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5 Grooming Essentials For A Last Minute Trip
Never know what to pack when you have a last minute trip? Well while getting ready to go down to Florida for a quick weekend at the swanky, luxurious W Fort Lauderdale (travel tip: you have to check out its Living Room and eat brunch at STEAK 954 for the homemade pop tarts), I had the very same dilemma. After thinking about it and looking through my grooming drawer (ok drawers), I decided the following five types of products are musts for any last minute getaway or business trip:
- Daily Face Moisturizing Cream – You should have a moisturizing cream you use each day, and travel should no be excuse to slack. Make sure to have travel size of your favorite. My personal pick is Aesop’s Mandarin Facial Hydrating Cream. It smells like citrus and lemon cream heaven, and it’s great to live-in up normal or combination skin. ($49)
- A Good Deodorant – This should be a given of course, but doesn’t hurt to remind. For a classy deodorant, and if you ever get a chance to pick one up in London’s Covent Garden, Penhaligon’s Sartorial Deodorant just sounds better than your drug store pickup. It smells like a dapper lad would, and offers traditional notes of oakmoss, tonka bean and lavender mixed with woods, leather, violet leaf, honey and spices. ($30)
- Your Favorite Pomade – Always keep your hair in check and test out different stylers to find your favorite. I’m currently obsessed with Hanz De Fuko’s Modify Pomade, which helps you do exactly that, modify your hair as needed after you apply to your wet or dry hair. Gives medium hold with a slight shine, and I came across it through Birchbox Man. ($18)
- An All Occasion Scent – There are number of scents to pick from, one of your go-tos should be a scent that can work for any occasion. Hugo Boss just released its new Boss Bottled Unlimited fragrance, which features vibrant green notes of violet leaves, pineapple, sandalwood and musk. ($75)
- Lip Care – Chapped and dry lips aren’t cute, so always have a lip balm handy. Another Birchbox discovery, dr. dewy Lip Cure is a lip serum with organic makeup of indgredints like shea butter and coconut oil to keep the lips hydarted, and tamnui oil and vitamin E to heal and protect. ($30)
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#DailyWanderlust: Photos That’ll Make You Want To Travel
If you’ve been following me on Instagram, then you may have noticed my series of #DailyWanderlust images. These are images I find off of Instagram that I reshare and my own for the strong desire to travel they cause. Checkout some that have been featured so far:
Window in Budapest, Hungary. Photo via @earthxplorer
Sunset in Curacao, Photo via @veetravels
Metrocable in Medelin, Colombia. Photo via @shootershane
Hot air balloons in Cappadocia, Turkey. Photo via @davidsbeenhere Read the rest of this entry
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Grooming Essentials For Summer (And To Be Pride Ready)
Recently down in Curacao for South Caribbean Pride, it felt like no better time for a grooming essentials post on what you’ll need to be ready for summer, and also for what to bring if you’re planning a trip around any pride events or day/pool parties:
- Trim – Have a travel friendly trimmer with you for any rogue hairs. The Micro Touch Max Personal Hair Trimmer is an inexpensive trimmer that can take care of any unwanted facial, eyebrow, body or nose hairs, and has a built in light if needed. ($15)
- Be Fresh – ManCave Natural Grooming’s Deodorant is an eco-friendly, aluminum-free liquid deodorant that is easily applied and controlled by an on/off switch and will keep you fresh for a full day. ($13)
- Treat Yo Self – Feel good and get some lovely skin to turn heads with GlamGlow’s ThirstyMud Hydrating Treatment. Use overnight or just 20 minutes during the day, the hydration mask mositurizes and replenishes your skin, and leaves you with a silky, reenergized feeling. ($69)
- To Keep The Hair In Check – Star Wax Premium Pomade in Clay uses a blend of jojoba, borage, primrose and Dead Sea mud for a strong hold with a matte finish that is easy to rinse off when your day/night is done. ($40)
- For The Sun – Epicuren’s Zinc Oxide Perfecting Sunscreen helps fight off sunburn and sun poisoning with it is SPF 27 level and zinc oxide property. It’s also fragrance free, leaving you to add a nice scent. ($50)
- A Sexy Scent – Top it all off with a scent others will love. Giorgio Armani’s Armani Code brought me complements from all over with its combo of bergamot and lemon with hints of orange tree blossom, warmed wood and tonka bean. ($65)
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Curacao’s South Caribbean Pride 2014: Photo Diary
The Dutch island of Curacao is one of the most gay-friendly escapes in all of the Caribbean, and that’s not just because of the colorful architecture that’s all over the island. Though there’s only one gay bar on the island, G-Lounge in the popular neighborhood of Punda in Willemstad, that doesn’t stop the community from having a good time, as they can be found through all the clubs and bars in Curacao. The island even now has two pride events, which the gay-friendly and gay managed Floris Sutie Hotel in the Otra Banda neighborhood recently hosted both. The former Get Wet weekend has transformed to Curacao Pride in September, while a new Pride week event just debuted.
This past week, from April 30th to May 4th, the Floris, Pink House (a local LGBT organization) and other members of the community on the island held the first South Caribbean Pride, which brought visitors from all over the Caribbean, the Netherlands, South America, Canada and the U.S. I attend all the events as I was visiting to work on a story for Passport Magazine, and the first night featured a welcome party at the Floris, which got an extra rainbow makeover (though they do have one rainbow flag out everyday in their front gates).
A drag cabaret dinner went down the next night, with local drag queens and others from New York and Florida performed favorite American and Latin hits (plus a French number thrown in). Other drag queens were walking around serving face and a delicious, artistically presented meal.
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Travel Inspiration: The Picturesque St. Croix
As the largest of the three U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix has a lot to offer those seeking a tropical getaway. Fairly easy to get to, at under three hours from Miami and under six from New York, beaches, food, culture and recreation make up the best of the island. I experienced all last month while on a trip for an upcoming article for Passport magazine.
From the architecture of the Victorian era Frederiksted and 18th-century Danish-styled Christiansted to the beaches and views of Cane Bay, Buck Island and The Buccaneer Hotel (above), get a visual taste of St. Croix below. Plus make sure to check out my article this summer on the St. Croix Food & Wine Experience.
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Travel Grooming Essentials For A Clean, Fresh Face
Changing up my travel grooming essential series a little, I’ve put together a set of men’s grooming products to have a nice clean face while in transit and during your trip, and paired it with an all purpose ready scent. Whether you’re in the U.S. Virgin Islands like I was or elsewhere, you’ll be fresh and ready to go about your day. All are also under 3.4 ounces:
- Fresh Shave – The eShave Travel Shaving Kit includes a pre shave oil, shaving cream, after shave cream and a badger hair shaving brush to use if you want to make your hotel’s bathroom like home, but you also just use your hands instead. Offered in four scents, I enjoyed the sweet lime scent of the Verbena Lime. ($45)
- Worry Free Face – Lab Series Pro LS All-In-One Face Treatment offers four skincase benefits in a travel friendly bottle. It soothes razor burns, moisturized the face, can minizmie lines and wrinkles over time and helps control shine, so pretty much takes care of your entire face for you after you shave. ($29)
- All Occasion Fragrance – Gucci Guilty fragrance features a moderate yet manly floral scent to spray on once you’ve cleaned up your face and are ready to head out. Notes include lavender, orange flower and cedarwood. ($88)
- Keep Fresh While On The Go – Niche For Men are male face and body deodorizing packaged wipes that fold to a hand towel (9″ x 11″) to help you fight sweat and any unpleasing smells from it, while cleansing and moisturizing the skin. More about them here. (Starts at $3 for 2)
- To Store It All – The Coach Crosby Leather Travel Kit is a spacious Italian leather dopp kit that has inside open pockets and enough space to also store any small electronics or cords. ($168)
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In The Bag: Sport Travel Gear For The Caribbean
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In The Bag: Sport Travel Gear For The Caribbean
In this edition of Vee Travels’ In The Bag series, sporty accessories for traveling to the Caribbean to destinations like the U.S. Virgin Islands. Shot at the B in St. Croix, these accessories cover you from running or horseback riding to swimming and snorkeling to just hanging out by the beach or pool afterwards while keeping your belongings well stored.
Backpack – Jansport
Super spacious, the Jansport Growler became a new favorite backpack of mine. Since I like to just do carry-on, was able to fit my 15″ macbook pro, cords, Canon Rebel DSLR, a couple tees and a lot more items in the backpack. There’s two main compartments (one for your laptop and the other for everything else), then there’s side pockets (one with an exterior mesh holder for your water or umbrella), a small front compartment for your wallet and other necessities, and a hidden bottom compartment if need to stick a wet bathing suit or something down there. A polyster body with nylon straps, the usualy Jansport logo has a stealthy leather makeover.
Swimwear – (2)xist
The (2)xist Core Ibiza Swim Shorts takes a simple, classic style and modernizes it with a low rise waist and trimmed legged, so perfect if you want to show off some leg but not so much like a pair of trunks or a brief style would show. Available in eight colors.
Sneakers – Asics
The Asics Gel-Scram Trail Running Shoe is built with a lightweight cushiniong for comfort, so works on hard runs and when having to take long walks if flying with transfer (as I often do). Overall the sneakers are also very lightweight, with a body combination of rugged synthetics and mesh. Read the rest of this entry
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5 Travel Friendly, Light Rain Jackets
The weather can be unpredictable, no question, and especially in the northeast right now where spring has been taking its time. Rain is even more unpredictable, so be prepared during your travels with a handy light rain jacket or parka. Here are five that are travel ready and easy to pack, featuring the new Earth Day collaboration from Ecoalf and Cool Hunting and stylish options from ISAORA and Uniqlo:
Uniqlo SPRZ NY Light Pocketable Parka MoMA Edition ($49, Uniqlo)
ISAORA Ultralight Windbreaker V.3 ($98, ISAORA) Read the rest of this entry
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Must Have: Burton’s Lightweight, Spacious Carry On Roller
On a trip last week to the U.S. Virgin Islands’ picturesque St. Croix and The Buccaneer Hotel, I traveled with Burton Snowboard’s Drifter Roller Travel Bag. As I only do carry on when traveling under a week, especially if I have transfers, it proved to be a formidable travel companion. 
The dimensions (H: 22 in, W: 13 in, D: 10 in) were perfect for my three flights each way to get to and back from the island. Usually it is just two flights if leaving from the city, but I took flights from White Plains. Super lightweight, the roller without anything weighs 7.7 lb, which is due to the polyester body and use of IXION lightweight skate wheels. The wheels are also easily replaceable if you want to spice up your roller some more, but of course that isn’t needed with the trendy camo option of the Drifter Roller.
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