Every college woman needs to be prepared for anything. Our lives are so busy and we don’t have time to remember everything. Sometimes, we find ourselves with a broken nail with no nail file, or sick with no tissues, or an emergency interview with no makeup. Here’s a quick guide to putting together a mini necessities kit to make your hectic day a little smoother.
1. A Cute Cosmetic Bag
The first thing you should get is a small cosmetic bag that you can throw into your larger purse. I have a bunch of old Ipsy bags laying around. I’m sure a lot of us have a bunch of little baggies we don’t use. These end up being perfect to hold all the items for our survival kit.
2. A Mini Nail File
I absolutely hate when I’m busy running around and my nail chips so bad that it’s out of shape to the point that it’s catching on my clothes and scratching me. Especially if you work in a place where presentation counts, it’s important to have a mini nail file quick on hand to fix these little malfunctions. You don’t want clients, customers, or bosses judging you just because your nails chipped.
3. Lip Balm
I’m a person who has extremely dry lips. If I go too long without putting on Chapstick, chapped lips are the ugly result. If I wore matte lipstick the day before, then my lips will be thirsting for some balm. Even if you don’t have this problem, a nice baby tint or gloss would be great to have handy for quick touch ups.
4. A Compact Mirror
Needless to say, this is one of the necessary options. You need to be able to quickly check to make sure you’re all put together. There may not always be a mirror available on the go so it’s good to have your own.
5. A Mini Vial of Perfume
I’m not sure about you but by the time I leave my house and get to where I gotta go, my perfume already wore off for the day. Either you can buy a refillable perfume vial from Amazon to fill with your favorite perfume, or you can use all those samples that you’ve been hoarding from Sephora. It all depends on if you want to keep the same scent all day long.
6. Hand Cream
Your cuticles can begin to look dry, especially if you’re over-washing your hands at work or school. Keep your hands looking fresh, smooth, and moisturized with a small tube.
7. Mini Moisturizer for Dry Skin or Blotting Powder for Oily Skin
You don’t want to be defenseless when your skin starts to attack you. You want to be well-prepared with weapons of hydration or oil-control! If your skin starts to flake or oil is dripping out of your pores, having something to combat that on hand will keep you looking presentable and feeling confident!
8. Emergency Brow Kit, Anyone?
It doesn’t have to be crazy. Just get a travel sized brow pencil in your shade with a spoolie on the end. Pair it with a set of mini tweezers for those stray hairs. You never know when you’ll have a brow emergency.
9. Mini Mascara + Mini Lipgloss
The absolute very basics of makeup, just to give you more of an awake look. Some of us may need even more makeup to achieve that effect but for the purpose of what can fit into the kit, these are essential.
10. Floss
Food gets stuck in our teeth all the time and people, for some reason, fail to inform us of such a tragedy. Take matters into your own hands.
11. Gum
Floss can’t get rid of the aftertaste of the lunch you just ate. Having gum on hand will make you feel fresh and unafraid to speak to people right after you just scarfed down a meal.
12. Mini Packets of Medicine
You may need Tylenol or Midol, something for that random headache or period cramps. You don’t want anything stopping you on your missions for the day (and nothing will) but it doesn’t hurt to have something to ease your pain.
13. Hand Wipes + Hand Sanitizer
These are important if you can’t get to a bathroom right away to wash your hands. You can still get that sticky feeling of germs off of you with a mini hand sanitizer or a pack of hand wipes.
14. Period Essentials
We all have stories of suddenly getting our period and then running around trying to find a pad. Eliminate that moment of embarrassment by always keeping a pad or tampon in your kit so even if you don’t remember to put some in your regular purse, you still have one in your kit for emergencies.
15. Band-Aids
These don’t always have to be used if you get cut. I keep Band-Aids in my kit in case my work shoes give me a blister. Band-Aids can be a great relief if your shoes are pinching your feet.
16. Hair Ties
Hair ties have minds of their own. They get lost, loaned to a friend, or snap when we least need them to. Having an extra one in your kit will keep you from going crazy when your hair is pressed to your neck on a hot summer day.
17. Mini Deodorant
These are easy to find in the travel section of Walmart or in any dollar store. If you are in such a rush that you forgot to put on the most important thing that morning, there’d be no need to worry about smelling yourself all day long.
18. Pocket Tissues
It’s not always about sneezing or wiping tears. You may need to wipe up a spill or there may be no toilet paper in the bathroom. Avoid these issues by including these in your kit.
19. Contact Lens Case
If your contacts are bugging the heck out of you and you have no time to go back home, having a case on hand is great if you need to take your contacts out for a few minutes to give your eyes a rest.
20. Mini Eye Drops
If you have allergies, having something to control your watery, red eyes will simply just make your day easier. There’s no reason to suffer from minor irritations all day long simply because you not at home to go through your medicine cabinet.
Not all of these options are necessary. You can customize your kit based on your needs. Most of these supplies could be found at your local dollar store or chances are, you already have them at home or in your dorm. I recommend (if you can) making more than one of these kits. Keep one in your car, one in your backpack, one in your work bag, etc. If you’re always on the go, you don’t have to remember all the extra stuff you may need. You’d already be prepared. Remember that no matter how busy you are, you got this. You are beautiful and powerful, and you can handle anything.