Camping. I did it, and survived.

If there's one thing a makeup artist can't get down with, it's dirty hands and dirty nails. But when you're camping, there's kind of no escaping it. And letting go of fastidiousness is one of the things that's great about it. You get dusty, dirty, sweaty and there's little you can do to prevent it. Now look, if you had told me 10 years ago that I would voluntarily go camping I would have told you to your face that you were straight up crazy. Even the thought of glamping, you know basically sleeping in a cabin with an actual bed, would have elicited a solid belly laugh from me. But here I was, sleeping in a tent, in a national park with rattlesnakes and owls and god knows what else.

Let me tell you what allowed this trip to be manageable for me: beauty products. Hear me out, I'm no diva and I don't need to wear makeup in the woods, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about a handful of necessities that got me through the weekend still feeling like a civilized human being, instead of a woman who had quickly evolved into some form of a Sasquatch.

So let's break it down...

DEET-free, and gently moisturizing, Golden Hour Insect Repellent from Kinfield kept the bugs at bay.

Made from a highly effective strain of Indonesian citronella and essential oils, I not only smelled just lovely, but was 100% bug free.

Are you one of those folks that has a hand cream stashed everywhere? I am. And this one is my ride or die. Moisturizing, but it soaks in quickly without a crazy heavy residue. You can’t camp with greasy hands.

Easy to apply and very pocket-friendly. A perfect post-s’mores sneaky beauty moment by the campfire. 

Dirt and a sticky serum or a rich moisturizer aren’t a great match and when you’re camping, I learned that dirt is pretty unavoidable. This one is lightweight and gets the job done without your face feeling like fly paper.

I’m sure there are very chic campers out there but I got pretty no nonsense about it. Hair up and off the face was non-negotiable. A claw clip never fails you and this one feels like an elevated version.

Keeping everything from melting pretty important; the days are hot and the nights are cold in the mountains around Los Angeles. This bag saved my essentials from melting/freezing.

What a sight to behold when I got home. I practically ran to my nail brush. This tidied up my nails and cuticles like nobody’s business. 

Because, beer and camping just make sense.