Beauty fix: I want to bring my full skincare routine with me on holidays — can I just decant everything into little bottles?

Irish Independent

26-06-2025

Surprisingly, the answer to that is no, says Jennifer Rock, The Skin Nerd and founder of Skingredients.
'In principle,' she says, 'decanting your products is beyond genius, but in practice, it's just not a safe way to work with skincare, particularly for anything active. It compromises stability, potency and efficacy of the product.
'You're exposing ingredients to air and oxygen and also, when these products are formulated, they are checked and tested over and over in exactly the packaging it arrives in. We don't know how it will react with your little bottles, so with your actives in particular, like vitamin C, retinol, even your moisturiser, no.'
You can decant away with your less ingredient-led stuff, such as shampoo, body wash, 'maybe your cleanser', Rock says.
I'm going carry-on luggage and can't bring the bathroom cabinet, what are the must-haves?
Carry-on luggage rules, when it comes to toiletries, skincare and make-up, mean that we can bring a single (approximately 20 x 20cm) plastic bag of liquids, gels and pastes into the cabin of the plane. As we all know, this little bag fills up fast, but it's worth noting that liquid, gel or paste medications can go into a separate bag with a prescription or doctor's letter. Also, these are the rules laid out by Dublin Airport and may differ in other countries and airports.
Rock says she is the opposite of whittled-down when it comes to travelling with her toiletries, but her top advice is to prioritise your active skincare products – acids, serums, antioxidants, retinol – and, if you're going somewhere sunny, keep sun protection as your core concern.
Does vitamin C really help with sun protection?
'Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant and a natural photo [light] protector,' says Rock. 'So putting it on in the morning under your SPF helps to boost the resilience of your skin against excessive light.
'Antioxidants are crucial,' she says. 'The sun is beautiful and I'm not anti it, but it's the most oxidising piece we are exposed to, particularly on holiday.'
Sun exposure causes oxidative stress, which damages skin cells and drives ageing and sometimes disease of those cells. Antioxidants create a protective barrier to stressors like UV rays before they can cause damage. Vitamin C is the antioxidant we hear about most and it's a key bit of your sun-holiday kit.
Look for a 10-20pc level of vitamin C in your serum, she says, for good effectiveness. Some other antioxidants to look out for are vitamin E, niacinamide or ferulic acid.
If retinol makes skin sensitive to sun, should I leave mine at home?
Retinol is brilliant for diminishing the signs of sun damage, but because it promotes cell turnover, the new skin cells can be more sun sensitive. However, this does not mean you can't use your retinol on a sun holiday. It just means you have to be extra careful with sun protection.
She advises against bringing too many acids on holiday, because they can be irritating in heat and sun, but Rock says she uses both vitamin C and retinol at night on holiday. This is harmless because she trusts herself to use her SPF and use it properly.
So sun protection is the must-pack?
'SPF is the non-negotiable for the skin cancer stats, and also from the point of view of accelerating lines, wrinkles, redness and pigmentation,' Rock says, 'and the key thing to emphasise is the importance of reapplication and that's how much and how often.
'The average adult-size body needs 33ml of SPF for proper coverage and that's reapplied at most every two hours, or more often if you're swimming or sweating a lot. So if you think about 33ml each time, you're going to use more than one 100ml bottle on a week's holiday.'
Remember, you can always buy big bottles of SPF at your destination, and the same goes for items like cleanser, body wash or deodorant.
Skingredients 15% Vit C, E + Tri-Mushroom Brightening Anti-Ageing Booster 30ml, €45, skingredients.com and pharmacies nationwide
This latest launch from the trailblazing Irish skincare brand contains antioxidant vitamins E and C – with the latter at an impressive concentration – but with the addition of reishi, chaga and cordyceps mushroom extracts. These are also antioxidants, as well as helping to reduce inflammation.
Heliocare 360˚ Pigment Solution Fluid SPF50+ 50ml, €32.24, Boots, selected pharmacies
This is an excellent sun-care brand, with a huge range of products for all ages, skin types and SPF needs. This product offers broad-spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB rays, but also has antioxidants, including niacinamide, an ingredient that is good for dark spots, with a lightly tinted, non-oily finish.
Aveeno Calm + Restore Gentle PHA Exfoliating Cleanser, RRP€12.99, available nationwide
Layering on the SPF can lead to a slightly congested skin, so a lightly exfoliating cleanser can be a holiday godsend. Some acids are a bit too strong in sun-drenched situations, but PHA (polyhydroxy acid) is gentle but effective in clearing dead skin cells without irritation. This is also a brand you can find easily anywhere in Europe or America.