Nadja Atwal

Summer is at the front door and almost everyone is making travel plans. No matter if you target the glamour life at the Cote d’azur, the posh escapes at the Hamptons, the family trip to the Bahamas or the sweet escape to Cabo, Mexico, there is always that question about packing some key essentials. I selected my favorites, some with multiple uses and even life-saving qualities. The sun lotion that can actually save your life in the ocean: One day while I was roaming the net for a family resort in Florida, I stumbled upon a newsflash about the deadliest creature of the sea that also likes to swim the shores of Florida: the box jellyfish. Right away I switched my Google search and investigated jellyfish and other unfriendly sea fellows who like to cause us trouble with painful stings. Jellyfish stings are as common as they are painful and can happen at almost any beach in the world. I was mostly concerned about our little son and so relieved when I found a product that functions as both, a water resistant sun lotion and a jellyfish repellent. My entire family now uses SAFE SEA sun lotion – especially before any dips in the oceans of the world. The smell and texture of the lotion is pleasant and the reviews are terrific. The 5-in-1 hairwonder for “Guess-model“ hair all (beach) day long: Big hair is back, but whether your hair is up or down, especially when on   vacation, we need “stuff” that gets us through long days, wind and sand, sun and humidity. That usually calls for several products. Well, not anymore. The highly anticipated Superteased Hair Spray just launched and no wonder it already found an army of followers among top hair stylists. The creator, Jessie Grewal, a young Canadian entrepreneur, delivered something genius here.. Not only does this product give the most volume and lasting hold I‘ve ever seen, it also functions as a styling mousse, texturizer and dry shampoo! This is my product of the year. Now we all can have the hair of a Guess model …all summer long. The painkiller pill and sunburn emergency treatment in one: Yes, we all know aspirin as a fairly reliable pain reliever when a headache strikes (including a hangover after too many beach bar cocktails) plus it can be a life saver during a heart attack. But few know it’s a true skin saver as well, knocking out mild to medium sunburns! Two aspirins taken with plenty of water right after too much sun, brings the inflammation down. An additional tip is to break up an aspirin in a little water and put it on top of the affected area. I tried it and was stunned by the result. Any aspirin will do, but my favorite is the water dissolving fizz tablet Aspirin C from Bayer, that I always import from Europe. It has the extra portion vitamin c (useful when first cold symptoms arise plus an antioxidant the sundrenched skin appreciates) and it dissolves in just a table spoon of water, it’s perfect for applying on the sunburned skin. The miracle face mask in mini format Dryness and aging are often an unpleasant side affects of all the fun in the sun. Since I was seduced by all the hype and ordered the ultimate anti-aging fleece face mask by HADA LABO TOKYO, I got hooked on it. The fact that they come as single-packed means I can just throw one or two in my cosmetic bag and lose almost no space while giving my skin the treatment of a top spa facial. No wonder it was named “product of the year” by the Consumer Survey of Product Innovation 2015. The tunic for anywhere, anytime I’ll never understand why most swimwear designers deliver the same old deep V– neck tunic style that limits us entirely to wearing it by the pool or beach. Suitcase space needs to be used smartly and I was looking for a summer tunic that can be worn from beach to lunch, lunch to cocktail bar, dinner to party. It was many years ago in St. Tropez that I fell in love with the soft, bohemian style tunics from Poupette. Now they are loved and worn worldwide and I even find them at New York’s No1 it-store Scoop – Impressive! Every season they release a new version of their bestselling off-the-shoulder “wear-it- anywhere” tunic . This summer it ‘s the “Monna Tunic” that sets out to be the must-have. www.poupettestbarth.com Have fun in the sun! Yours, Nadja Atwal