10 Travel Beauty Products I Packed for the Philippines
Plus, I'm hosting a NYC event for AAPI Heritage Month!
Before we get into this issue, I want to invite you to my first in-person event in NYC! To celebrate AAPI Heritage Month, I’m hosting a meet & greet at Sephora, where I’ll give you my personalized product recommendations and share my favorite AAPI-founded brands. Take home a gift bag of some of my favorite products and RSVP at this link for a chance to win a $100 Sephora gift card. Details below. Can’t wait to meet Pearl readers IRL!
I’ve just returned to NYC after my first trip back to the Philippines in 10 years. The agenda for this trip included traveling to both my parents’ hometowns in Bicol (Camalig, Albay, and the island of Catanduanes), being a bridesmaid at a wedding in Manila, followed by one week in El Nido, Palawan, and closing out back in Bicol (Sorsogon). Whew! Forgive me if I haven’t published as frequently as usual – it’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks and I’ve been trying to be as present as possible. I’ve been connecting deeper with my ancestral roots, spending hours on the beach, shopping for all the local beauty brands, and eating ALL THE FOOD! I’m still processing everything I experienced (check out some of my story highlights on IG), and I am now brimming with countless story ideas for Pearl.
Anyway, let’s talk about how I packed. I consider myself a seasoned traveler and have packing beauty products down to a science. What I am not is a minimalist packer, so don’t expect any “5-4-3-2-1”-type tips from me. My packing list typically goes beyond my basic skincare routine, including facial tools like a microcurrent device, gua sha stone, dry brush, and at least five lip liners in varying shades of rosy “nude” (just in case!!). You can imagine I’ve done a lot of testing on the road–here are 10 items that make packing your beauty routine easier.
Ries Reusable Bottles
These are, by far, the most durable, leak-proof travel containers. I’ve been loyal to them since 2022, taking them with me across Europe, Australia, and Mauritius. They’re infinitely refillable, have a locking mechanism, are dishwasher-safe, and are ~aesthetic~. You also have the option of having them all neatly labeled with “shampoo,” “conditioner,” etc.
Cadence Capsules
These magnetic capsules don’t hold as much as the Ries bottles, but they’re great for shorter trips. I fill them with everything from vitamins to my favorite foundation when I don’t want to bring a whole bottle.
Parallelle Traveller Bag
I’ve tested many travel toiletry bags over the years, and this is the best-designed one, IMHO. It has endless pouches and compartments inside that allow you to organize your products easily. The ridged design of the pouch is foldable, so you can pack your products standing upright and easily display them on your hotel vanity in the bag. I have the Medium and it fits a lot.
Charlotte Tilbury Makeup Bag
The accordion-like design of this makeup bag has five sections. I like separating products by category in the order I do my makeup: brushes, face, eyes, cheeks, lips. This saves me so much time digging through a pile of products in other vanity bags! See how much it fits in my Reel here.
Kate McLeod Body Stone
If you’re worried about having to leave behind your expensive serum while passing through stricter airport security (looking at you, Heathrow), it’s time to use more solid formulas. I love the Kate McLeod body stone in lieu of a cream body lotion, for example. The cocoa butter-based formula melts into skin once you warm it up, delivering long-lasting hydration and glowy, supple skin.
The Rootist Dry Shampoo
Airlines usually do not welcome aerosol cans, so this brush-on powder formula is a great alternative. I love how portable and purse-friendly it is. It immediately freshens up greasy roots and leaves no white residue on dark hair! See my before/after here.
Overnight Blowout
Styling your hair on an international trip can be tricky. Hair tools can take up a lot of space in your luggage, and most aren’t designed to use different voltages. My solution is sleeping with Overnight Blowout in your hair. It comes with three flexible flocked rods that set your hair while you sleep, so you wake up with the bounciest, voluminous curls in the AM. I’d recommend applying mousse beforehand. Watch my tutorial on how to use them here.
Moon Juice Magnesi-om Powder
Adjusting your body to a new time zone can make it difficult to fall asleep, but this powder helps knock me out. I take it 30 minutes before I want to sleep, read a book (preferably physical so you’re screen-free), and doze off in only a couple of minutes. Jet lag doesn’t stand a chance. If you get stomach woes when you travel, it also aids digestive health!
Magic Molecule Spray
I don’t have an elaborate in-flight skincare routine, but I do keep a bottle of Hypochlorous Acid on me. I use Magic Molecule’s The Solution, and it’s good for everything from keeping acne at bay (it’s anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory) to helping with minor cuts and soothing mosquito bites (especially useful if you’re going somewhere tropical)!
La Roche Posay Cicaplast Hand Cream
The constant use of hand sanitizers, dry air, and soap on planes can be incredibly stripping, so I’m often slathering on hand cream all flight long. Nothing beats this hand cream from La Roche Posay–it’s a thick balm-like consistency that leaves hands baby-soft.
Links I’m Loving…
I’m honored to be part of a Maybelline x Bustle “We Are Not a Monolith” campaign for AAPI Heritage Month! It is so inspiring to see such a wide range of AAPI voices from different career backgrounds highlighted. I’ll never forget how special that shoot day was!
Allure Philippines debuted. Funnily enough, they hosted the launch event at The Peninsula, where I stayed in Manila for my friends’ wedding, but I missed it by one day. Bretman Rock and Heart Evangelista are the first issue’s cover stars. I still need time to really read all of it and collect my thoughts (would you guys want me to write about it on Pearl?). I am so glad to see print thriving in the Philippines. Sana all!!
Ruby Ibarra is the winner of NPR’s 2025 Tiny Desk Contest! For her entry, she performed “Bakunawa,” a song performed in English, Tagalog, and Bisaya inspired by the Filipino folklore story of the Bakunawa dragon. Obsessed with her explanation:
"This song interprets the story as a metaphor for resistance and a battle cry against erasure," Ibarra says. "Much of Philippine history consists of colonization, imperialism and martial law — but on the other side of that is a rich history of Filipino people who have long resisted, organized and led revolutionary uprisings. This song, for me, is a statement that my daughter is my revolution and my hope that she will be liberated from the effects of our cultural history."
Loved this breakdown on 5 Essential Filipino Films – adding all of them to my watch list.
This makeup look on Liza Soberano…gorg! So excited to see her working with MUA Melissa Hernandez, who also works with Mikey Madison, Sydney Sweeney, and Olivia Rodrigo. I’m a firm believer that the right glam team plays a big role in making a STAR, so I hope that’s true for Liza, who’s recently had her sights set on making it in Hollywood.
Perfect timing!!! I am going to the Philippines in June and these tips will definitely go to good use. Thanks Kristina!
The second item actually seems really handy for someone like me with a lot of medication, haha!
Honestly surprised the folks at Mega are doubling down on print way after Summit had given up on it. Launching Vogue, Billboard, Rolling Stone, Nylon, now Allure... the challenge is whether anyone's still willing to buy the magazines. If they can find them. I haven't.