How to stay stylish in a hot and humid country

Have you ever been frustrated looking at old travel pictures wishing you had dressed better? Well I have, a lot… and whether or not you’re a fashionista let’s face it, packing is a nightmare. ‘What do I take? Do I really need that?’ You name it…. Especially when you’re heading to a tropical destination, you are sure to be sweating after 5 minutes of being outside.

As I became more confident with my style, I learned to pack less and less and how to mix and match the same clothing items making outfits look completely different. This resulted in me taking my first trip to Cuba for 6 days with only a CARRY ON! Yes ladies, it is possible!

1. Pack Light

You’re gonna say Mel ‘dah!’ but what I mean by that is, choose clothes with a really light and loose material. The best tip I can give you is to take way more tops than shorts. First of all they are way lighter in your luggage aka you can fit more, secondly tops are more obvious in pictures than shorts so by doing so it’ll look like you’re wearing so many different outfits during your trip when really you’re not. It’s all about the perception!

My night owl gals who wanna dress up when going out I say stay away from that red tight dress. Yes it is a killer, but it won’t be with sweat stains all over it and believe me, I know first hand because I sweat buckets… Instead pick a loose summery dress that looks both cute and stylish.

2. Long Lasting Makeup

If you’re used to wear makeup you know that doing so when it starts getting hot is a bloody mission, unless… you have the right makeup that will last you for hours! Being an oily mess myself it took me years to find the right products but here are my top 5.

Prime prime prime, this is key to have a layer between your skin and the foundation to make it last all day! I have yet to find a primer being perfect at both mattifying and blurring pores so I used the combo ‘Cover FX & Milk‘.

Foundation is key! The BEST foundation you can ever find to last all day is the ‘Estee Lauder Double Wear‘. And finally we’re fixing all that to make sure that nothing moves with the ‘Makeup Forever HD Loose powder‘ and the setting spray from ‘Milk‘.

If you’re a lazy gal like me and don’t wanna waste time doing your makeup while on a vacay I’ll recommend you to get lash extensions. You won’t even have to put any eye makeup, just your face routine and boom you’re out the door.

3. Bikinis

We’re talking tropical destination and ladies it is time to show off that summer body we’ve been working on. I took about 5 different ones to go to Cuba but you’ll have to be smart with what you’re wearing. One pieces are super chic but I got caught playing volleyball on the beach for 3 hours in Miami once and the tan line I got was, how to put this… less than pretty.

Pick them for quick activities in the water or pair them with a short when exploring if there is a chance you might end up by the water and use your 2 pieces one for lazying by the pool instead.

No need to spend money to have a killer bikini, Ardene and Wish online store are a great option for broke babes like us.

4. Accessories

Sunnies are a must have, first off, if you don’t wanna go blind in the sun but also by switching them up, you can change an outfit completely. The beauty of is that they are plenty of 20$ ones looking extra stylish and trendy. North American babes, definitely check out  ‘Call it spring‘ you are sure to find your style!

A girl’s best friend, Jewelry. They take no room in your bag and make such a statement. If you’re getting tan, opt for the golden colour ones as they will compliment it so well. Check my ‘Shop the feed‘ section to get discount codes!

 5. The importance of the backpack

Chances are in a new country we’re out and about exploring. We’ll need water, our camera, phone, travel guide (at least if you’re in Cuba with no internet) and all the chabam girls have in their purses. But a classic backpack ain’t cute or stylish, instead pick a city backpack. They are as big and do the exact same, with style.

To get the details on what I’m wearing, head over my Instagram page @Melodyvalene. I hope you enjoyed this blog post and happy exploring ladies, stay stylish!

Xo Mel