It’s summer time and you know what that means: vacation time! After spending lots of money on makeup products, it is hard to just pick a few select items to fit into your suitcase and carry-on bag. Since I’m going on vacation for two weeks, my ideal makeup bag includes all the necessities (and a few extras) while trying to consolidate it all in my medium-sized travel makeup bag. Here’s what I found to be important:

Foundation Primer:

When sightseeing and taking pictures all day, you want to make sure that your makeup looks flawless and your face looks oil-free for hours. I found that a hydrating but mattifying primer works best when you’re looking for all day coverage.

My favorite is the Too Faced Hangover Replenishing Face Primer because it keeps my makeup look amazing all day and its coconut smell is such a great summer scent. Many primers can be found in a travel-size, which frees up your makeup bag space for even more essentials.

Tinted Moisturizer:

I found that when traveling in the summer, tinted moisturizers are your best friend. Whether they are called a BB Cream, CC Cream, or a plain old tinted moisturizer, they all do the same job and make foundation optional, which means one less thing in your makeup bag.They are a moisturizer and foundation in one, so it’s essentially two products. Plus, tinted moisturizers have light coverage and don’t feel heavy on your face like a full coverage foundation.

My favorite tinted moisturizer is the award-winning Bare Minerals Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream. It makes my face feel smooth and is easy to apply and blend. Plus, it has 30 SPF protection, so you don’t have to worry about sunscreen streaks or sunburn on your face. I recommend a tinted moisturizer that is one shade darker for the summer so when you get a tan, you won’t look super pale.

Concealer:

Concealer is always a must-have in your makeup bag. My favorite combination in the summer and on vacation is to use tinted moisturizer and concealer instead of foundation. Concealer is small and easy to put into your makeup bag. If you want a smaller size or want to try out new concealers, Sephora and Ulta sell some concealers as travel-sized products, such as fan favorites Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer and Urban Decay’s Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer.

Mascara:

Mascara always completes your eye look and makes you look awake. For traveling, you want to look for a mascara that lasts all day and doesn’t smudge. Some mascara products are large, so to save room in your makeup bag, get a travel-sized mascara. Sephora, Ulta, and drugstores all have travel-sized mascaras for your travel needs.

Eye Shadow Palettes:

I’m a huge fan of eye shadow palettes. The problem for traveling is that they’re often too big to travel with in my makeup bag. I find that small eye shadow palettes are perfect to bring for travel as they offer some variety in eye shadow colors and are easy to fit in your makeup bag. Makeup companies, such as Bobbi Brown and MAC offer four color small eyeshadow palettes that are small and have great pigmentation. Other great small palettes that I love are Tarte’s Tease Palette and the Too Faced Peanut Butter and Jelly or the Natural Eyes Palette.

Full Face Palettes:

Full Face Palettes are great for travel. They have eye shadow colors, bronzer, blush, and occasionally lip colors all in one compact. They take up less room and all the products are in one compact instead of all over your luggage. If you’re looking into purchasing one, Bobbi Brown, Benefit Cosmetics, Tarte, and Urban Decay have some great all-in-one palettes. One small compact I recommend is the Nars Bronze/Blush Duo. It is small yet includes these fan-favorite products and has two essentials in one.

Lips:

For lips, I find that packing a great lip balm is essential for travel. Instead of worrying about chapped lips, lip balms are easy to carry around in your purse or carry on and allow your lips to look and feel amazing at all times. For vacation, I usually end up bringing one lip balm, one lipstick that is either a pink nude color or bright pink, and one lip gloss. Lipsticks and lip gloss are good to bring you are prepared for nice dinners or occasions while on your vacation. They also don’t take up much room in your makeup bag so you could bring a few lip products without taking up too much room.