Before you fly off, spend some time at the DFS to stock up on these beauty must-haves.

by Nejla Matam-Finn

Most of the time, travelling means taking a break and for me this break starts by duty free shopping. To be more precise... beauty shopping at DFS.

Some say that Duty free shopping is not necessarily the cheapest way of shopping for your beauty elixir. While this may be true, the good news is that in Singapore prices on cosmetic sold in DFS have to be cheaper than downtown and I am not talking about just taking out the GST.

But what to shop and what to look for to make sure you make the best out of it? Here are my five tried and tested tips.

1. Mascara

Sadly, I'm allergic to most mascaras and hence I have to make sure to change them very often. Of course, even if you don't have an allergy to them, you should replace them often. My go-to are the mascara packages that you find in duty free. Great way of testing some different ones as well as keeping it clean and safe for your eyes.

2. Stay focus head to your favourite item

In my case, I have two - one is the Sisley emulsion écologique and the second one is the Chanel Lotion 10. Both are cheaper to purchase at duty free. In the case of the Sisley, they often have special travel package where you get your favourite cream with a few new products to discover at a good price. So, head to your favourite brand and see what they have in offer but make sure to pick what you know you will use, and if it comes with extra... even better!

3. Try something new and share with a friend

I always make notes on the best sellers at different brands. Often times, if they receive coverage in the press, these items will have a special package at the airport. And often, these special packages come as "two for the price of one" in regular retail. In this case, I always have a friend in mind to share the love. My last purchase was Laneige water sleeping mask. It came in two pots of 50 ml for less than $50. I shared the second pot with my mother.

4. Perfume

If, like me, you have a couple of perfumes that you use on rotation, go for it and splurge on them. But don't purchase a new scent before testing it a few times. Your vacation mood could trick you into loving it at the moment, only to discover later that it doesn't actually suit you. Make purchases for your other half while you're there as they are likely to have one on rotation as well.

5. Top Up your sheet mask game

I am talking about the high-end ones here such as SKII and the likes. As much as they are extremely pricey in regular retail stores, at the airport, they often have special promos and, in some cases, they sell them by the unit. A great way to splurge on something luxurious without breaking the bank. The risk is that you might get hooked.