Travel Tips, From Your Jet-Set Girlfriends

Travel Tips, From Your Jet-Set Girlfriends

You know when you’re traveling and you see this impeccably dressed, got everything figured out, seasoned traveller walk by you – or worse – sit beside you on a long haul flight, only to make you feel like this may as well be your first time on a plane and you suck at lifestyle? Yup. I’ve made it my mission to become this person.

There are token signs of a jet-setter in action like wearing mismatched articles of clothing that would, on any other person, negate every fashion rule in the book, and yet on them, look as though these pieces were in fact made to be worn together. Case in point, I saw this beyond fabulous, ageless donna, in the Air Canada MapleLeaf Lounge earlier this month wearing a zip-up hoodie, black leggings, and mustard yellow Roger Vivier Décolleté Belle Vivier patent leather pumps. She was talking on the phone; I think she may have had a straw bag with her or maybe I had hoped for that. Anyway, a fashion misconnection for sure. Lady, if you read my blog — call me.

Mismatched clothing that rewrites the fashion rules (and makes you feel like an idiot for not attempting it first) is the first sign. NB: wearing a black laptop bag, wide-leg Levi’s jeans and a black leather jacket from Moores does not count as mismatched clothing that rewrites the fashion rules. That is an outfit made of disparate items that only deserve to be buried together and never unearthed, ever.

The second sign of a jet-setter in action is a travel kit. If you pay close attention, every person you’ve ever aspired to emulate, imitate, skin alive and wear them to dinner, travels with a small bag of important stuff that in addition to use value, are packed up together every single trip (in fact, the bag usually remains intact and ready-t0-go at all times in the spare bedroom) to affirm their owner’s status as indeed, a seasoned traveller.

In the bag? Here are a few items I’ve gleaned as the must-haves: 1) BY TERRY Rose Balm that they put on their lips and nails at takeoff and every hour on the hour; 2) a leftover eye mask procured from a business class flight on a fancy-pants airline like Emirates – it is very important that this item be used; the eye mask you bought yesterday from La Senza screams first-time flyer; 3) homeopathic No-jet-lag pills in the original packaging that must be just tattered enough, also taken every two hours; 4) a diamond ring – because this little bag is the best hiding spot for recreational jewelry you wear only sometimes when you remember it’s in there and thus, usually end up putting on somewhere over the Atlantic; and 5) a 5-star luxury hotel pen, again, procured on a recent vacation to the Maldives or Manhattan. The following hotel pens are acceptable: St. Regis, Shangri-La, Raffles, Rosewood, Four Seasons, The Ritz, The Plaza NYC, The Savoy and anything from the Aman chain.

Similar to the travel kit, a seasoned jet-setter will always always always have a travel ritual. Motions that they do almost unwittingly, as though they were on auto-pilot, every single time they fly. As you can see, I’ve definitely been creeping and watching many a seasoned traveller from my own plane seat, taking notes and recording every time they take a sip of water or pass gas. Now, the routine is never the same from person to person. The takeaway is that your own personal routine should not change – it doesn’t matter what you do, but that you do it repeatedly. 

For example, I’m currently perfecting my own flying routine. It starts with packing my suitcase until the moment I return back in my own bed (NB: I never unpack right away after a flight. Nobody jet-set does this. We wait until someone we live with can’t stand to see the sight of it anymore so much so that they unpack it for us). My routine is still in the works but one thing I can say that I refuse refuse refuse to not fly without is my requisite glass of Pinot Grigio in the lounge before we board. Like, it’s not even happening without that.

Actually, come to think of it, I don’t do much without a requisite glass of Pinot Grigio these days…

What are some of the things you do habitually when you fly? Leave me a comment and let’s discuss how we can be more jet-set when we travel (or IRL) and if you own a pair of Roger Vivier shoes – should I splurge on them to look like the leggings lady?

Shop My Travel Look:

Roger Vivier Décolleté Pumps // Grey wool cardigan // Black moto jeans // Stuart Weitzman Lowland boots // Charlotte Tilbury travel bag // BY TERRY Rose Balm // Black cashmere cardigan //

grey cardigan travel outfit pink outfit post view from above

7 Comments

  1. April 11, 2016 / 10:17 pm

    girl, I hope you didn’t wear those boots on the plane – taking them off to go through security is just such an unnecessary pain.

    must dos to be jet-set:
    – fly with just a purse as carry-on (could be a tote). Nobody jet-set has time to send more than 1 bag through x-ray machines
    – ^ for the same reasons, put your heavy winter jacket inside your checked luggage! fly light and free as a bird
    – doesn’t apply to me, but i’ve noticed a lot of jet setters go to the airport in contact lenses, and then change into glasses only after boarding.
    – pinot grigio starts at the lounge, and continues throughout the flight. business class on lufthansa? 5 glasses of your finest french champagne please and thank you!
    – DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT EAT THE PLANE FOOD. if you’re jet-set, you know by now that stuff is poison.
    – do not fly in chunky New Balance sneakers (or any running shoes for that matter). it screams TOURIST

    • Justine Iaboni
      April 13, 2016 / 3:20 am

      AHHHHH! These are amazing suggestions. I love the one about contact lenses and glasses – I always do this! Ugh Plane food is vile. LOL I wore ankle boots this time, no way would I fly in my Stuart Weitzman although they would probably be good as compression stockings on the plane.

      Any new trips coming up for you?

      • April 13, 2016 / 7:17 am

        Running away to Dominican at the end of the month before summer craziness starts (since I’m late on the getting a Bachelor thing, I’m studying through the summer too), and most likely taking my birthright trip to Israel at some point during the summer :))) the downside of that is they don’t let you drink during the flight… 10 hours… No wine…. Omg

        Enjoy your time in Italia!! Oh I miss it

        • Justine Iaboni
          April 21, 2016 / 9:24 am

          wowowowow stop. 10 hour flight with no wine? Girl. You better pop a few Gravols before takeoff and pray for a drug interaction with your orange juice.

          Enjoy Dominican! I loved it there. Went to Santo Domingo on the south side of the island. Best food, so many Europeans there, too. Everyone spoke Italian lol. Where are you staying? #stalker

          • April 21, 2016 / 9:42 am

            Punta Cana!! Me and the bf tried out this nice resort in the winter, Majestic Colonial, so this time we’re upgrading to Colonial Club which is adult only (thank god). I’m not about the babies-throwing-sand-at-me life. OH and the Club has all-inclusive room service – breakfast in bed for dayyysssss

            Italians love the Caribbean, my boyfriend became friends with a whole Italian family when we went to Cuba because they all played soccer together every afternoon. They didn’t speak English. He didn’t speak Italian. The friendship didn’t progress much further than “football oggi?”

            #StalkersUnite

  2. D
    April 16, 2016 / 8:56 pm

    That cardigan is incredible. Where is it from?

    • Justine Iaboni
      April 19, 2016 / 7:52 am

      Thank you! It’s actually reversible, too – beige on one side, grey on the other. It’s from Ever New! They just opened in the Fall at the Eaton Centre.

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