The Best Solution For Bad Hotel Lighting This Memorial Day Weekend And Beyond

Plus 6 Post-Pandemic Travel Essentials

This summer, we’re all embracing a new normal and looking forward to stuffing our carry-on bags and traveling to places that aren’t the next city or town over. Traveling this summer season may finally be picking up pace, and hotels are booking up quickly, especially with the Memorial Day holiday upon us, a day that honors those who lost their lives while serving in the U.S. military. 

Now, if you’re looking for a quick MDW getaway or a vacation with all the bells and whistles down the road, there’s one thing we can all agree on and it’s that most hotel lighting is terrible.

Really bad.

So bad that to apply makeup, you have to resort to sitting next to a window for some natural lighting or risk looking like you’ve done your makeup in the dark or an Oompa Loompa. 

The problem with hotel lighting, especially in the bathrooms, is that there’s typically only lighting at the top of the mirror or on the ceiling. And both usually use cost-effective fluorescent light bulbs, which if we’re being honest, doesn’t flatter a single soul. In fact, fluorescent lighting exaggerates flaws and washes out the face resulting in a heavier makeup look.

For the best makeup lighting for vacations and for the home, you need even lighting on all sides of your face and positioned in front of the face- not from the top. Unfortunately, not every hotel (or most of them) has a full-lighted vanity for applying makeup.

Not to brag or anything, but we have the best solution for this problem. The RIKI SKINNY, of course!

The RIKI SKINNY is our #1 portable travel makeup mirror. It’s the perfect size - not too big and not too small. It features LED daylight lighting and 5 dimming stages for customizable lighting. The Riki Skinny is super lightweight and is easy to carry with a sturdy travel carry case. 

The Riki Skinny is easy to use anywhere - mounted on a hotel bathroom mirror with its heavy-duty suction cups or on its stand. If additional lighting is needed in your hotel room, the 5 stages of lighting will light your room right up, guaranteed. 

Lacking space in your luggage for MDW? The RIKI COLORFUL is another great solution. Riki Colorful is a compact LED-lighted mirror and makeup palette in one. Depot your favorite eyeshadows, bronzer, blush, highlight, and powder and stick them right into the magnetic palette. That’s five full product packages you don’t need to carry around. Keep them all together and at reach in the Riki Colorful.

Not only that, but the mirror pops up and rotates, while the palette acts as a stand. Kind of like your very own portable hands-free vanity. It has lighting on both sides of the mirror and three dimming stages for the perfect level of brightness for your hotel room or on the go!

You know what else we can all agree on? It’s forgetting the essentials. And the essentials we are talking about here are the post-pandemic essentials we now need for traveling. We’ve all been there: super excited for the next trip days away and in full outfit planning mode laying out each outfit like it’s N.Y. Fashion Week. But as annoying as it is, we always forget the most basic items that are usually 2X the price at the vacation destination or airport. 

So check out this list of 6 essentials for your next trip post-pandemic.

1. Hand sanitizer: No comment is necessary. We’ve all grown used to the hand sanitizer keychain by now, right?
2. Disposable masks: If masks are required, having disposable masks are very convenient.
3. Disinfecting wipes: Although airplanes and airports are probably the cleanest they’ve ever been, it’s always a good idea to have some wipes at hand in case something looks less than ideal for you. 
4. A few pens: So you don’t have to use one at a restaurant, airport, or hotel.
5. Selfie stick: First, make sure it’s allowed on your flight. Secondly, before judging, think about it, you don’t want a stranger to hold your phone to take a picture, and they probably don’t want to hold it either. #covidlife
6. Portable phone charger: Some restaurants may still require reservations or to order ahead. Keep your phone charged at all times so that you can quickly order your food when hunger strikes. 

It’s also a good idea to be aware of any guidelines or restrictions in place where you’re traveling to. Knowing all the details before traveling will save you a lot of hassle and headaches, along with taking all your travel essentials and a lighting solution to get your perfect travel makeup look.