Our Favorite Beauty Essentials To Keep In Your Car
Jill Robbins
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Life moves kinda fast. Keep up with it using our 11 in-car beauty essentials!
Life happens in cars, and while we don’t recommend applying mascara while driving down the interstate (we really, really don’t recommend that because dangerous) we all do makeup touch ups or take care of grooming on the go. These beauty essentials to keep in your car will help you do that.
If you live in a year-round temperate climate, you might be lucky enough to be able to stow beauty essentials in your car. Extreme temperatures aren’t good for most beauty products. I live in Texas, and I love early spring and late fall because I can keep a little beauty bag in my car without my products melting or freezing. I usually stow my beauty essentials in the console, although small beauty bags will also fit into the pocket on the back of the driver’s and front passenger’s seats.
Related: A Girl’s Beauty Emergency Kit for Surviving Winter
1. Beauty bag
Whether you have an on-the-go beauty bag that stays in your purse or backpack or you’re looking to stock your “stays in the car” beauty bag, we need to kick this list off with a bag in which to corral our favorite staples for looking glam. A purse size (or car size) beauty bag should be on the smallish side and easily portable. Here are some bags we love:
Related: 9 Of The Best In-Car Organizers to Keep Your Family Tidy
This small makeup bag fits perfectly into my car’s console. This one is from Ipsy but we’ve linked a similar one you can grab on Amazon. Photo: Jill Robbins
2. Car tweezers because of course
Whether you want to get a good look at all your chin hairs or just find the best light for eyebrow plucking, the best place to eradicate facial hair is in your car (while you’re not driving, of course.)
Related: Serenity And Sustainability With The Bentley 2022 Flying Spur Hybrid
It’s no secret that car light is the best light for tweezing. Everyone needs car tweezers. Photo: Jill Robbins
3. Lip balm
A lip balm will make you feel put together and keep your lips soft and smooth when you’re dealing with cold and hot weather. It’s also a great base for a dark or bright lipstick.
I like plain Nivea lip balm but if you want a tinted balm or a touch of shimmer, Nivea makes several varieties that make your lips feel great at a very reasonable price point.
Burt’s Bees also has a great line of balms, tinted balms and lip colors.
A favorite lip balm or lipstick is a top beauty essential to keep in your car. Photo: Kristin Shaw
4. Double duty makeup products
If you have a “can’t live without it” makeup product, chances are it is always in your purse. When your space is limited, products that do more than one thing are a girl’s best friend. Whether that’s a bronzer that will do double duty as an eye shadow or a gel/stain that works on both cheeks and lips, minimizing the number of products you put in your bag is key. Compact palettes with more than one color also offer lots of versatility for car touchups.
Lillie switches up the items in her car beauty kit by season, adding thicker hand cream and hairspray in the winter. Photo: Lillie Morales
5. Girls just wanna…smell good
Everyone wants to smell good and sometimes, girls on the go need a little something extra. I prefer a lightly scented and not overpowering body spray that can do double duty as a deodorant or a scented deodorant spray that can do double duty as perfume.
This Giorgio knockoff is super old school but handy to keep in your car. The scent is really nostalgic for me and fun for a quick freshen up.
If you prefer, you can also snag a pack of these purse sized atomizers and fill it with your scent of choice.
6. Dry shampoo
You probably don’t want to haul your large bottle of dry shampoo around with you. This four-pack of travel sized dry shampoo from Batiste is the perfect purse or console size. Bonus: they smell great.
I like using dry shampoo on the go if I’m switching up my hair style while out and about. I do a lot of buns and ponytails and if I want to brush it down while I’m out and about, a spritz of dry shampoo perks up my flat roots.
Related: Easy road trip hacks to keep your car clean mile after mile
7. Other hair essentials
If you need to refresh your hairstyle, a ponytail holder or a scrunchie (even though Carrie Bradshaw nixed those, they’re making a comeback) can help you craft a messy (but still aesthetically pleasing) updo or a sleek ponytail or bun.
Do you style your hair on the go? A mini brush and a few other hair essentials are easy to stow in your car beauty kit. Photo: Jill Robbins
8. Mini brush
What works best for me is to get the mini version of my regular hairbrush, that way, I don’t notice a ton of difference when I brush my hair on the go. I’m tender headed and I’m used to what I’m used to. Most hairbrush manufacturers make the same or similar brush in different sizes for this very purpose.
9. Makeup remover wipes (or baby wipes)
If you need to do a quick refresh or makeup removal on the go, a quick swipe with a wipe will give you a clean slate. These are also good for correcting makeup mistakes when you’re doing your face on the go.
These individually wrapped wipes are perfect to stow in the car. Unlike a lot of beauty tools on this list, these face wipes can stand some heat or cold temperatures, so keep a couple in your console.
10. Mineral Water Spray
You can use these instead of (or even in addition to) wipes to freshen your face. I like using both because I like the feeling of moisture the mineral water spray gives. It also works great in a pinch when you don’t have time to wash your face and doubles as a setting spray if you’re reapplying makeup.
11. Face blotting paper
These are great (and super-portable) options for reducing the shine on your face without adding more makeup. I live in a hot climate and after a day of running around, I get that shiny nose more often than not. Caking on more makeup when I’m hot and sweaty doesn’t feel great so I love how these blot the oil away and help me look fresher.
What’s on your list of beauty essentials to keep in your car?
Scotty uses the car’s console as a beauty command center. Photo: Scotty Reiss
