All posts tagged: holy grail

Get your glow on with BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Opal

Published by

I was incredibly surprised at how much people wanted to find out what I thought about this product. I had posted a picture of it on Instagram and briefly mentioned it in my Highlighter/Illuminator Inventory way back when. The item in question is none other than the BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Opal. Product Description: “A water-based moisturiser with an SPF of 20+ and light-diffusing particles of shimmer that creates instant radiance and vitality and reduces imperfections.” This sort-of cream is a kind of a lightly burnt bronze-y color with a lot of shimmery particles. Supposedly, this is the key to a natural glow. I think it was buzzed about for a while in the beauty community because of Lisa Eldridge. I don’t know what particular video that was, but if you know this product, chances are, it was because of her. So. How do you use these? You can mix them into a liquid base product like a foundation, a tinted moisturizer, or a BB Cream. This is my preferred method of applying it, …

Save Face with Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer

Published by

One of my favorite new acquisitions is the Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer, which Sarie brought back for me from her trip to the States two months ago. Because it’s been so humid in Manila, I’ve taken to using just my bareMinerals Original Foundation (loose) in Medium Beige. I’ve found that using it with this yields the best results. I was never a fan of primer, really—I didn’t see the need—so I’m surprised that I had asked Sarie to bring this back for me, as I had my eye on a lot of other things. I’m incredibly glad I did, though, because it works wonders! Product Description: A mineral-based, water-resistant primer with SPF 15 that neutralizes the skin, minimizes shine, and creates a smooth, uniform canvas for flawless makeup application. What it does: This clean, satin-finish formula helps keep makeup looking fresh and prevents fading. Veil Mineral Primer also absorbs excess oils and minimizes the appearance of pores by evenly distributing light to help hide and soften skin imperfections and fine lines. It is formulated without …

Softly Sometimes & the Holy Grail: My HG Products

Published by

Liz of Project Vanity posted her Holy Grail products yesterday and I thought I’d do the same! If you didn’t already know, Holy Grail or HG products are essentially a person’s “Best of the Best.” You may loooooove eleventy billion products, but you probably have a favorite favorite, if you know what I mean. Here are my own! I’ll follow her format and add a couple of my own. 🙂 For reference, I think I am a warmer neutral, around light-medium. I’ve never been shade matched at anywhere, but I’ve inputted (weird word) my foundation shades on Findation, and here are supposedly my shades all across the board. It says that I am an NC37, an NW30, and an NC40. So you can imagine my confusion. I am not very oily, but I do oil up occasionally, and I do have a lot of dry flakes. So I don’t know what skin type that is. Very helpful, aren’t I? Also, I live in a very humid area. Anyway, let’s get started!

Quickie: shu uemura Eyelash Curler

Published by

The shu uemura eyelash curler is the sort of thing that has reached a certain level of cult status that no one else bothers to write about it anymore. And, really, why would you even bother? I didn’t really care for curling my lashes because I always seem to get uneven “curlage” anyway. My right set of eyelashes would be more curled up than the left set and my eyes would look wonkier than it already does, which you’d think would be a hard thing to pull off, but it’s really not. Anyway, I don’t really know what to say about this eyelash curler, so I’ll let the pictures speak for it. I have pretty short and invisible lashes, so I tried to do only one eye with the curler and let you see how it compares to my uncurled lashes. See how it opens up my eyes? 🙂 The eyelash curler comes with an extra silicone pad, in case you need to change them. Be warned, though, that they do not sell extra pads. …

REVIEW: Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Liquid Foundation

Published by

The people have asked, and now I am answering. If you recall my Skin Care Routine video, I mentioned not wearing foundation, face bases, etc. anymore as they tend to break me out. However, I couldn’t get rid of the scare of no SPF on my face. And so the hunt for a light foundation began. I like my foundation the same way that I like most things—uncomplicated. Here’s a mental checklist that I’ve devised for myself: Light to Medium Coverage — I don’t really have breakouts (just minor spots here and there) or patchy coloring (occasional redness) so I don’t need a super thick foundation Yellow-toned, not pink-toned — obviously Doesn’t require a lot of tools/can be applied with fingers Has SPF Pretty easy, if I do say so myself. So, I scoured the internet for the perfect match and I stumbled upon the Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Liquid Foundation. Let’s start with Benefit’s claims: Hello…it’s flawless time! Our new oil-free brightening liquid foundation builds from light to medium coverage for a natural …

Blush Crush: NARS Sin

Published by

I’ve been a huge fan of NARS ever since I got a pan of Orgasm, arguably their most famous blush. I loved the peach-pink golden shimmer, even though it swatched super sparkly under the weird yellow lights of the NARS counter in Rustans Makati. I thought I didn’t need another blush in my life, but then as beauty nuts know, it’s so easy to switch obsessions on parts of the face. When I started this beauty blog, I couldn’t get enough of eyeshadow palettes. Before that, all I looked at was lipstick. Now, I find myself wandering into the uncharted territory of my face’s middle-regions, aka my cheeks! I got a mineral blush from Revlon (which I’ve yet to review), but it wasn’t enough to sate my rather special needs. I wanted a subtle plum that still warmed my face and brought a pretty glow to it. I didn’t want a harsh blush, but I still wanted the oddly pretty flush of pinched cheeks. I think I’ve met my match with NARS Sin. Like Orgasm, …

Benefit’s Lemon Aid

Published by

Benefit’s Lemon Aid is a “color correcting eyelid primer” meant to correct discoloration and hide unsightly veins or bumps on eyelids. It can be worn under makeup or alone. I’d been looking for an eyelid primer I could use as an alternative for Etude House Proof 10 Eye Primer, which I had been using. It tends to dry and set pretty permanently if I don’t spread it around quickly. Plus, the bottle is an annoying curvy shape—like Genie’s bottle, or Genie himself, for that matter—with a lot of places the doe-tip applicator can’t really get to. I feel that wastes a lot of product. I have read up on Lemon Aid, and it seems that a lot of people are not fans of this product. However, these reviews by Musings of a Muse and The Makeup Snob have convinced me to pick it up and try it for myself. Lemon Aid comes in a cute, slim and compact case that includes a mirror as big as its snap on lid. L: Lemon Aid, unblended, R: …