At home I have a draw full of make up. Brands, styles, sizes, colours - you name it, I've got it. But a few days ago it suddenly hit me that sadly the whole drawer can't come with me in my backpack.

No matter how much I'd love to try and squeeze those extra products down the sides of my clothes and into every corner of my trainers, for a 3 month 'walking around in the sweltering hot weather' holiday it's just not worth it. On a day-to-day basis I don't actually wear that much make up anymore. I've come to realise that more often than not, less is more. And even though I have handfuls of different brands of foundation, foundation itself is something that's only actually seen on my face if I'm going somewhere nice or for a night out. Concealer pretty much just does the trick so it's made my make up packing a nice and easy one.



So, what am I actually taking with me? Like I've mentioned in my previous post, I'm quite a girly girl. But although I am this girly girl, I'm also very aware that all of this will probably go out of the window about 2 weeks into my trip - "you really won't care what you look like" everyone keeps telling me and I probably won't. But it's still nice to try and make yourself look a little bit acceptable isn't it? Especially these days, just as long as we've done our eyebrows in the morning we feel like we can conquer anything. It just gives you a little bit more confidence as well doesn't it. Even though it looks like I'm taking quite a lot it really isn't much at all and fits very comfortably into my toiletry bag. I've also tried to purchase/pack quite a few cheap high street brands compared to the more high end brands just incase I loose any - that way I won't be too hung up about it incase they go missing.

Face: Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer x2 £4.19 (the best concealer around fyi), Benefit Hoola Bronzing Powder £23.50, Collection Contour Kit £3.99, Body Shop Brow & Liner Kit £10, Benefit Browzings £24.50, Real Techniques Expert Face Brush £5.99, Bronzer Brush.

Eyes: Maybelline Colour Tattoo Eyeshadow £4.99, Rimmel Eyeshadow Quad £4.90, Benefit They're Real Mascara £18.50, Bourjois Volume Mascara £7.99, Maybelline Master Drama Khol Liner 5.99.

Lips & Other: Carmex Lip Balm £1.99, Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick £26, L'Oreal Color Riche Lipstick £6.99, Eyeliner Sharpner £1.99, Maybelline Nail Base Coat £2.30, Sally Hansen Nail Polish £6.99.

So the nerves have officially started to kick in... In just under a week I'll be 3 hours away from landing in Hong Kong and ready to begin my 3 month journey around South East Asia. Our first stop? New Year in Hong Kong.

I can't imagine we'll be doing much that first night other than crashing straight out in our beds after what will be an exhausting 17 hour flight from Manchester. But I already can't wait to see what Hong Kong has to offer, firstly in the way of bars and street food seeing as it will be New Year after all. We've not really got an idea of where to go on New Years Eve yet, but we've pretty much just planned to go with the flow and head down to the river/skyline stopping at a few bars along the way (obviously).

But I'm not going to lie, even though I'm stupidly excited for the next 3 months, I'm also bloody terrified. I've never done anything like this before so it's going to be a shock and an experience to say the least. I think my biggest worries are:

1. Will I like it?!
I know there's going to be thousands of other backpackers in the same situation as us trecking around looking for places to stay and people to meet, but I can't help but worry that I'm not going to like the whole hostel/living out of a backpack thing. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm usually quite a girly girl who loves spending a good 40 minutes deciding on an outfit and straightening my hair. But I guess that's all just going to have to go out of the window and the hair situation? Well, Kerastraight has pretty much saved my life.

2. How do I get around?
I'd say this is the second biggest nervy thought for me, as back home I rely on my car so so much. We've decided that we're mainly going to get around the countries by land, so trains/buses/boats etc. We're going with the locals. But how do you book them? Where do you go to get on them? Ahhh it's all so overwhelming, especially speaking in a foreign language and with a huge backpack taking everyone around me out! Guess we'll just find out there.

3. What if my stuff gets stolen?
Now for this one I think I can speak on many peoples behalf's and say: Biggest. Worry. Ever. What a flipping nightmare if anything gets nicked. I know loads of people (*adults*) say 'don't take your iPhone' but come on, this is 2015. Do us young ones go anywhere without our iPhones these days? Sorry mum but I need to FaceTime and access social media. The phone's coming with me whether it gets nicked or not.

4. How do I deal with the money situation?
I put a status about this on Facebook recently and received some pretty helpful advice and information. I wasn't (and I'm still not) 100% sure on how to withdraw my money over there and if I'll be charged etc etc etc. But after hearing a few peoples stories and advice I've decided to go with the CaxtonFX pre-paid master card. You just put money on it from your bank account as and when you need it, and you can also download an app to go with it to make life even easier. Sounds pretty good to me. I just hope it doesn't get nicked and I don't get charged a fortune every time I use it! Or run out of money...

To be honest, I've found that looking at other people's blogs who are or who have experienced travelling has really helped me. There's so much advice on them that I wouldn't have even thought about getting/looking into. For example, packing cubes - genius. They also give amazing advice on how to actually pack your backpack, which is perfect for me and anyone like me, who would take their whole bedroom if they could. Anyway, below are a couple of my faves:

. Travel Fashion Girl - http://travelfashiongirl.com/
. Blonde Chick Travels - http://www.blondechicktravels.com

I've got to admit, I was a little bit hesitant about whether or not to put the 'before & after' photo up simply because not many people have seen my hair in it's natural 'just been dried and completely blasted with the hairdryer' state - yep, I'm usually GHD's #1 fan.. But I really wanted to show off just how amazing this treatment is and the effect it's had on my hair. And yes, that second photo really is hairdryer only with no styling, simply just brushed with a paddle brush alongside the hairdryer. I know, I couldn't believe it either!

I heard about Kerastraight around 2 years ago now but never really thought about going ahead with it or researching it until very recently. But let me tell you, it's one of the best things I've ever had done. Before I explain what it is, I just want to emphasise that it really does not damage your hair. Although it's essentially a straightening product, it manages to create the softest locks without an ounce of split ends or damage. In fact, my hair has never felt (or looked) healthier! The treatment involves a few different stages, with a couple of washes after each one to allow to the product to really sink into your hair. Amongst the couple of washes there's also a few blow dry's, a handful of straightening irons and a lot of brushes, but the 3-4 hours (depending on the thickness/length of your hair) of sitting in the salon seat is well worth it.

It usually takes me a lot of patience to properly dry my hair after washing it, which is why I mainly just tend to blast it then take to the straighteners to make it look acceptable - or failing that, a bun seems to have become my most recent go to. But after having the Kerastaight it literally takes me 10 minutes to style my hair and that's it, I'm good to go. Not only that, but I don't even have to put any additional products on it or straighten any fly-aways, it really is incredible.

The main reason behind my decision to get this treatment is because of my soon-to-be travels around South East Asia. As I'll be visiting a part of the world where even a drop of humidity turns my hair into an afro, I thought it was the perfect excuse to give Kerastraight a try.

My hair is something I dread having to deal with on a daily basis let alone a 3 month backpacking trip, and so I can't begin tell you just how excited I am to be able to have manageable hair for once. The frizz is gone, the curls are gone, and the endless minutes holding onto a hairdryer with an aching arm has gone. For us girls with curly hair, that really is a life changer!

I got mine done at The David Thomas salon at Wrightington Country Club, but I'll pop a link below to the official Kerastraight website if you fancy having a look at where your local salon is. It is quite a pricey treatment - mine cost me around the £200 mark - however I really cannot recommend it enough. It lasts about 6-8 months, and so I really do think it is worth the money. The only downside is that I can feel this becoming a teeeeny addiction which is not going to be great for my bank balance.. Ahhhh.

Anyway, if you want to check it all out in detail here's the link: http://www.kerastraight.com