I travel pretty frequently, and I am one of those people that tends to need the creature comforts of home as much as possible when I am on the road. With the horses, this is pretty easy because I can keep a duplicate of most everything I need on my camper, with a few additions to adjust to camper life! (More on that is coming very soon!)
But the trip I am preparing for today is actually one happening in a couple of days down to Cancun, Mexico! Actually we are heading to the Andaz Mayakoba Resort Riveria Maya and I could not be more excited! I love when my work takes me to fun destinations and Mayakoba is one of the most beautiful areas in Mexico that I have had the pleasure of visiting! On this visit, we are bringing to life a really colorful, layered and gorgeous creative shoot for the hotel in partnership with Canteiro weddings and I am SO PUMPED!
So, as I start to pack one really important bag that always comes to mind is the beach bag. What do I bring for those few moments post shoot that we will have to experience the property and the Mexico sunshine? Well, take a quick peek below to get an idea!
The large straw bag is actually from the last Engage that I attended and makes the perfect beach bag! As I mentioned earlier, I love creature comforts so when I travel I always have a few things with me that remind me of home and help me to represent! My True North Stables hat not only shades my face, but I bring my horses with me!
Are those “Ciao Bella” slides not the CUTEST thing ever?! and HELLO – Italy represented in Mexico! Schutz makes so many adorable versions of these (which may be sold out), but find more info on them here
I mentioned in a previous blog that I am obsessed with this company, “No B.S.” because I am always looking for products that are not toxic, and good for me. This sunscreen has SPF 20, and can be used daily to protect against harmful UV rays, environmental stressors, and hidden dangers like blue light from your screen (who knew!). Packed with natural moisturizers like Shea Butter and Hyaluronic Acid, this daily moisturizer not only protects, it also restores hydration to depleted skin without it ever feeling greasy. Not only do I use this every day, I always bring it with me in my beach bag! I do travel with additional sunblocks as well. Sun Bum is my favorite line for all over sun screen. I love the way it feels, it smells amazing and it always protects my skin.
DNA skin also has an amazing sunblock that I love to use, but my main jam from this line is the mist. This aromatic floral mist is a super hydrator and was specifically formulated to increase and balance the essential hydration of the skin. It smells fantastic and supports the healing of scars (and even stretch marks!). It also minimizes fine lines and wrinkles and helps balance skin tone. So, for me that is a solid yes all the time, especially when traveling to warm climates because my skin gets so dry so fast.
Sakara is also something I always pop in to my suitcase as it is TSA friendly and great for travel! Basically, I transform my water into a daily toxin defense with antioxidant-rich chlorophyll— an easy, fast way to harness the healing power of greens. This is also a hearty hell yes for me because I am so so bad about harnessing greens of any sort! Benefits of chlorophyll include optimal digestion, gut health, immunity and liver function, and let’s be honest – when you are in Mexico and maybe hit the tequila a little too hard? This is one fantastic way to put all of that good stuff back in to your body and get ready for round two. 😂
Of course I always have a large bottle of water with me, if I can find it I love those that include electrolytes. The taste is really clean to me, but I am rarely super picky on a beach as long as it can be cold! And of course, I always always bring a book. I still read on planes, before bed and at the park. I am not a kindle person or one who really enjoys movies on planes (unless it is a transatlantic flight then all bets are off so I can pass the time with anything that does the trick!). Dante in love is about Dante Alighieri, one of my biggest literary obsessions. HE was was an Italian poet during the Late Middle Ages. His Divine Comedy, originally called Comedìa (modern Italian: Commedia) and later christened Divina by Giovanni Boccaccio, is widely considered the most important poem of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language.
For William Butler Yeats, Dante Alighieri was “the chief imagination of Christendom.” For T. S. Eliot, he was of supreme importance, both as poet and philosopher. Coleridge championed his introduction to an English readership. Tennyson based his poem “Ulysses” on lines from the Inferno. Byron chastised an “Ungrateful Florence” for exiling Dante. The Divine Comedy resonates across five hundred years of our literary canon. Yes, I know – NERD ALERT…but trust me, the book is bad ass.
Dante in Love also explores the enigma of the man who never wrote about the mother of his children, yet immortalized the mysterious Beatrice whom he barely knew. Literally friends, this man met Beatrice maybe once? or twice? and his entire life was about her. And that work of literary art is a defining piece of western civilization. So yeah, my art history loving, Italian speaking, Florentine/Lucchese soul is drawn to works like this. I find books like this to be amazing beach reads. You can learn more here
And, Bigger nerd alert – if you really love a good juicy read on the beach, and like me are drawn to a little magic – I highly suggest this trilogy!
Those are my faves for a great beach day, be it in Mexico or Michigan (which is pictured below!!) Buon divertimento amici miei! 💋
