Foreign lands, foreign beauty products and so far I’m liking what I’m using in the US. From SF to Vegas to NYC, these wonderful new products are keeping my skin in shape.

I read on Gala Darling’s post on her latest must-buy recommendations that included Source Naturals’ Hyaluronic Serum and how it worked for her. After two weeks of using this, I’m sold. I love this and have to get another bottle to take back with me to Tokyo.

I put it on every night, and in the morning, my skin feels soft and smooth. I was getting these little bumps from a Fancl facial moisturizer (which I dumped) I was using and they disappeared after I replaced it with this serum.

Also, I was intrigued that Gala mentioned that baby wipes are soaked with the same formula as makeup removal wipes. To test this out, I bought a pack of 99 cents CVS baby wipes and I am impressed. It wipes off waterproof mascara with two swipes. I just need to follow up with a facial wash and my skin feels very clean.

Remember I was waxing lyrical about Fancl’s Washing Powder? Well, I left it behind in our Vegas hotel (damn, white products get lost on white bed sheets, does that ever happen to you?), so I bought another facial cleanser. At Whole Foods, there was a Skin Organics promotion going on and the video was pretty convincing so I had to try their Mellow Melon Gentle Cleanser. My only complaint is that it doesn’t have suds but that’s supposed to be good for you. It cleans well, smells good, and I’ll definitely buy this again when I’m in the US.

To be honest, I bought these Nature’s Gate shampoos and conditioners because of their 50ml size but they turned out to be pretty alright. A pair typically lasts me three to four washes and my hair is looking okay most of the time.

But then again, it could be that I’m using an anti-frizz hair serum by Pantene Clinicare which pretty much irons out whatever kinks a foreign shampoo does to my hair!

I’m saving the best for the last. I am in love with the orange vanilla scent of this Hugo Naturals body lotion. I feel like cupcakes are baking on my skin and it’s actually working better for me than my usual The Body Shop lotion.

That’s all for my travel beauty haul. I’m trying not to go too crazy but it sure is tempting because America has so many awesome products. You can count on me trying new ones the the next time I’m back.

I finally got to meet the Sephora Vending Machine that features the top 50 best-selling products at their stores.

It certainly stopped me in my tracks. “What a great idea!” I exclaimed inwardly. This is what women need in airports when you’ve forgotton or lost your luggage and you just don’t have the time (or energy) to stock up on decent beauty essentials.

As much as some hotels make an effort with providing branded toiletries, most still don’t and nothing makes me pout more than to use substandard shampoo or body lotion.

Let’s take a look at what goodies are on offer in this beauty dream machine…

Bare Minerals mineral makeup makes perfect sense — foundation that can be powdered on in seconds without a drop of liquid needed. Perfect for hand luggage.

This Philosophy travel kit, USD35, looks like something I would be very happy with.

There are also a host of skincare products.

All you need to do is to navigate the touch screen to buy what you want, swipe your credit card or insert cash, and boom, you get your product in an instant. You don’t even need to deal with pesky sales assistants who want to make small talk.

I haven’t bought anything from this great invention but I will the next time I’m in the US. I was just so well prepared on the beauty products front. Perhaps it pays to travel even lighter, just so I could use this vending machine. I’m crazy, I know!.

“What?! Is that even possible?” is something I can imagine some of you murmur as you read the title of this blog post.

For the first time in my life, and barring one-night overstays, I packed a small suitcase that weighed 10kg to fly to the USA for three weeks. I also brought my laptop and a “handbag” (a big Rootote).

Why would I, a woman who adores her beauty products, do such an insane thing?

Businessmen and women do it as they traverse the planet and you would love this bit from the latest George Clooney (he is one heckuva hot “mature” dude) movie, Up In The Air — the average time you spend waiting for luggage is 35 minutes. That’s a long time and he travels over 200 days in a year so he would lose up to a week if he waited for check-in baggage.

But okay, I’m not some corporate warrior bashing through airports all the time. In fact, I’m a trailing partner who is meeting her corporate warrior just so we can hang out.

So therein lies the dilemma: should I make him wait at the turnstile with me and then struggle with a huge suitcase while we fly in and out of various US cities?

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In my never-ending quest for discovering excellent but affordable skincare solutions, I stumbled across yet another one in sunny Singapore, my home country.

Well, actually my sister introduced me to her new night moisturizer: Fruit of the Earth Vitamin E Skin Care Oil (SGD29; USD20) blended with aloe vera gel from the same brand.

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They are small and cute — what’s not to like? I sometimes squeeze my usual beauty essentials into travel-sized containers and tubes but nothing beats ready-made ones.

These Jurlique minis (left: Citrus Clarifying Mist; right: Clarifying Day Care Lotion) are great for my oily/combination skin in the super dry wintry air of Hokkaido. This Aussie brand, by the way, is white hot in Japan and Japanese women fight tooth and nail to get them cheaper outside of Japan.

Here are the Bliss minis I used in a Brisbane hotel.

They were not too bad at all in terms of quality. What I dread about hotel-branded toiletries is they use really cheap and nasty ingredients, which leave your skin and hair dried out and itchy.

The best minis I’ve spotted so far in my travels are hotels that stock L’Occitane and Bvlgari beauty products. They make your stay (and you) smell heavenly.

If you want a cheap manicure in Bali, head over to the beach. I couldn’t believe that 40,000 rupiah (USD4.20) could get you delicate flowers painted on a French manicure. But for that price, you might encounter less than spiffy tools being used on you. It’s a relaxing treat nonetheless, as you can gaze at this while someone else is making your feet and hands gorgeous.