Essentials for an Overnight Stay

During the holidays, you find yourself traveling to places you ordinarily wouldn't go. Most of the time it's to find that perfect gift, visit family or in my case, a company Christmas dinner. My husbands company is based a few hours away from home so we decided to make it an overnight stay. I mean really, who wants to drive hours home after eating a huge meal? The answer ... Nobody! Driving on a full belly and dressed in stuffy clothes is no ones idea of a fun night. So while I was packing for this quick overnight stay, I decided to put together a few essentials that get the job done, yet, keep the packing to a minimum.

1. A medium sized weekender bag.

2. Prepping is a must. Since I knew we were going to be getting to our destination around 3 and dinner was at 5 I had to come up with a plan to make my getting ready process a bit shorter. So before I left the house, I washed my hair. I didn't use any conditioner because I didn't want my hair to be weighed down. I lightly sprayed my hair down with my Loreal Dry Oil and ran a small amount of Big Sexy Hair Blow Dry Volumizing Gel through before grabbing my blow dryer. After blow drying, I sprayed my Tresemme Thermal Creations Curl Activator Spray lightly over all of my hair and combed it through. My hair was now prepped and ready for styling a few hours later. I applied some face moisturizer and was on my way. 

3. For the ride there: A broken in pair of boyfriend jeans, a plain white fitted tee, a comfy cardi (cardigan for those of you who don't use the word cardi for short ;)) and don't forget a cozy pair of moccasins. (Mine are a couple of years old and probably should have been thrown out long ago BUT I CANT LET THEM GO! They're just too cozy.)

Sorry for the shaky picture. I'm literally writing this on my ride home. 

4. Two organizer bags: 

         •one for hair and toiletries

In the first pouch:Toothbrush, deodorant, a small makeup bag of bobby pins and accessories. 

In the second pouch: Hairspray, paddle brush and a hair tie. 

In the third pouch: Hair Tools. I brought a reverse wand and my curl perfect curling iron just in case I wanted looser curls. Hey, just because you pack minimally doesn't mean you can't have options... Amirite??!!!

         •one for makeup

With a bag like this, you can easily pack everything you will need for a full face of makeup and organize your brushes so that they don't get ruined in you bag. 

5. A versatile eyeshadow palette

I brought my Lorac Pro palette 1) because I love it. 2) because it has a nice selection of matte and shimmer 3) because it's compact and easy to store and 4) it contains a range of colors that can be used for day or night looks. 

6. In your weekender bag: A long T-shirt to sleep in. A pair of yoga leggings and an oversized sweater for the ride home. Your organizer bags. Phone charger. 

Last but not least, the reason for the whole trip...

7. A garment bag with a classic little black dress and matching shoes. You can use the cardigan you wore on the ride up to complete the look.

**unfortunately I completely forgot to take pictures**

Throw it all in the car and you are on your way!  

Hope you liked the tips! 

Thanks for stopping by The Messy Vanity,

Kat