Beauty Run at Watsons & Beauty Bar

I don't know about you, but for whatever reason whenever I'm out at the mall and doing some shopping, I always leave out the necessities aka basic things that I need everyday. So, I made a beauty necessities run at Watsons and Beautybar a few days ago. I then realized that I want to share what I typically get whenever I go to these shops, plus the new things I wanted to try out.

• Carmex

PHP 149.75 Watsons

I recently emptied out my Carmex lip balm which I use whenever I feel like my lips are chapping. It does its job whenever I put it on, it moisturizes and helps my lips restore itself to make it look and feel smooth. It's an easy solution for me whenever I'm having a hard time managing my chapped lips, so I just keep grabbing a new one whenever I empty the one I've been using. 

• Kojie san sleeveless READY deodorant

PHP 99.50 Watsons

I haven't really found a staple deodorant that I like or stick to, so I'm just trying out new things here and there. That time at Watsons was the first time that I saw this product, I'm familiar with the brand because I always see their soap but I never saw a deodorant. It says that this deodorant offers anti-perspirant, anti-bacterial, lightening and has 48 hours odor and wetness protection. This product smells a lot like soap that isn't overpowering and it feels lightweight on my underarms, like it isn't sticky at all. I would have to test it out a few more times to see if I really like it.

• Gatsby Powdered Oil Clear paper

Watsons

This one I feel like is a no brainer for me. I depend a lot on my oil control sheets every time I'm out of the house. I usually go for the normal oil control sheets of Gatsby but when I saw this which is the "powdered" version, I just wanted to try it out. From what I experienced based on the three times I used it, it isn't powdery but when I pat this on my face, it looks like I applied a really small amount of baby powder and it prevented my face from getting oily again for a few hours. So far I like it but then again I would have to test it out more just to make sure.

• St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Cleanser

PHP 199 Watsons

I was browsing through the face section of Watsons because I needed a new cleanser but I wanted to try something new and I was surprised to see that St. Ives has a cleanser. I didn't hesitate to get it for myself because the St. Ives apricot scrub makes my skin look and feel really smooth. When I got home, I did realize that this cleanser has some beads in it and it says on the back of the product that it is recommended to use for 3-4 days in a week, so this wouldn't really be an everyday cleanser. I've used it once and so far it made my skin really smooth, but I'll be using it a bit more just to make sure if I do like it and decide when I'll be using it.

• Penshoppe Sexy Shimmer Body Spray

PHP 199 Watsons

 Okay, so maybe this wasn't really a necessity but I like taking random photos and I have some ideas that may involve me needing this product. I have yet to try it and I'm excited to see how it will turn out in photos and in person. Nothing really much to say about this other than I am kind of obsessing with shimmery, dewy looks so we'll see if this product would let me achieve that. 

• Hollywood Fashion Tape

PHP 650 BeautyBar 

I am always struggling with my clothes not staying in place. I have used countless of pins, hair ties or whatever I need just to keep my clothes from revealing too much than what I have wanted. I get that I could just change and wear something different if I have such problems with the clothes that I wear, but sometimes I just need or really want to wear something and feel 100% confident and safe in it. I feel that this would help with that, so I picked it up and I will make a more in depth review of this so stay tuned for that one. 

• Happy Skin Express Gel Polish

PHP 249 BeautyBar 

In the past few months, I have not changed my nail color. I always choose my 2 go-to nail colors and I feel like I wanted a change of shade so I tested some gel nail polishes from Happy skin because they look really pretty and can be used without having to have a UV lamp. The shade I picked is Dreamer and it still kinda looks similar to what I typically wear, but still different. Also making a review of this soon but here's a sneak peek:

What are your go-to beauty necessities that you always pick up and restock on?


Disclaimer: I am in no way sponsored by any brands or companies mentioned in this post.

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Two Things From Too Faced

For years of being a beauty junkie, I have always heard of the brand Too Faced. It is currently being known for its incredibly cute packaging and having a range of amazing quality beauty products to go with it. People have been raving on Too Faced products left and right that it could get overwhelming to choose which one to get first. I have to admit that the packaging of each product made me want to get every single one because other than me using it on my face, it would work so well as a vanity decoration (they are seriously so cute!).

Since there isn't any physical stores near my place, I browsed through Sephora PH and read about people's experience with each product to help me decide which one I should get and try out. Took me a little while but I decided to get 2 things from there.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar
PHP 2,928

It does smell like chocolate! When I first heard about this product smelling like chocolate, I was a bit skeptical because how could a product actually smell like that? Not gonna lie, I found myself popping this open whenever I see it just to get a whiff of the chocolate scent (Shh!). I do like that they finally included the name of each of the shades on the actual palette rather than having to keep the paper where you'd have to place it back on the palette to figure out each shade's name. It seriously bothered so much people that I'm glad they listened to their customer's requests.

For the actual product, the shades are all neutral which is quite easy to pair up with almost any look that you're going for. The colors are a mix of warm and cool tones, each one looking good with the other that you'll most likely be using every single shade. The pigmentation is good since you won't have to worry on going too overboard when you try to build up the color.

Some personal favorite shades of mine would be "Salted Caramel" because it looks so peachy that it almost looks natural whenever I apply it on my eye lid. "Triple Fudge" looks amazing when I smudge it on my eyeliner on the top and bottom because it makes it look softer around my eyes. I like to add "Marzipan" right in the middle all the time because it makes my eyes look bigger and more awake.

Too Faced Sweethearts Bronzer
PHP 1,618

This bronzer is both a shimmery cool bronzer and a shimmery warm bronzer. You could use either one but mixing them both on your brush really does create that very natural looking flush to your skin which makes it look radiant. I like how this looks subtle on the skin that when someone looks at you, they realize that you did something to your look but can't pinpoint what because of how glowing it makes your face look. The only shade that they do have at the moment is Sweet Tea which I think is the perfect shade for fair skinned people like me.

Unlike the Too Faced Chocolate Bar, this doesn't really have a scent to it other than what I feel how bronzers usually smell like. The packaging is a teal colored heart which I am so obsessed with since it gives my vanity that extra touch of decoration,  although I do feel like it is kinda too bulky for traveling purposes.  The longevity isn't really a problem for me which impressed me considering I live in such a humid place where makeup could practically melt off of your face at any minute. It stayed in tact without me having to retouch it.

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BeautyMNL Shopping Experience + Haul

For the past few months, I haven't had the time to go makeup / skin care shopping because whenever I do head to the mall, it's always to get some clothes or shoes and knowing me, shopping for clothes or shoes is already time consuming. I do get to do a quick walk around the beauty section at times but only manage to get 1 or 2 products, which is fine, though I miss just taking my time and going through everything I could see. 

Thankfully, I can do online shopping at BeautyMNL which saves me a whole lot of hassle from traffic and tight spaces at the mall especially during this time since Christmas is coming. 

If you didn't know, BeautyMNL the number one beauty site in the Philippines. The reason for this is because they are partnered with brands that you may have seen in and out of social media with all the products that are raved by beauty junkies as well as new brands to try out.

So, as you are entering the site, you can see the easy navigation of the website with their promos, top brands, best sellers, new arrivals and a navigation for the specifics like skin care, makeup, organic ones, accessories and so on. The site also has a price selection option which is very helpful if you're in a hurry but on a budget.

What I like best about browsing through their products is the reviews section. People who has bought these products rate and share their experiences on using it. This is very helpful when picking out which shade would look best and where and when is the product recommended to use for. Some lipsticks offer a photo of how each shade would look on different skin tones which is a must since not every shade will look the same for each person.

So for the shopping cart, it's pretty much on the top of the navigation bar which is convenient for when you need to edit out your cart and delete or add more things into it. Once you're done shopping, you can now proceed to checkout. There are different modes of payment that you could choose from like credit card payment or paypal, bank deposit or even a cash on delivery (though I rarely see this one).

So the waiting game begins! This is usually the most annoying part of online shopping since you would have to wait and wonder when will your order arrive. BeautyMNL has a tab where you could track your orders. You would be able to see if the payment has been received, when it's processing and when it's on its way plus an email notification when your order is shipped / with their courier and on its way to your shipping address.

I did my online shopping during December 09, 2016 (Friday), and usually they do next day delivery, but since it's the weekend, my order was delivered December 12, 2016 (Monday) which is pretty much the earliest day they could get it to my place. Pretty convenient and surprising since shipping at my place usually takes 2-3 working days for it to arrive.



A little disclosure, I've been personally handpicked by BeautyMNL to do a test run of their site.

List of the things that I got (Click the name for the direct link and prices to each of the products).

• Skin Genie: Lip and Cheek Stain Alive! in Christmas Red

I saw that these little things are selling like crazy! I was suppose to get 2 of them, the other one was Rosy Pink but it sold out before I even got to check out. I'm just so into Lip and Cheek tints lately that I'm so excited to try this out.

• Leaders InSolution: Derma Soul Anti-Sebum Mask with Pine Oil

Some Filipino and Korean Beauty gurus that I watch on youtube has raved about this face mask so I really wanted to try it out, but the location where you could buy this was way too far from my place so I'm actually happy that I was able to get this here and I got two.

• Beach Born Dry Shampoo

Okay, so to be honest, I'm all out of Dry Shampoo so I definitely needed one since I don't wash my hair every single day. This dry shampoo has been very well reviewed that I decided to try it out. 

• Nippon Pro Blend Sponge Cleaner

Makeup sponges are one of the things that I take so much time on cleaning and hopefully, this'll lessen the time I need to finish it up.

• Dearberry: Twinkle Lip Gloss

I haven't owned a lipgloss since 2013, and that was the year when "matte" was starting to make its way into the trend of lip products, long story short, I just got sucked in, loved matte lipsticks and never got a lip gloss until now. I remember loving how lip glosses looked on me before so I'm really excited to get back into using it again.

• Makeup World: Pucker Up Matte Lipstick in Dublin

I swear I get lured into buying lipsticks all the time. This one, I saw was really cheap and from a brand that I haven't heard of before. Most of the other shades were already sold out, I picked Dublin instead but hey, it still looks pretty.


So those are the items that I got and just so everyone knows, shipping is absolutely free until December 23, 2016! If you plan on doing some last minute Christmas shopping, now's your chance!

Also, if you are a selfie lover like me, BeautyMNL has a contest running for you to win a Printster polaroid of your pretty face and a PHP 200 BeautyMNL gift certificate. All you need to do is join BeautyMNL's #selfieMNL contest! Click here for the complete details.

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Haul: 2358, Cathy Doll, Human Nature & More!

With everything that's going on (uni / school, reorganizing the house, getting set for Halloween), I had a little bit of free time this week so I managed to go to the mall with my brother and just chill, walk around, eat and shop a little. I was able to actually take my time at the beauty section and pick out some products that I need and have been wanting to try out. Also, I was pretty much on a budget because I practically spent most of my money to buy myself an iMac to which if you have not read about that yet, check it out here. So, let me show you what I spent practically what I had left to spare... (lol)

I first visited a store called 2358 at Sta. Lucia Mall. I'm not exactly sure if that's the correct name but I did manage to find their website which is here if you wanna check out more of their stuff. I picked up this Dear Darling Tint in the shade 05. It was actually a toss between this or the really red one but I don't really feel like wearing red these days so I picked this one. It costs PHP 99. I was always a fan of tints so I'm pretty excited to try this one out.

Next I went to Robinsons Department store. My main purpose was suppose to check out their homeware section because they always sell some pretty dope stuff. Though they didn't really had anything new or that actually attracted me to purchase so I moved on to the beauty section. 

I've always seen the Cathy Doll stall everytime but I never really got to check out their products because I was just always passing through. This time I took my time on reading about what they got and I found something interesting which is their Acne solution + foam cleanser. It says it is for anti acne, for sensitive skin, oil control, brightening, spot remover and has tea tree serum. I only got the small pack ( PHP 18) because I do want to just test it out first before actually having to commit to the bigger sized one. I gotta admit that I should've bought at least one more because I wouldn't really be able to tell much difference with just a few uses but we'll see.

Nichido cosmetics tru lashes, eyelash adhesive (PHP 60), I decided to wear false lashes again but I ran out of glue so I picked this one up because for me, this is just the best false eye lash glue for it's price that I've already tried. So if you're looking for one then go get yourself one of these because they actually do their job. 

Careline Pimple Concealer (PHP 95) I haven't used this concealer for I think about a good 4 years? I actually used to love using this thing for my undereye circles but for some reason I stopped using it. Anyway, I picked it up again and I noticed have a new packaging, one that has donuts on it so let's hope that it's still a good product.

Maybelline Eye + Lip Make Up Remover ( PHP 199). As much as I love using my Purederm Makeup Remover Wipes, it does have a habit of giving me a harder time to remove waterproof eye makeup so I decided to pick this one up and hopefully it would work because it would save me a lot of trouble. 

Last thing that I got is the Human Nature 100% natural sunflower beauty oil (PHP 174.75) and it claims to visibly diminish the appearance if dark spots, pimple marks, dark underarms, and helps soothe tender, irritated skin. Idk, it just really looks promising that I so badly wanted to try it out myself. If it's any good, I'll let you guys know.

So I guess that is all, not really that much but trust me, I had to calm myself down because it has been awhile since I got to shop for some actual beauty products and not just necessities. I'm excited to try most of them out and I'll update you guys if any of them worked great on me.

Until the next post,

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Disclosure: I am in no way sponsored by any of the brands / companies mentioned in this post. Everything you see here is bought from my own money and statements / opinions made are based off on my own experience

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6 Favorite Daiso Finds

I don't know about you, but Daiso is definitely a store where I could spend about an hour at by just browsing through all of their stuff and trying to find some uses for each one. Seriously though, they have almost anything you never thought that you would need or maybe something that's a cheaper alternative to what you actually want. 

Walking out of a Daiso store empty handed seems almost impossible from what I witnessed except for maybe when you already bought everything you needed from there. Though you gotta admit that sometimes, it's a hit or miss. Sometimes what we end up buying just isn't upto par with what we expected it to be, it's not even that but Daiso definitely gives you that mindset that "oh, this is cheap" and you end up grabbing a ton of things to have a very expensive bill when you check out at the counter. With that, and to save some of you from all the money and trouble, here are my all time favorite purchases and what I would recommend you get from Daiso:

• Slippers

I have been looking for a pair like these for awhile now. I do know that Birkenstock has them but I did wanted something where the price is a little bit cheaper. Then I went to Daiso and saw these for PHP 88. I wasn't aware that the sizes were a size bigger than usual since I am pretty sure I'm a size 37 but these are kinda big on me, and no, I wasn't able to try them on before buying them because I had shoes and socks on at that time and didn't really feel like taking them off especially with so many people around that aisle too. But hey, it still looks nice, it is a little bit uncomfortable during the first time I wore them but after awhile, it felt okay to wear when you have some quick errands to run and you just need something to slip on that looks good. 

• Divider

I'm pretty sure everybody's aware of this because this has been selling out on so many Daiso branches near my place. Basically it helps you separate everything but still keep them all in one place (if that makes sense). This is for you to organize things inside of your drawer or maybe a lipstick holder like what I do. 

• Clock

This little thing is what me and my mom have been trying to find everywhere. We did manage to find something exactly similar at a store in SM, but they sell it for PHP 1099 and this little guy in Daiso was only PHP 188. It's also an alarm clock (and I could tell you that it's very loud) and has a light switch that you can press if you wanna know what time it is when you're in the dark. 

• Portable fan

It's just so hot here in the Philippines-- that when you are out and about, you can't help but fan yourself because you are just constantly sweating. I found this on Daiso and you just need 2 AA batteries for it and you can carry it around. Pretty much a life saver. 

• 5 in 1 Beauty care massager

This is another product that has been selling out on all of the Daiso branches. I use this mainly for massaging my face and cleansing my skin. It has 5 types of brushes, 1 crude polish accessory to rip the tough skin and cutin off, 1 latex soft sponge for eye, cheek massaging, 1 make-up sponge to massage and clean your skin, 1 rolling massager to make better blood circumstances from skin aging (I always use this one) and 1 soft brush to clear up all the scurf clings on the surface (which I use to cleanse my face). This on'es price is PHP 188 and just needs 1 AA battery. 

• Brush cleaner

Most beauty enthusiast that I know of have tried and loved this product because it definitely does it's job on cleaning out your makeup brush thoroughly. Plus, it's only PHP 88 and it smells nice. I actually made a review on this so if you wanna check that out, click here.

So those are all of my favorites from Daiso and if you have any recommendations for me to get from that store, leave a comment below and tell me if you've tried out any of the things I mentioned. 

Until the next post,

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Disclosure: I am in no way sponsored by any of the brands / companies mentioned in this post. Everything you see here is bought from my own money and statements / opinions made are based off on my own experience

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What I Got For Christmas 2015!

Hello everybody!

I feel super blessed this year because my family is complete, my mom is here to spend Christmas and new year with me and my brother and we get to go to out almost every other day. With that, comes numerous Christmas gifts that I received from my mom and friends. I'll start by the photo from the very top to the bottom.

Fujifilm X-A2 with 16-50 mm lens in the color pink, I have been using my Samsung S3 Mini overtime ever since I started blogging because I used that one for my photos and if you've owned one, you'd know that it really isn't the best quality camera phone. So, I looked around online to find a good camera that won't cost too much and I found this! And honestly, I didn't know they released new colors for this camera since I only knew that they had black (silver), white and brown and I was going to buy the black one but when I saw that they had pink, teal, yellow and orange, I was torn between choosing if I wanted the pink or teal one. But of course, I chose the pink camera. Really happy with this and have been playing around with it for a few days already so I could have higher quality photos. 

Versace Bright Crystal Perfume. This perfume used to be my everyday scent back in high school so I finished my big bottle up years ago. And now that I've finished up my current perfume collection, I asked for this one since I miss it and I lost my old bottle from moving around so much. I can't say much more about this because I do plan to review it soon so all I could say is that it's scent is very subtle but still noticeable. Attention grabbing without too overpowering. I'll have to update this once my review on it goes live.

Adidas Gym Bag. I don't really go often to the gym but if you've seen my "what's on my bag" post, you'd know that I love overpacking so much that I tend to break my bags easily. And my parisian purse isn't really lasting until next year so when my mom got me this, I can't deny that it was my favorite and that I sleep next to it (please tell me I'm not alone in this one). It has all the compartments that I need for everything and still has room for more. I never owned a bag in this color because I always opt for white, beige or black. So this is a nice change and I like it.

Guess Eye Glasses. I'm not sure how often I posted pictures of myself online using my old frame which really has no brand and was pretty cheap and it hurts my nose and my temple a lot so I knew that I had to change it. My mom got this for me and the first time I saw it, all I could say is I love the detail on this thing! It has a leopard print which doesn't look to overpowering and the guess logo on each side. It's simple but not ordinary. I had the lens changed to my sight at EO in Megamall.

Guess Wrist Watch. I admit that I do own lots of watches that I never use or don't change the batteries because I often forget that I have them. I have this weird habit of checking my phone for the time and not a watch. But I can't deny that this watch looks so simple and classy that I could use to either dress up or dress down an outfit. It doesn't clash with my look because of how clean and small it is. I could actually see myself using this religiously especially for the new year.

Guess Blue Purse. You probably noticed by now that I received a lot of things from Guess. It's because it's my mom's favorite and when we didn't have a lot of money before, whenever we went to the mall, we always window shopped at guess and my mom said that once she has money for herself, she will definitely splurge on that store since it is her style. I'm happy that now she manages to do that and also give me amazing things from there. Anyway, back to the purse, like I said, my parisian bag that I always use is about to get broken so my mom got me this as a replacement. It's smaller than my Adidas one since this is for light packing for when I head to somewhere that is pretty near or when I must not overpack. I love the studded design and how easy it is for me to grab and close the bag. It still has a good amount of compartments so I wouldn't have to let go of a ton of stuff.

Chocolates. I mentioned yesterday from my "Life Lately" post that we went to Duty Free. Well to be honest we didn't just buy chocolates. We bought some groceries there too and my brother's shoes from Adidas. I just took a photo of these because we did end up giving away some of them before, during and after Christmas to our friends. And the reason we have this many is because of the next gift that I received which was...

Kitkat Mini Fridge. This was actually free from buying 4 packs of either Crunch bars, Butterfinger, Babyruth, 100grand and kitkat. One "pasalubong" pack costs around $33 - $38 so it was abit pricey. It also came with 2 tumblers (I picked the Kitkat and the Crunch one) and 4 Tshirts (which I picked the Kitkat, babyruth and butterfinger design). This mini fridge looks like a toy but it actually maintains either the coolness or warmness of anything you place in it. You can plug it in your room or in your car since it has cables for them. 

Mac Matte Lipstick in Velvet Teddy. I've been actually wanting this color for awhile now but whenever I visit any mac stores, they always tell me that it's sold out. This is a lipstick that people describe as the "2015 shade" or the "Kylie Jenner shade" because of how nude but still noticeable it is. Again, I'll be doing a separate review on this one once I get to use it more often. 

Sandals / Slippers from Aldo, Nike and Converse. I'm a huge slippers wearer. I know that it doesn't go with every outfit but considering that I don't really go to far places for so long and if I do, I have slippers with me so I wear all of these a lot and below you'll see an image of my collection because like I said, I wear it everywhere. Outside or inside doesn't really matter. I love slippers!

Nike shirt and shorts. Another gift from my mom because while she was picking up shirts for my brother, she noticed these and she knew she had to get it for me because my go-to outfit is always a shirt and a pair of shorts. These are very cute and comfy and I'm very thankful that I have them.

So those are the gifts that I received this Christmas and I'm so thankful that I got this many eventhough I gave so many gifts too. I feel so blessed and contented. So Thank you mom and friends!

How about you, what did you receive this Christmas?

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