Beach Bag Essentials

 

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Summer is now in full swing. After a whole month of superb weather here in the UK I got used to wearing my bikini on a daily basis and having my back garden as an office. So despite having to work, I’ve been rocking the big hat and bikini whenever I could.

Here are my current beach bag essentials, which I’ve been carrying around. I hope it’ll give you some inspiration for your summer holiday. Whether you’re packing your flip-flops right now or you still have to wait a few weeks before you’ll enjoy the sea, sun and hot sand. Perhaps just like myself this year you’ll just make use of the sunny weekends and Brighton beach or your back garden. No matter what way, it’s good to have your essentials ready to keep your skin in top condition!

Miami Splash – The bikini! 

 

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If you love summer holidays and lying on the beach then you’d love Melissa Odabash bikinis and maxi dresses. We may not wear much on the beach except high SPF but when we do it let’s do it right. Melissa’s bikinis have great shapes and colours. Melissa Odabash is a luxury beachwear designer so be prepared to splash out too.

I haven’t treated myself to a decent bikini for nearly 5 years. This just shows when the last time I was on a summer chill out holiday… Along time ago. I therefore could justify £90 for this gorgeous Miami Splash bikini in preparation for our summer holiday. I picked it up in Melissa’s Chelsea store at 93 Walton StLondon, SW3 2HP.

We were planing a 2 weeks road trip in Italy this summer with Mr.D but unfortunately we had to change our plans. Now I’m just making the most of the weather in the UK rocking my new bikini even on a working day in my back garden!

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The hat!

The bigger the better! I picked mine up from Accessories. A hat will make you look incredibly fashionable on the beach but most of all it prevents getting burned on your face. I had sun stroke as a kid and without the hat I get a headache so for me summer = hat. Always.

The SPF

It’s shocking how many people are choosing a lower SPF when going on summer holiday in the hope of getting a better and darker tan. When you’re choosing factor 30 over 50 it may seem like a big difference when you look at just the number spread. Between 30 and 50 there’s quite a few numbers right? Well no! You see SPF doesn’t work like that. The protection is measured in % and difference between SPF 30 and SPF 50 is only 1% so you may as well get the higher protection and reduce sun damage. (SPF 15 has 2 % lower protection than SPF 30). If you have your summer holidays in the pipeline or just like to know your stuff I recommend you go over to the 5 things you don’t know about sun protection and should.

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In my beach bag there’s always plenty of SPF protection. This year I was loving Clarins Sun Care Oil Spray SPF 30 and Dry Touch formula from Piz Buin. On my face I always use at least SPF 30 even if I’m not in the sun. This year it was also Dry Touch formula for the face from Piz Buin. It performed extremely well on my oily-ish skin and allowed me to apply my makeup without any problems. When I know I will be in direct sun, I tend to reach for SPF 50 for my face and I’ve been loving Kiehl’s Ultra Light Daily UV Defense. I love it no matter if it’s winter and I’m skiing high up in the mountains or it’s summer and I’m by the beach.

The one area of your body you never care about. Protecting Sun Veil

For me this is a new category. I never used to bother to much about protecting my hair, not in the summer and not at the beach. After some time of highlighting and not giving my hair the care it deserved, it took me ages to get my hair back to a top condition again. I’ve learned my lesson and now I’m giving my hair the care it deserves. Using protecting sun hair care is important if you’re highlighting or colouring your hair. The same for dry hair or if you have lovely shiny locks and would like them to stay that way. I found something truly wonderful from Phyto Paris. Look for the Protective Sun Vail from the PHYTO PLAGE range by PHYTO Paris, it’s truly wonderful. First of all your hair will smell divine as if you were in a beautiful garden in bloom. It’s so light it won’t make your hair look greasy and so you’ll be able to join the bar for after beach cocktails looking gorgeous. It will leave a light vail on you hair to protect your hair from sun damage, chlorine and salt.

After Dark, After Sun.

When the sun hides behind the horizon it’s time to pull out your After Sun. After Sun balms are rich in hydrating agents and Vitamins such as A and E to capture free radicals and reduce the damage sun causes to the skin. Staying in the sun can dry your skin out that’s why it’s so important to use a good hydrating and regenerating product after coming off the beach. The better hydrated your skin, the better the tan you’re going to get. It’ll also last longer, as dryer skin will flake quicker.

This year I’ve tried something new, the After Sun Moisturiser with Self Tan from Clarins. It was fantastic in hydrating my skin and having a soothing effect. It might not be my favourite only because I don’t like self tan in general but as this year I only had a day or two to get some tan, it actually worked quite well allowing me to get a deeper tan faster. So if you’re after a quick golden sun tan, look this way. If you’re like me and not that bothered how dark you look, there’s also a version of the same after sun product with no added self tan. 

A few other bits and bobs I’d like to throw into my bag too.

I’d always have a couple of hair bands. Over the last few months I’ve been using only invisibobble and I’ve been loving it. I can’t see myself going back to a traditional hair band any time soon. These not only don’t kink my hair but they’re super easy to remove without breaking your hair.

A lip balm is also a must. Going into the sea or even sun alone can sometimes dry your lips just as much as winter windy weather. I simply like to be prepared for any circumstances.

Good music and a book plus a pair of sunglasses and you’re good to go.

Enjoy the sun this summer.

 

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