Year: 2014

Recent Obsessions: SPF in Lip Products

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When I was traveling around, I noticed that my lips would get more sore and chapped than they usually were. I attributed it to the cold, but also to sun exposure. I also saw quite a bit of lip products all around Japan that boasted of SPF. I didn’t want sun damage and the lips are a part of our body that we often forget to protect, which is why I picked up a few here and there. Except for the Dior Addict Lip Glow, I bought everything in the photo on that trip. I have two lip products by Ettusais, the Lip Essence N Stick (SPF 10) and the Lip Essence with hypergloss oil (SPF 18 PA++). From MUJI, I have the Medicated Lip Cream (SPF 12) and a tinted balm of sorts (SPF 13 PA++). I’ve been making it a habit to wear these under my lip products, which makes me feel less paranoid about their exposure to the sun. They’re all easy to reapply on-the-go, too. Follow me: Bloglovin' • Twitter • …

Unboxing: BDJ Box for April 2014*

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On Saturday morning, I woke up to a super surprise from the BDJ Box team! They sweetly sent me April’s massive box to try out. BDJ Box is one of the country’s leading subscription boxes for beauty-lovers. I think they probably have the best record for hitting home runs with their boxes, in terms of both value and excitement. If you’re a subscriber, you’ve probably already seen—and loved—the stuff inside, but if you’re a speculator, check out this unboxing post to see what you missed this round. Pixy is an Indonesian makeup brand that’s new to the Philippine market. Its tagline, Truly Asian Beauty drives straight to the point of their brand—products that are especially formulated for Asian skin.

FOTD: I Wore Carrots Out

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& I got a haircut. Ooooh! Aaaah! I don’t know how I feel about it yet, but I mostly like it? Gotta figure out how to wear it, though. The top knot, I realize now, is the ultimate lazy girl hairstyle, and I’ve relinquished my lazy shortcuts by cutting. my. hair. AHHH. Ahem. So the lipstick. I actually wore an orange-y lipstick out. I can’t explain it; I got the urge to do it, so I did! And guess what? It wasn’t the end of the world. Imagine that. Phew. (It is Le Métier de Beauté’s Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick in Riviera.) I have this weird “aversion” to oranges. Even warm reds scare the bejesus out of me. The rest of my face is just a serum, a loose foundation, bronzer, eyebrows, a cream shadow, and liner. What can I say? I was rushing out of the house. I guess that made me just bite the bullet and go for the orange. I think I mostly like it, too? What’s one lipstick color you …

My Spring/Summer Makeup Base

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Most days, I like to keep it light already, but as the hotter weather rolls around, cutting down products becomes serious business. Before I broiled in the heat of the sun, I used to be able to just go out in concealer and a finishing powder, but the sun’s rays have a way of bringing out SPF-induced paranoia. My priority is great sun protection for the face. I picked this up in Japan—the Suncut Water in UV Protect Essence—but it’s essentially a water-based face sunscreen with SPF 50+ PA++++. It dries down really well, which is great because I hate feeling gunky in the summer heat. That’s my spring skin care tip, too—don’t forget the sunscreen! I go in with my concealer (NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger), which I set with a powder (Le Métier de Beauté Eye Brightening and Setting Powder in Refresh). The problem with the sunscreen is that it leaves the skin a little greasy-looking. That’s when I go in with a light layer of mineral foundation (Ellana Minerals Loose Foundation …

Notoriously Morbid Beauty Blogger Package & Then Some

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One of the stragglers from my indie makeup frenzy back in January. I was able to retrieve this package when I got back from my trip, which was late March. Currently, I think I have most of my orders from that time. I’m just missing one package from Victorian Disco, which I hope to get soon. I availed of the Beauty Blogger Package (5 samples + 1 mini jar) and got myself a few other samples, too. NM included a few free samples and a Jolly Rancher pink lemonade lollipop. It was delicious.

A Taste of THREE

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One of the Japanese beauty brands I was really keen on trying was THREE. After seeing various posts by Kate, Selphia, and Belly on the eyehadow duos and quads—which, as you all know, are my weakness—I made it my mission to stop by a counter on my trip. By the way, photos from said trip to the land of the rising sun are on my “real” blog, which I use for non-beauty crapola. I ended up getting two THREE Pressed Eye Color Palette Duos, both of which weren’t the ones I intended to get. 02 Love Connection is made of gold peach and red brown. 07 Let the Happiness In is one of the newer duos, consisting of a soft mauve purple and a light brown. The duos are intended to be used in conjunction with each other, as their own shades or layered, creating a “natural three-dimensional impression.” In other words, they are subtle as fuck, but the effect also transforms your eye without anyone really noticing. Which is what I usually like to …

Sleek Blush in Coral 933

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I got this beautiful Sleek blush from my swap with Laala a few months ago. It is a beautiful coral (aptly named Coral 933) and is perfect for the summer, which is actually more appropriate to call this heat we are weathering in a Manila. I’ve faced it a long time ago—we don’t get spring here.