Monthly Favorites | August 2015

Hello everybody! So August is my birth month and I am very sad that it has gone by so quickly. I've gotta say that this month wasn't exactly my best of the year but I'm still pretty thankful that there are some little things that manages to make me smile. With that, here are the things that I have been using very frequently during this month. And also, I have decided to actually put direct links on where you would be able to find it and get it for yourselves too.

Play #25 manicure from Etude House. P128 ($2.74). I have been only using this color for the whole month and I think until the first half of September. This is one of the best examples (for me) of what color I will never get sick of looking and also, works pretty well with every occasion or just a casual day. Very easy to pair up with other colors from my clothes and makeup. And as you all may already know, I really love the Etude House Play collection. 

Orly Matte Top Coat. P499.75 ($10.71). I got this at SM Department Store In SM Megamall but HERE is an alternative link. Get it here. I've always been a huge matte "fanatic", I just love and appreciate everything matte because I think that it is something that cannot be overdone. I have been eyeing this top coat for awhile and decided to finally get it during my birthday shopping and honestly, I do not regret it, I just love it and you would see me play with this alot. I also made a review on this product, check it out HERE.

Prettywhenpinched Lip and Cheek Tint from Bench. P180 ($3.86). Not gonna lie, this is an old product of mine that I purchased way back but never really appreciated it, although it used to be a holy grail during my high school days. So, I started reusing it this month and every so often when I glance at the mirror I could see why I loved this product so much back in the day. It isn't subtle at all, but it does go perfectly fine on my skin which I am very happy about. I'm not quite sure if this product still looks the same or has the same packaging or formula since I haven't visited a bench store for awhile but I'm sure it is still available. The only downside I could say about this product is when you apply it, you will need to be abit precise on how much you put into your face and also quickly blend it in since it is pigmented and dries up pretty fast. 

Purederm Argan Oil Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes. P79.75 ($1.74). I got this at SM Department Store in SM Megamall, but it is also available in Watsons. This product is what I am absolutely raving about and I know that I am getting quite annoying with this because it is just a makeup remover but with my experience of makeup removers, I just cannot find that one thing that would completely remove stubborn eye makeup and with this, it removes it with minimal effort, just a few swipes and the eye makeup is gone. It is pretty cheap and worth every penny. For more of an in depth review of this product, click HERE.

Denim shorts from Forever 21. The price of this was originally P1,015 ($22.17) but after the 50% off, it was P507.50 ($11.09). Couldn't really find this in their website anymore. I recently got this during my birthday haul and I have been wearing it so much ever since. I threw it in the laundry a couple of times but once it dries, I just quickly put it on and use it again. I seriously cannot explain more on why I love this shorts so much rather than I'm just so comfortable on using it and it looks great. 

Penryn And The End Of Days Series by: Susan Ee. See them HERE. I have been finding books that I would again love and have been abit unsuccessful with that during this month, however, I did stumble upon this book while searching for reviews and recommendations on the web and after reading the first book, I got quite addicted to it that I got myself the other 2 books too and have finished reading  them all in just a few days. I highly recommend this if you are up for a good read especially if you are the type to enjoy fantasy stories, or if you are just finding something that would help you pass the time.

So those have been my favorites for this month and do leave a comment below if you have tried out these products too and how much did you like them? Also comment if you have any more questions or suggestions for me whether it'll be a similar or new product or just blogging tips or ideas.

Hope that this has helped you if you are looking into getting these products. Thanks for reading and until the next blog!

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ORLY Matte Topcoat Nail Polish Review

Hello everybody! Today I will be talking about one of my latest purchase and it is the ORLY Matte Topcoat Nail Polish. I have never owned an ORLY Nail Polish in general so this will be my first try of their product and let's see how it'll go..



Item Description: Matte it up! Turn regular glossy nail lacquer to a unique matte finish. Ideal for creating unique nail art and spot varnished nail looks. Directions: Apply one or two coats over your favorite ORLY nail lacquer for a matte look.

Price: P499.75 ($10.91) and I got it at the SM Department Store at SM Megamall.







What I think of this product?
I have been addicted to matte nails ever since last year but when I always buy matte polishes, there are only limited colors and I get sick of repeating nail colors all the time so when I saw this at the department store the last time I went, I just know that I had to get it because with this, I could turn all of my nail polishes matte on my nails.

In the directions, I think that it recommends using ORLY nail polishes that are not matte but I used my #25 on the Play collection nail polish from Etude House just to give it a try if it would work on other brands too, and the #25 has been my favorite this month, and when I finished applying it, I let it dry for about 5-7 minutes then applied 1 coat of the ORLY Matte Topcoat and it took awhile for it to dry but when it did, it lessened the shine of the nail polish that I used underneath and then I applied another coat and it did turn it completely matte so I think that I am satisfied.

The smell of this product is what I'm not a fan of. It smells like the usual dizzying scent that nail polishes have, I do wish that this would be unscented but I rarely encounter any nail polishes that are actually unscented or have a bearable smell.

Is it worth the money?
For the price, I do think that it is quite expensive for a nail polish because I am used to paying P15 - P200 ($0.33 - $4.37) for a single polish, so it surprised me that this costed so much. Although I do gotta say that I am satisfied with the results and I'm sure that I would use this for a very long time until I run out or it dries out (which I rarely have nail polishes that dry because I keep some of them on the fridge to keep it from drying out). So yes, I do think that if you are looking for something that would make all your nail polishes look matte on your nails, then you should definitely get this.

So that is my review for this lovely topcoat and I hope that you have found this useful or if you already tried it or you could give me cheaper alternatives or you want me to try some other products then leave a comment down below and I'll also try and answer your questions as much as I can. I will also be doing a few more product reviews for this coming days so stay tuned for that one!

Thanks for reading and until the next blog!

Wanna see my birthday haul where I got this and other products as well? Click HERE
Or do you wanna see my previous review about my Stila Liquid Lipstick in Patina? Click HERE

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Birthday Haul!

Welcome back to my blog! If you're new here, Hi! I'm Joyce and today I will be showing all of you what I got for my birthday last August 5th. It's not really that much but I honestly wanted all of these and some are just necessities for me to get since I'm already at the mall.

So first I went to H&M and just got 1 item which is...

If you guys read my June favorites this year, I got the black version of this exact shirt and I have been wearing it all the time, but at that time, they didn't really have any other colors other than black, so when I saw this, I just instantly got it and I love it just as much as I love my black version of this. It is P499 ($10.90)

Next, I went and did a little damage at forever 21..

So I got myself just one of this basic white top because I have a lot of these but I don't have the white one. And sometimes, when I do some mix and matches on my wardrobe especially with my cardigans, I always don't have a really nice white top underneath. Or just maybe put on a simple and clean looking top when it's really hot. This costs P165 ($3.60)

This faded jean shorts was something I've been looking for awhile but whenever I went to the mall, I just couldn't find one exactly like it and when I saw this, I just knew I had to get it plus it was on 50% off so that just really made me so happy because I did need a new pair of shorts since it is super hot in the Philippines and these are exactly what I wear most days. The price of this was originally P1,015 ($22.17) but after the 50% off it was P507.50 ($11.09)

The last clothing piece that I got from Forever 21 is this casual / Bomber jacket. It is leather and I don't care if it is currently super hot here in the Philippines, I just really wanted to own one for so long but it was always too expensive, or if you find a cheaper one, then it would most likely have an awful design or bad quality. I was delighted to see that this was also on 50% off so I tried it on, loved it, bought it. No regrets at all! I'll find some time to actually wear this, I just know it! The price of this jacket was originally P2,055 ($44.89) after the 50% off it was P1027.50 ($22.43).

For accessories, some of what they had there was buy 1 take 1 and just my luck, it was their last day so I got this ring that has a heart and small silver stud that has this little chain connecting to the smaller sized ring that has a dangling stud too. And then the necklace is just like a bar that has some silver jewels in it. The price was based on the higher priced item which was the necklace that costs P139 ($3.04)









So by this time, I was actually getting tired already, (I so need to be alot more fit) so I got myself some drugstore items since I was already there. 

Alright so I got myself some new stocks of the iWhite Nose Pack. This worked wonders for me and my brother so I bought 5 of the small packs which is 3.5ml and a piece costs P18 ($0.39) because I can't get it anywhere near my place anymore, from what I heard it's always sold out. 

Next I got myself a new makeup remover and it is the Purederm Argan Oil makeup remover cleansing towelettes. It has 30 Wet towelettes inside and costs only P79.75 ($1.74) and from trying it for a few times, it removes my whole face makeup even those hard to remove eye makeup with just a few light swipes on my face. So I like this and will definitely be purchasing more when I get the chance. 

I also got myself a moisturizer, the Myra E Daily Sun Protection Moisturizer that has SPF 15 and is 50ml. This costs P99.75 ($2.18). I have used this before when I was addicted to biking and pretty much went out even if the sun is at it's highest. This worked great for me although I stopped that time because I wasn't sure if this was the product that broke me out or my cleanser. I never really knew which one since I started to use new products since then but I am now giving it another chance.

I got a white eyeliner because I've been seeing this trend with using white instead of black ones for the waterline on their eyes and decided to try it myself. I got the Fashion 21 Color Pen '99- White and it costs P85 ($1.86). It is a double end eyeliner which one side is the actual pencil and the other side is a smudger brush. After using this on the day of my birthday, I think that it actually survived the hot weather and didn't really run all over my face.. unless I'm missing something because it's white? Well, I'm pretty happy with it and the product feels so creamy that I don't actually have to push it into my waterline so much just to have it visible and the smudger brush is also useful for smudging the eyeshadow.

And this product, I actually put this on my wish list a few weeks ago and I am super happy that I finally got it and currently playing with it. It is the ORLY Matte Top Coat and it costs P499 ($10.90). I won't be saying much about this product at the moment because I will be doing a separate review for it, all I could say is that I'm excited to actually try it on other colors and how long it would lasts on me. 

Lastly, before heading home, I went to Hortaleza to pick up some hair bleach (Yes, I decided to finally go and do it - Sadly though, I threw away the pack before I could take a picture of it but the brand was Medea P18  = $0.39) I did a ombre / balayage type / style on my hair and it did turn out orange and I will be repeating the process next week and hopefully I'll achieve the color that I want by then. Then I also got myself a cute little blending sponge, it's pink and the brand was actually in Japanese so I didn't understand it, but for sure other Hortaleza branches would have these. I never owned a little sponge like this and the actual ones that I see everybody use costs so much but this one, I only got it for P59 ($1.29). So far, I'm having a really hard time cleaning it but I will say more soon after I get to play with it more. 

I also got some other personal necessities and also a dozen of donuts at Krispy Kreme and my black forest cake at Red Ribbon. 

So that has been the things that I got myself for my birthday (Read my Birthday Tag HERE) and if you guys have the same stuff or tried the things that I actually mentioned here, do leave a comment to tell me your experience or if you have questions for me about these products too and I'll try my best to answer your questions. 

I will be posting I think 1 or 2 more birthday themed ones so stay tuned for that! Thanks for reading and until the next blog!

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