A flight attendant taught me the easiest 1p packing hack that means your beauty products will never leak again
THERE’S nothing more annoying than opening your suitcase to find your shampoo or body wash has leaked all over everything.
But there’s a clever hack flight attendants swear by to stop that from happening, and it will only set you back a penny.
Lauren took to her TikTok page to share a video of herself demonstrating the clever trick, as she began by holding up a balloon.
She then cut off the top of the balloon, leaving her with the curved bottom half.
Lauren then used her fingers to stretch out the balloon, at which point she placed it over the top of each product – forming a sort of cap.
She was then able to pop the products into her wash bag without any fear of them going everywhere.
“I learned this from a flight attendant!” Lauren wrote over the top of the video.
And considering you can get a pack of balloons without breaking the bank, the hack is both affordable and achievable.
“The balloons!! I am definitely doing that!! Thanks,” one person commented on the video.
“Same!! My biggest fear is self tan spilling,” another agreed.
“Balloons are much better than clingfilm that doesn’t stick. Thanks!!!” a third said.
“OK, didn’t know where that first one of the balloons was really going and then I was like oh OK OK, I get it, I get it!” someone else laughed.
“Been using the balloon hack for years. Works great!” another insisted.
As someone else said: “If you haven’t got balloons, a condom will work just as well.”
Lauren went on to share some of the other tips she’d picked up from her flight attendant pal, including keeping suitcases vertical while putting your clothes in.
Doing so keeps it tidier, and means you are able to fit more in.
The next tip divided opinion, as Lauren showed how she uses nappies to protect glass bottles inside a suitcase.
She wrapped the bottom of a wine bottle with one nappy, and secured it with the tabs, before putting another nappy over the top.
Hand luggage rules for UK airlines
We’ve rounded up how much hand luggage you can take on UK airlines when booking their most basic fare.
Ryanair
One personal bag measuring no more than 40cm x 20cm x 25cm
EasyJet
One personal bag measuring no larger than 45cm x 36cm x 20cm
Jet2
One personal item that fits underneath the seat in front and one cabin bag no larger than 56cm x 45cm x 25cm weighing up to 10kg
TUI
One personal item that its underneath the seat in front and one cabin bag no larger than 55cm x 40cm x 20cm weighing up to 10kg
British Airways
One personal bag no larger than 40cm x 30cm x 15cm and one cabin bag no larger than 56cm x 45cm 25cm weighing up to 23kg
Virgin Atlantic
One personal item that fits underneath the seat in front and one cabin bag no larger than 56cm x 36cm x 23cm weighing up to 10kg
“This is genius!” she said.
Another person pointed out in the comments pointed out that while the nappies offer a layer of protection from breakage, they can also absorb the liquid if the bottles do break.
“The nappy thing tho!!!! wow!” someone commented on the video.
“Now those are some useful tips! Hadn’t seen some of them,” another said.
“There are so many smart tips here!” a third praised.
As someone else wrote: “Wow… gonna do this on my next flight..thanks!”
Lauren’s final tip on the video was to pop an Apple AirTag inside the luggage, which enables you to track down the case if it gets lost.