I’m taking an extended vacation over the Family Day long weekend here in Ontario, so I’ll be heading back up to my parents house in Ottawa right after work on Wednesday (same date as this blog post if you’re reading it then). After having been ridiculously sick over Christmas vacation and not getting to hit any of the hills with my snowboard, I’ve been itching to get back up there. Toronto really doesn’t have any decent hills in the area (don’t even get me started on Blue Mountain… it’s not a mountain, it’s a sad, sad slope) so I really do need to get up to Ottawa and into Quebec to see some proper runs.

ANYWAY. All that to say I’m heading to Ottawa for about 5 days and thought I’d show you what makeup I’m bringing with me this time.

First up are the palettes. Usually I pack my Naked palette and pop in a few loose blushes, but this time I decided to take advantage of the fact that the Tarte palette actually comes with four blushes and a bronzer. The Naked is a must have, but the Tarte palette is kind of a no-brainer.

Also, sad to say, but I’ve barely used the Tarte palette since I bought it in late last year, so I really want to get some proper use out of it. Not to mention the amount of space it saves.

For face products, I’m bringing the Physicians Formula Shimmer Strip in Sunset Strip (also because it’s underused), the Yaby foundation in Buff because it’s a great match for my skin and it comes in an incredibly small tube. Last up is the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Shade 2 Light which I don’t really find to be a necessity on a daily basis, but I may want to use it so I threw it in there anyway.

My Nivea lip butter in Vanilla & Macadamia tastes delicious (and reminds me of Ireland, since that’s where I bought it) and will be needed for hitting the slopes even though the packaging is kind of inconvenient. The mini Laura Mercier Lip Glace in Rose is in there in case I want to use a gloss (plus it also smells amazing). The two MAC lipsticks are Russian Red and Darkside, although I stupidly forgot to show you the actual colours. Whoops. I doubt I’ll even need this many lip products for a five day vacation, but the variety is nice for those “just in case” moments.

And these are my necessities: NARS eyeshadow primer, MAC Prep + Prime for lips, Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner in 13 Black and a MAC lip pencil in Brick for if I decide to wear Russian Red.

Last up are Illamasqua‘s Imagine eyeshadow because I’ve never used it and I figured I needed to bring some kind of coloured shadow since the Naked palette is so very neutral. Too Faced‘s Better Than Sex mascara is also coming along for the ride since it’s in a tiny tube and easy to transport. Since I won’t be wearing any makeup while actually on the slopes, I don’t need a waterproof formula at all.

All of that fits into this relatively small makeup bag. For once I had a lot of small deluxe sample sized products which made it a lot easier to get everything crammed in there.

The makeup bag itself was part of the Liberty of London MAC collection from 2010. I’ve used this bag religiously to travel with over the years and love how it’s held up. I also love the colours and the pattern itself. If you’re wondering where my brushes are, I’ll probably end up chucking them in a Ziploc bag and stuff them between soft things somewhere between my clothing.

That’s it for this travel makeup bag. I’m extremely excited to get back out there snowboarding since it’s been far too many years!