After I posted about my love of dry-shampoo a few weeks ago (you can read it here), I got a ton of emails asking about my my general overall haircare routine when I’m traveling (what shampoo & conditioner I pack?, which products do I like best?, do I bring a hairdryer?, etc).

As I’ve said before I have high-maintenance hair—and it requires a ton of tools and tricks to even get it presentable.  I used to use the shampoo/conditioner that the hotel supplied, but now I bring my own (I told you, I’m super high-maintenance about my hair). I think the products from celeb-hair-guru Jen Atkin‘s line Ouai are incredible (you can find a great selection here and here).  I love her shampoo & conditioner (and her hair oil is also fantastic). I’ve also had friends tell me that her wave-spray is top-notch and they’re addicted to it.  Davines also makes great shampoo & conditioner and I love the way it smells (I often use the ‘Love’ shampoo, which is the purple-colored one).

My hair is really dry and frizzy so even if I use the best shampoo I still need to add great product before I blow dry.  This leave-in conditioner from It’s a 10 works wonders and leaves my locks incredibly soft.  I also sometimes use this Hydrating Styling Cream or the classic oil, both from Moroccanoil (I only use a teeny-tiny amount).  This Rodin hair oil, infused with sweet almond oil and sunflower oil is still one of my faves.

I pack this Balmain round brush because I need it to get my hair smooth.  This pink hairbrush from Mason Pearson is technically a child-size brush but it’s perfect for travel. A few years ago I was introduced to the “wet-brush” which is awesome because as any hairdresser will tell you it’s really damaging to brush your hair when it’s wet.  I use the regular size at home and keep this small travel-sized version with me when I’m away.

I also travel with my T3 compact hairdryer.  The ones at the hotels are usually ok, but I like to have my own (high-maintance hair!).  And if I’m going somewhere with humid weather (such as Miami) I bring my T3 flatiron…I’m always happy to quickly run it through my hair to make it less ‘puffy’.

And if I’m being totally honest, when I’m traveling in the USA (New York, Miami, San Francisco, etc) I really try and go get a blow-out somewhere like the DryBar because no matter how much ‘stuff’ I bring for my hair it just looks better when someone else does it…sigh.

You can see more of what else I pack in my suitcase here.