Empties!

Hi, sorry for disappearing from the face of the earth for a while, work ate me up! But now that that project’s done, I guess I can go back to the way things were. The day after I finished the project, I woke up early and had a nice long hand massage, a manicure, a pedicure and a  haircut. (And I might’ve bought a couple of things here and there, which will be on a recent acquisitions post soon). So, hello!  Here are this month’s (and my first ever) empties!

1. Catena Honey Moisturizing Hand and Body Wash, a biiiig bottle that I got for 88 bucks at Daiso! I discovered this one through my mom went I went home to our province a couple of months back. I love it! It absolutely smells like honey, which is one of my favorite things ever. (I always have to have honey.) And the scent does really last a long time. As much as I love it though, I won’t be repurchasing this because I don’t think the brand is cruelty-free. Boo!

2. Montagne Jeunesse Chocolate Masque,  around Php79 at Watson’s. It’s a cruetly-free brand and is vegetarian society-approved! I love this a lot…I seriously feel the difference, in terms of ‘elasticity’ anyway, of my skin after using it. Fair warning though, I don’t think will go well with sensitive skin.  The first time I used it (in December), it stung my skin a bit which is weird because I don’t have sensitive skin. I got good compliments about my skin after though. Stubborn as I am, I repurchased it and now it doesn’t sting my skin anymore sooooo….anyway, I’ll be repurchasing this again.

3. Green Cross Active Protect Insect Repellent Lotion, a must have when traveling. I have a number of beach trips still coming up so I need a new one. I honestly like this better than Off! Lotion as I feel this really gets rid of insects from biting me.

4. Leyende Face Canvas Moisturizer. I love this stuff especially for the scent: it smells like Mango Butter! (Please Leyende, make a perfume with this scent.) It’s not completely empty but this has been with me for more than 2 years now, I think, and organic products shouldn’t be used way after its first year. I”m not repurchasing this particular product just because it doesn’t have SPF but I am purchasing a lot of other stuff from Leyende (their face sunblock, for one, and shampoo and conditioner).

5. Etude House Sunprise 3 Proof 50+ SPF/PA+++. That was a mouthful, even if I’m only typing it down. Not repurchasing this because it left a grey cast on my face (and this is supposed to be the ‘natural’ one, the other variant of this was whitening. Eew.) and because I don’t think Etude House is cruelty-free.

6. Liquid Neutrogena Pure Mild Facial Cleanser. I liked it a lot, the feeling of something mild cleansing my face. I’m not in love with it though, like say, how much I love my St. Ives Green Tea Scrub. I’m not repurchasing it because it isn’t cruelty-free.

7. Cyber Colors Gentle Eye Makeup Remover, a purchase from my last HK trip and I sort of regret just getting the small bottle. I love this stuff a lot! It’s a very gentle, oil-based makeup remover that absolutely gets the job done. I’m open to new, cruelty-free options though, if you have any!

8. & 9. How can convenient was it that two of my liquid eyeliners went dry on me on the exact same day? My almost 3 year old Revlon Color Stay Liquid Eye Pen (a favorite of mine for so many years now) and the Etude House Drawing Show Dot Liner (which I loved for ease of use) have passed. The Revlon one stays on like a dream and lasts long, it doesn’t dry out easily–as you can see, I’ve had it for years now. And the Etude one was pretty likeable, not as long wearing as the Revlon one, but it stays in good, especially with eye primer. I won’t be repurchasing this due to my cruelty-free quest,  but I have since tried on the Essence Liquid Liner, a review of which should be posted up soon.

10. The Etude Proof 10 eye primer has dried out on me too. Because of the weird bottle, I can’t seem to scrape of any of the excess on the sides. Boo. We did have some good fun together but  not repurchasing.

11. This one I’m saddest about: Stila Smudge Stick in Smoke–I got it in a 3-stick travel set but the other two colors, the black and brown ones have gone practically untouched. I love this shade a lot, a whole lot. It lasts a loooong time too. Definitely repurchasing this in the bigger stick, too.

So anyway I should be posting more stuff soon, yay. Talk to you later!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pegs

One of favorite local beauty bloggers, Ae of An Artechoke wrote a three part-series featuring her ultimate eyebrow guide (1, 2, 3), and with good reason too. She has eyebrows I envy.

Part 2 of her guide showed products and pegs, and just right there I must’ve slapped my forehead. Of course! Pegs! It seems simple enough but I never really thought of pegs! And so, right after reading her posts, I jumped over to Pinterest to check out brows I covet (and hopefully, in good time, I’ll get to replicate).

1. Rooney Mara. Subtle and suavely arched. The ultimate peg.

2. Baby Brooke Shields. I’d like to think I sort of had eyebrows like this when I was younger only less thick, but I may have overplucked (as was the fad) in college. Dammit.

That’s about all I really seriously loved, really. But I did find some looks I’ve been loving for the weather we have here (unbearably hot. Yesterday it ws 36 degrees celsius.) But just look at these looks (not eyebrows really, but the entirety of these looks)! I love!

I’ve also been boooooored with my hair, probably because I never really do anything with it, but I’ve been looking at new hairstyles too. I like bangs but I know from experience that I’ve never really maintained those well, because um, they require brushing/combing a lot and I don’t do that often. I’ve been looking at really short hair too but I’ve sort of exceeded my short hair phase from years ago. So basically I think what I need is something fuss free, something that doesn’t require much combing, haha. Maybe I’ll curl my hair. I’ve never been curly before. Or maybe I’ll have it colored. I don’t know. What do you think?

I’m pretty much into this photo above a lot. Hmmmm…

Any looks you’ve been wanting to try lately?

April Favorites

Sorry for the crappy phone photo (but I’m getting a new camera soon so yay), but I’m on tiiiiime!! Here are my April Favorites:

1. An all encompassing favorite: CRUETLY FREE PRODUCTS! Hurrah! I thought I was going to be limited by this shift, this pledge to go cruelty free but I am not. If anything, I’m exploring even newer brands and I am as excited as ever. If you want to read my previous posts regarding this one, click here and here.

2. Sleek’s Be Beautiful Blemish Balm in Light. I just realized that I never really talked about purchasing this, but I do have a review in my drafts! This is a nice, natural looking (no grey cast!) BB cream with shades that I think are more ‘realistic’! Hahaha. What I mean is, it has shades and a formulation for ladies like me, who have no desire whatsoever to look ‘whiter’–a lot of BB creams have ‘whitening’ properties which I ugh hate. I am very happy with my skin tone, thank you very much. If you feel like a lot of BB creams out there are too pale for you, check out Sleek’s!

3. Nyx Rouge Cream Blush in Bronze Goddess.  I use this to contour my cheeks now and it goes on subtly, which I love.  It’s a lovely sheer bronze that is buildable and not scary at all, because I do realize that it does look sort of scary in the pot. I’m really into cream things now,  I observe.

4. Stila Convertible Color in Lilium.  A staple in my monthly faves, I believe, and with good reason! I’ve had this forever and I continue to love it and I need a new one because I’ve finally hit pan on this.

5. Egyptian Magic Cream. I’ve rekindled my affair with this one–I don’t even know why there was a pause in our relationship. I use this as my night cream and I feel that it moisturizes my skin perfectly, and it also lightens my acne scars. I also use it as lip balm.

6. Art Deco Hydra Lip Color in 08. Manifestations of new loves: the Art Deco brand (I’ve never tried it before and I am seriously loving it now) and shiny lipstick (which I never thought I’d love this much). This is probably the solution to the itch I have never come to scratch: before my cruelty-free pledge I was hungry to try L’oreal’s Lip Caresse lipsticks, those shiny yummy lipsticks everyone has been raving about. So anyway, I obviously didn’t go that route and now I am here, loving this lipstick. It’s a coral-peachy shade that goes on naturally, like I just sucked on an ice cube (which is a very good idea for weather like this). I have put nothing on my lips but this one for the entire second half of the month. Quenched is a good word. It makes my lips look quenched.

7. Nyx Wonder Pencil in Medium. I love multitasking products.  This goes on my lower waterline, and for ‘organizing’ the outside area of my brows and for covering unwanted spots. This is something I have to have in my bag at all times.

8. Essence Ready for Boarding 2 in 1 Kajal Pencil in Destination Sunshine. I love the cream one for my lower waterline and the blue one, for playful days, on my upper lash line. I’m seriously going back for the other 2 in 1 pencil that’s grey and brown.

9. Clean Fresh Laundry. Every spritz is like a much needed cool breeze. I have always loved this perfume but tucked it away for days like these. Now, when the weather is unbearably hot and I always feel parched. It smells exactly like freshly laundered clothes and it transports me to lovely breezy days.

10. Nyx Jumbo eye pencil in Iced Mocha. For lazy seasons like now, I just draw it on my entire eyelid and smooth it out. I can also use this for a smokier brown version by simply going over the outer v of my eyes after smoothing it on my lid.  I also sometimes use this as an upper lash line liner. I love the flexibility of it.

11. Biopha Organic Makeup Removal Lotion. It’s affordable at Php350 for this huge bottle and it leaves my skin feeling fresh.  I thought it would be a while lotion type thing (similar to the Etude Tea lotion thing) but it goes out like a toner-consistency.  Clear and watery. I love oil based makeup removers usually but I just can’t use them with this heat.

 

What are your April favorites?

 

Vintage vlogging

Happy Saturday, lovelies.  I have work on a Saturday (ugh) but I am taking my sweet time before really getting into it, i.e., leisurely sipping on coffee while watching Youtube videos first!

I stumbled onto these vintage make up tutorials! These look pretty hardcore.

 

 

Little purchases as of late.

 

Honestly I always have these baby hauls and I keep doing them so frequently.  I am trying to mentally secure myself that no, I am not spending too much because I only buy few (and not to mention affordable) things at a time but I always find myself at the mall! Haha does that ever happen to you?

Oh well, but I think I needed these. Soooo…

While I do love my St Ives Green Tea scrub (by the way, if you love them too, get the older versions because those explicitly say they are not tested on animals. I’ve noticed that the new ones do no explicitly state this anymore. Hmm…), I needed a normal cleansing gel sans scrub. I’ve never tried Avalon Organics before so here it is.  It’s around 300 bucks or something but it is a big bottle (of recycled material).  I love how it smells! It smells like… the orange twin popsies! I love those, by the way. Perfect summer treat.  Anyway, the first few times I used it it was ok and it left my skin feeling really squeaky clean and citrusy. A weird thing happened yesterday though, it started to sting my face and my face was pink the whole day! Weird. I used it today and my skin’s fine though, so I don’t know what that whole deal was all about.

I got the Superfine Eyeliner Pen from Essence for less than Php150! Awesome! Look at that felt tip end! It’s huge! I haven’t used it yet but the swatch I did would not budge, seriously. I soap and put alcohol on my hands quite frequently (thus my very dry hands) and it just sat there. I think this thing is hardcore.

Also, something new: a glossy kind of lipstick! I never thought I’d see the day.  This is something extremely out of my comfort zone; I am not exactly a glossy lipstick kind of creature but here it is, the thing that converted me.  I swatched this a couple of times before at the Beauty Bar and I never seemed to have forgotten it and well, I caved in.  Art Deco’s Hydra Lip Color in number 08 with SPF15 is a coral-pink (although the photo shows the pinker side of it, it’s partly coral, too in real life!) that seems to be buildable.  I personally just like dabbing it on my lips instead of smearing it on like I would a normal lipstick.  I was under the impression that glossier lipsticks did not tend to last long but this is starting to prove me wrong.  Although it doesn’t claim to be long lasting, it remained on my lips after a meal or two.  Maybe it’s because I dab it on and not swipe it? Maybe.  Anyway, I’m really into this lip color and Art Deco is cruelty-free by the way! Oh and I got it for only Php450. Yay!

Have you tried other Art Deco lipsticks? Are they any good?

The Good Girl’s Makeup Starter Kit: Tinted Moisturizers/BB Cream

I know it’s still a month and a couple weeks more til June, when school starts here, but I could not wait to post this one.  This is dedicated to all my inaanaks (goddaughters)/cousins/friends who are about to start school or well, basically just wanting to start exploring the wonderful world of makeup. Although there are many  cruelty free drugstore options available internationally, I am only posting those that are available in the Philippines.

Ladies and gents, this is the Good Girl’s Makeup Starter Kit: the most affordable and cruelty-free makeup options you have to have in your very first makeup kit. (However, I’m drafting another post on non-drugstore options, too! For another day, though.) Students, gather round.  I am starting this series according to how I apply makeup.

Tinted Moisturizer/ BB Cream.

Apply on a clean face, right after you’ve cleansed and toned.  Tinted moisturizers are your safest bets, as you really need to moisturize everyday anyway, and the tint gives you a hint of coverage.

E.L.F. and Wet n Wild  Tinted Moisturizers both have SPF in them, and are both lightweight. I repeat, they provide only a hint of color.  You can wear these as is or you can opt to add BB cream on top of it. Fair warning though, if your skin is on the oily side, dust powder on top of this! It can get greasy (based on my experience with the ELF one) depending on the weather and skin type. The ELF tinted moisturizer goes for Php125, while the Wet and Wild One goes for Php390. They are mostly available at Watson’s and at SM Department Stores’ Beauty Sections.

BB Creams on the other hand, vary from light coverage (mostly American ones) to high coverage (a lot of Asian ones). I actually recommend this a lot more than the tinted moisturizers mentioned above.  To read more on BB creams, here’s a wikipedia link!   Basically though, BB creams are supposed to be a multipurpose face cream: a moisturizer, a primer, foundation, sunblock.  I really really recommend bb creams to makeup babies (newbies!).   Sleek is a cruelty-free brand and there have been a lot of good reviews on this Blemish Balm.  For starters, it has a good selection of shades, from light to dark–a stark contrast from most Asian BB cream selections.  Although it claims to be full coverage, I don’t think that it is, but that is a good thing for me and for the purposes of this post.  It goes on natural on me, like my skin but better! It has SPF 15.  This bb cream goes on for Php595 to 650. This is available at The Ramp, Crossings and at Digital Traincase.

Stay tuned for the next part, concealers! Are there any more drugstore cruelty-free tinted moisturizers and bb creams you’d like to share?

My first consciously cruelty-free (baby) haul!

Yay! Happy to report back to you after a looooong heavy duty week. I was stuck for a week in Ortigas, in a rather formal project, thus the recent lack of posts.  Anyway, I just found out that Digital Traincase has a real boutique along Ortigas Avenue, in a condo near the Shell Gas Station and I had to check it out, given that (a) I already was in Ortigas, (b) I’ve never given Nyx a fair chance and, (c) Nyx is a cruelty-free brand! (Also, I was sort of inspired by a Goss Wayne tutorial that I’ll be posting about really soon.)

Here’s the wee haul:

Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencil in Iced Mocha–I was really looking for the ‘Milk’ shade everybody loves but it was out of stock.  But this is a nice wearable bronzey shade.

 

Finally got my hands on the Nyx Wonder Pencil! I got it in the Medium Shade. I tried it out right after I bought it actually haha. It’s to be used either as a concealer, a waterline eyeliner, or a highlighter. Loving it so far.

 

Very excited about this one: the Rouge Cream Blush and I got it in Bronze Goddess.

And theeen, after that place, the manfriend suggested we check out The Grey Market at the Bellitudo Lifestyle Strip along White Plains. I didn’t know The Souq Organics was there. It’s a lovely little place, that strip.  I only got a Make-up Removal Lotion from Biopha Organic, which I’ve been seeing a lot in PCX stores lately.  The little bag they gave me came with 4 sample products though, (perfect because I have a couple of beach trips coming up) so yay!

I have a couple of posts line up for the week, too! How have you been?