It’s finally the holiday season aka the Christmas season. It reminds me of spending quality time with family and friends and a lot of traveling. You can be traveling to some beautiful destinations with your loved ones or travel back to see your family (if you live in a different city). While traveling by plane might sound like a good idea to save some time, unfortunately, It’s a bad idea for your skin.
What Happens to Your Skin on a Plane
Your Skin Feels Extremely Dehydrated
The air in the cabin is extremely dry to anyone regardless of your skin type. According to the World Health Organization, the level of humidity is low, usually less than 20%(source). Therefore, it’s completely normal if you feel discomfort, tight and dryness on your skin, lips, eyes, and nose.
Dull & Tired Skin
Dehydrated skin is not the only thing that will happen to your skin. Your skin also will appear to be tired-looking and dull. First of all, dehydration can lead to dull skin tone. Secondly, your blood flow is low due to the long hours of flying. It contributes to dull and tired skin as well. Lastly, you are most likely not getting enough rest on the plane. Let’s admit it, it’s really hard to fall asleep completely in a tight space full of strangers.
Your Skin is Directly Exposed to the Sun
Your skin can still be damaged by sun exposure when you were flying. In fact, it’s a lot worse compared to you exposed your skin under the sun on the land. This is because you are actually closer than ever to the sun while you were flying. You are exposing your skin directly to the sun without the clouds or tall building as your shield.
What Products You Should Bring
You should only bring what you need in your hand carry. It’s best if you could fit all of them in your handbag. So, you can save the hassle to open the overhead bin during the flight. Make sure that your items meet the requirements of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) standards. All liquid should be less than 100ml and store in a transparent zip-top bag.
Makeup Remover
It’s best not to put on makeup or remove it before you go on the flight. Due to the low humidity and crowded environment, heavy makeup like full coverage foundation, blusher, and waterproof lipstick can really cost a toll on your skin. However, if you have makeup on, make sure you remove it as soon as you can.
The best makeup remover choice in the case is micellar water. An effective makeup remover that will remove all your makeup including eyeliner and lipsticks gently. You should wipe it gently without tugging and pulling your skin. For waterproof makeup, allow it to stay on for a couple of minutes before you wipe it off. Make sure you completely remove all your makeup without any trace.
Toner
You need to prep your skin before applying serum and moisturizer. We recommend using a deep moisturizing toner, like Fresh Rose Toner. Pour some of it into a small bottle with a spitz. Keep in mind that don’t leave the toner on without putting moisturizer. The main component in a toner is water. If you leave the toner to evaporate on your face, water attracts water, and your skin’s moisture will be drawn out. As a result, your skin will become drier.
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Overnight Mask
Honestly, an overnight mask is so much easier and better than using a sheet mask on a plane. If you never tried an overnight mask before, it actually works as a barrier and sealant for your skin.
And YES, you can use an overnight mask day time or night time.
While moisturizer is nourishing, an overnight mask provides intense hydration to your skin. Pick an overnight mask that will penetrate without make your face feel tacky. Even though you can’t see it, it’s full of dust and bacteria in the cabin. You don’t want a tacky product that will allow the dust to stay on your face.
Sunscreen
Like we mentioned above, your skin is closer to the sun than ever during the flight. You should bring your sunscreen with you especially traveling on day time. UV exposures will cause various skin problems like dehydration, dark spots and fine lines. A lightweight sunscreen can protect your skin from the sun without feeling heavy on the skin.
Jade Roller
A jade roller can help your skincare product penetrate and absorb faster. Most importantly, it improves blood circulation on your skin and reduces puffiness. You can hardly move or fully stretch your body on a plane and this can lead to puffiness. Massage your face with a jade roller can reduce puffiness and swelling. In addition, try to alternate your seat position to reduce any swelling.
Additional Tips
Do not wear contact lens
When the humidity in air is low, contact lenses can really dry out your eyes. Your eyes will feel extremely sore and tired. In addition, it’s most likely you’ll try to sleep to kill some time. You will have to remove your contact lenses before you sleep. A pair of glasses instead of contact lenses can save you from so many troubles.
Bring a hand sanitizer
A hand sanitizer can come in handy in the plane. Bringing a hand sanitizer with you means you can kill germs and bacterias before your meal, take off contact lenses, or do your skincare routine without worrying about the hygiene.
Use a multipurpose product
If you’d like to apply some makeup before you land, bring a multipurpose product like lip and cheek stain from Benefit. It can be used as a blusher and on your lips. This lip & cheek stain blends naturally with your skin and long-lasting so you will look refreshed all day. Besides, you can save some space and travel light.
