(Some Of) My Festival Beauty Essentials – This summer, I am attending various festivals, from music festivals like Latitude to food and alcohol festivals (gin and prosecco mainly). I’m super excited to have the opportunity to attend all of these fantastic events. I know that I’m in for a great summer, but I cannot wait. (It’s going to be INCREDIBLE!)
Now, I’m no festival virgin; I’ve attended a few different festivals before, but the one thing that I always seem to get wrong is my packing. Unfortunately, I never seem to pack the right items, but that’s about to change this year. To help ensure that I pack all the right things for every festival. I attend; I’m putting together a range of festival packing guides featuring the festival essentials that every gal should pack into her weekend bag for the next festival she attends.
When I first attended a music festival back in 2013, I messed up when it came to my beauty essentials, and I couldn’t enjoy the trip as much as I would have liked as a result, so this first guide to all about festival beauty essentials, or some of them, at least.
So, what are my must-have festival beauty items?
Table of Contents
5-Star sunscreen – Beauty Essentials
The first festival that I attended taught me an important life lesson: if you’re going to be outdoors, always wear sunscreen even if it doesn’t feel that hot. I left T in the Park back in 2013, the colour of a lobster. Myself was sore and incredibly sunburnt. I swore there and then that I would never attend a festival without sunscreen again. Therefore, one of the essential items on my beauty packing list is sunscreen.
What sunscreen would I recommend? There are a lot of sunscreens to choose from, that’s for sure, so it’s not always easy to decide which brand to opt for. However, a word to the wise always picks a sunscreen with a 5-star UVA protection rating and a high(ish) protection factor. I like the Altruist range of sunscreen; dermatologists create it, offers a high level of protection, are hypoallergenic, fragrance and paraben-free, water-resistant, and comes in a protective range.
I will be packing two bottles of Altruist sunscreen, one SPF 30 cream, and one SPF 50 spray, both of which are non-sticky, unscented, and easily absorbed. (Factor 30 is the lowest amount of protection that dermatologists recommend using, so I always buy this factor or higher.) I’m easy and will use either of these sunscreens, but the fiance is super fussy about sunscreen and hates being covered in cream, so the aerosol spray is for him.
Dry Shampoo – Beauty Essentials
A festival is essential for any gal with long hair prone to getting greasy quickly. In addition, festivals are renowned for having limited shower facilities, so packing a bottle of dry shampoo is a must. There’s no dry shampoo that beats Baptiste, so this will be what I choose to pack.
Before festivals, I usually wash my hair the morning that I leave, brush it out, and dry it. [I then style my hair into my fave festival style – half up, half down space buns.] I will wear my hair like this for the first two days; I’ll then apply dry shampoo and French braid my hair to keep it as manageable as possible. (I usually tend to leave my hair in French braids until I get home and can wash all the dirt, grease, and grime out of it.)
Light, Breathable Foundation
I’m never one for caking myself in foundation and concealer; instead, I prefer a more natural look, which doesn’t change when I attend festivals. So I like to pack foundation that offers a light, natural-looking finish, like my Lily Comely Miracle Cushion foundation that delivers buildable coverage, allowing you to choose how ‘heavy’ you want your foundation to be.
I love this basis because it’s super handy for travel. As it’s a ‘cushion compact’ and not a bottle of liquid, I don’t have to worry about the lid popping off or the bottle splitting and the foundation spilling out everywhere, which is rather refreshing. Plus, as it comes in two sizes, a standard option, and a travel size mini, it’s ideal for when you have limited space, such as when packing for a festival. Want to see swatches of this foundation? You can read my full review here.
Fake Eyelashes
What’s festival makeup without some falsies?! I don’t know about you, but I never get all dolled up without a pair of false lashes. I feel like my eyes look plain without a little-added drama, which a good pair of falsies adds.
One of my favorite false lash brands is Kiss Cosmetics; their lashes are just so natural-looking yet opulent at the same time. What I love about the Kiss Cosmetics range of lashes is that they are easy to put on and take off, but they are also reusable, and best of all, they come in a wide range of styles to create that perfect look.
The lashes that I plan on packing this festival season are the Kiss ‘Natural Flourish Blooming Lash’ style, which features ‘flourishing layers of lashes’ situated at multiple angles. Plus, these come with glue that (I always find) holds incredibly well and withstands almost anything, unlike so many other lash glues.
Pretty Fake Nails
While I could pay to have my nails done at my local salon, I prefer to use stick-on pins because they’re far cheaper, and IMO, they look just as good as professionally painted nails. I love certain brands of fake nails because they tend to hold well, but unlike acrylics, they aren’t fused to the natural nail by such strong glue, so they don’t risk ripping the nail if they get caught on something.
I’ve tried a lot of fake nail brands, and I have to admit that the Impress range is my absolute favourite out of all of them. Why? Because these nails don’t require glue, instead they have an integrated gel pad inside them, which means you buff your nails to rough them up slightly, apply the cleansing wipe, peel off the gel pad’s backing, and stick the pins onto your fingers. So there’s no fiddling with glue or anything – the application process is simple and mess-free. Plus, these nails come in all manner of styles, ensuring a perfect design for every occasion.
Face Masks
I don’t know about you, but I always find that my skin ends up getting a little dry when I am outside a lot. So I like to do everything that I can to ensure that it remains hydrated. My skincare regime includes cleansing and toning morning and evening, followed by using a deep moisturizing face cream. For an extra hydration boost, I also find that face masks can be beneficial.
My preferred face masks for hydration are from Lily Comely London. These are ideal for taking to festivals because they are sheet masks, which means no mess or need to wash the product off. Instead, unpeel the front, place it on your face, wait 15 minutes, and remove it, rubbing any excess moisture.
I use these masks at home at least once a month, and I must say that I love the results. Afterwards, my skin feels so soft and smooth. Plus, these masks don’t cause redness or stinging like so many others do because I have susceptible skin.
Hair & Body Glitter
You cannot attend a festival without packing a lot of glitter to coat yourself in from top to toe. Being a proper glitter lover, coating yourself in glitter is entirely acceptable and expected at festivals is fantastic. If I could, I would cover myself in glitter every lifelong day… #LivingTheUnicornLife.
There are many festival glitters available, from subtle ones to chunkier mixes. I like to use a combination of glitters, with one of my favorites being the Norvell. Strictly Come Dancing Dazzle Shimmering Mist. It’s easy to apply, as it’s a spray, and can be used on hair and body; plus, it smells like coconut. However, being quite a fine glitter. I would probably use this in combination with chunkier glitter to create a more eye-catching look.
Fake Tan – Beauty Essentials
I love having a tan. Without tanning my skin, I am super pale and pasty. However, I refuse to use sunbeds because I don’t think it’s worth the risk. I know the whole skin cancer risk might be small. But I’m not prepared to increase my risk even by a tiny percentage. So my only option for achieving tanned skin is to use a fake tan. But, of course, the issue that I always have with fake tan is that it ends up looking streaky; even those ‘streak-free’ brands leave me looking patchy.
Luckily, you can now buy use-at-home spray tan kits. Here are simple and easy to use and work just like a regular aerosol, spraying a fine mist of fake tan. There are a few brands to choose from. But one of my favourites is the Norvell, Strictly Come Dancing Perfect 10, because it’s easy to use and does produce a streak-free finish. In addition, it doesn’t need washing off after application; you could even apply it easily while at a festival. Which is why it will be in my bag for every celebration this season.
There you have it, a guide to my festival beauty essentials. Have I missed anything important? Let me know in the ‘comments’ section below.