TRAVEL ESSENTIALS

Since I am leaving for New York today, I thought it would be fitting to talk about my travel essentials. Going back and forth between California and New York has taught me a couple things about what is necessary to bring.  However, this time I will be flying by myself for the first time so I am a little nervous, but I am really excited to spend the next two weeks in the Big Apple!

I have never visited New York during the summer time, but I am anticipating hot and humid weather (YUCK!) I made sure to pack light and cool outfits because I get so hot so easily and I absolutely hate sweating. I will be sure to include OOTD pictures for my day-to-day posts! Besides 14 days worth of clothing, I always like bringing a few extra goodies along with me to help make my traveling experience more enjoyable. Here I have for you 8 goodies that always help make traveling/visiting places more fun and exciting for me!

1. PERFUME | Like I mentioned before, I am anticipating hot and sticky weather for this trip so bringing along perfume or body spray is a must! My favorite scent is French Lavender & Honey from Bath & Body Works - It's a light scent and I always feel refreshed while wearing it. I have also gotten many compliments when I wear it, which is always a plus! (I know for a fact that Troye Sivan finds this scent nice hehe)

2. HAT | I believe that a hat can always polish off an outfit and with the bright summer sun, hats are really helpful (especially if you don't have sunglasses). This is probably my favorite hat I own - a black fedora from Urban Outfitters. I have had it for a couple years now, but I feel like I am wearing it more now than I did when I first bought the hat!

3. PORTABLE CHARGER | I don't know how many times it's happened where I've been out all day and then my phone is dead by 9pm! Since I will be away from my family, it's crucial that my phone is charged the entire day (or else my mom will probably have a heart attack haha) I actually do not know where I got this, it was a Christmas gift a couple years back, but you can pretty much find a portable charger anywhere.

4. ANTI-HUMIDITY PRODUCTS | Humid weather and I do not go well together (if you haven't caught on to that already) so it is really important for me to have anti-humidity products handy, especially for my hair. Without them, my hair is one big frizzy mess (it's awful). Both shown above are from Living Proof and I got them from Sephora. If I'm being completely honest, I haven't tried these two out yet, so I will let you guys know how they worked out, but I have heard really positive things. Definitely hoping for good results!

5. MAKEUP SETTING SPRAY | Since my skin can get oily at times, having a setting spray is very important because I want to maintain a matte complexion throughout my day and I have found that this spray, which is the All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray from Urban Decay, is really good at doing just that. It does give me a dewy look when I first spray it on, but after a couple hours I am all set and the makeup stays on all day! Urban Decay also has two other setting sprays, the "De-Slick" for those with oilier skin and then a "Chill" for those with drier skin!

6. BOOK | With a 5-hour plane ride, I definitely like to find things to do while on board and now that I am on summer break, I can finally go back to reading for fun! I don't know how long it has been since the last time I read a book for pure enjoyment rather than because I had to, but I am trying to change that this summer. The book I brought with me this trip is called The Secret Life of Violet Grant by Beatriz Williams. It tells the story of a young journalist (Vivian) who finds out she has a long-lost aunt (Violet) and throughout the story, Vivian tries to get the scoop on what the aunt's life was like during pre-World War I. I'll let you guys know how I like it once I finish!

7. CAMERA | I bring my camera every time I travel so this one was a no-brainer for me. I'll be taking it everywhere I go during the day so I am very excited to see the kinds of photos I'll come back with. When I do post, they'll be under the "KELLYXPHOTO" column so make sure to check them out as well as my other photo adventures!

8. SANDALS | With it being summer and the fact that I'll be attending a fashion program, cute sandals are a must. These ones are from Forever 21 and I also purchased them in black. They are pretty comfortable and with the extensive walking I will be doing, I am hoping there will be very little to no blisters on my feet by the end of the trip!

I will be posting a lot during these next two weeks so make sure to check back to see if I posted something new! 'Til then, I hope you are all enjoying your summer and that you have safe travels wherever you go x

Until next time...