestic and international, after sitting for 5 hours on a plane with someone's hair grease all over the window.
And a flight attendant told me that women routinely pull down the tray  table and change babies diapers on them, and they are seldom cleaned in between flights.
Gag me.
Now at least I can lysol down anything that looks iffy.

5. Facial Cleansing Wipes
These are essential beauty wise. I don't fly long trips with makeup on  (you're going to look hideous on landing if you start the trip with makeup on) but I still like to be able to cleanse my skin, especially towards the end of the flight.

6. Nude Pro Genius Treatment Oil

This is one of my all time favorite skin care products. Ever.
When you fly you lose an extra 8oz of water for every hour you are up there, which wrecks havoc on your skin. You are also stuck for hours in dirty, recycled air.
Just as I don't want to arrive to my new destination with cankles and swollen feet, I also don't want to arrive with dried out, lifeless, grey skin. I want my skin to glow. 
So I use Nude Pro Genius Treatment Oil several times during the flight. It is full of good stuff including Omegas 3, 6, 7 and 9, and instantly hydrates your skin as well as providing nutrients and keeping it smooth and glowing.
I wrote about this wonder oil last year. You can check out all the amazing things it does here.

7. My Stephanie Johnson Miami Cosmetic Bag

I always travel with Stephanie Johnson makeup and toiletry bags - they are the best bags I've ever found. They not only look super chic and are endlessly functional, but they are well built too, which means all your goodies arrive at your destination in one piece, and not leaking all through your carry on bag or suitcase.
I'm in love with the Miami collection for travel because they are see through, so they sail through the TSA X-ray machines without you having to take out all your liquid and cream based beauty items or put them into ziplock bags. I love how efficient they are, as well as the fact that I can see everything inside.

8. Oribe Cote D'Azur Hair Refresher, Travel Size



Nothing on earth smells like Oribe hair products! They are divine.

This one is an essential carry on item because after a long international flight your hair not only looks trashed, but with 8 hours+ of recycled air, it smells awful too.
A quick spritz of Oribe Cote D'Azur Hair Refresher not only cuts static in your hair and makes your hairdo recoverable (so you don't get off the plane looking awful) but it makes it smell glorious. So if the most handsome man in the world comes in for a hello kiss and a cuddle, he won't have to pull his head away when he catches a whiff of your hair...



9. Emergenc-C
I always have packets of Emergenc-C onboard with me. I buy a couple of bottles of water before I board my flight, and make sure I drink at least 2 packets of Emergenc-C at some point during the flight. I am convinced it helps me to circumvent jet lag.
It's all part of my theory that when your flight lands you are feeling refreshed and lovely and looking great, so that you don't miss one minute of your trip.

10. A Journal.

I buy these leather bound journals every year in Florence. I keep track of my world and all the magnificent people I encounter in them, as well as buying them as gifts.
This year I might do a Corinna B's World giveaway of a leather bound journal from Florence. Would you want to enter to win one?