Titas, here’s another one to add to your bursting rewards cards holders! Last year, Watsons came out with its very own loyalty card program, and they’re doing their very best to live up to their tag line, Watsons members get more.

Hong Kong holds very special memories for me because it’s the very first place I visited abroad. I was still very young when I first went though, so when I recently traveled there again earlier this year, I couldn’t miss out on doing a bit of beauty shopping!

Let’s start with where to find the best deals and sulit sets: the specialty beauty stores and pharmacies!

Pat McGrath is a legendary makeup artist with a storied, two-decade career that found her creating iconic Fashion Week looks as well as working with top models and photographers around the world. She is known as a visionary with a distinct touch that makes one think of surreal alien glamour, and this aesthetic is reflected in her eponymous makeup line. If you love intense shimmer and seductive colors, then you will enjoy playing with Pat McGrath Labs, which is now available in Sephora.ph.

Since opening their doors in the PH, lifestyle brand Mumuso has been the subject of much controversy. That the packaging designs of their cosmetics products looked almost exactly like those of popular K-beauty brands roused suspicion. Last year, an exposé by a South Korean broadcasting station MBC revealed that the brand masquerading as Korean is in fact from China!

Can you feel the heat?! March may have just begun but summer’s definitely here! With the rising temperatures and scorching sun, we can’t help but feel the need to head to a beach and take a break. But in case you can’t just hop in a car and go for a quick getaway, this week’s beauty roundup may just be the iced tea you need. We’re spotted Patrick Ta’s makeup line, a new Sunnies Face in Cebu, and a makeup collection inspired by the biggest show on TV. Happy reading!

Hair loss is a sensitive topic for many women. We often feel that it’s a condition reserved for men, or women beyond a certain age, if at all. But hair fall can actually begin any time after puberty, and is more common than you think!

Female-pattern baldness is also more difficult to spot, since it occurs around the part of your hair, rather than a receding hairline or thinning crown that men experience. Some hair fall is also normal as hair naturally renews itself, with figures varying from the loss of 50 to 300 strands daily.

Fun fact: MAC’s Studio Fix Fluid was my first bottle of foundation. I asked my mother to buy it for me as a Christmas present, and the makeup artist matched me perfectly to NC42 (at the time). Since then I have been (time and time again) disappointed by other artists who have failed to match my shade properly, but I’ll always remember my first time. My uncle said I looked like a Korean - my skin was so smooth (helped by the pill at the time) and acne scars were non-existent. Flash forward to now: I have tried many a foundation in my day and have admittedly forgotten about the Studio Fix Fluid after emptying it, so I find myself pleasantly surprised about Ole Reliable.

I sometimes tend to forget that Avon is not a local brand. Witnessing the strong foothold that Avon has had on our market growing up, I’m convinced that at least 90% of Filipinas have tried an Avon product at least once in their life. While I’ve never been particularly drawn to their makeup, I have heard good things about the Mark. by Avon line. Supposedly the edgier and trendier sister to the True Color brand, Mark. offers playful, creative products at the affordable price point that Avon is known for.  

Do you think of yourself as an influencer? You don’t need to have a blog or even an Instagram account. If you enjoy talking to others about the products you love, you already are! Sometimes it’s as easy as offering to share a face mask - that’s how I got my tita hooked on the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask. She so loved how it soothed her skin that she immediately bought her own tube when we got home from the beach. When I next talked to her about a month after, she told me that everyone in her office had purchased their own tubes as well!

The first quarter of the year is always the most busy as we set our plans in motion and gear up for the big event that everyone in the PV community looks forward to - the Project Vanity Anniversary! We’ve still ironing out all the details but I can tell you that the new format we’re preparing is one that you should definitely be excited for. Make sure to sign up for our email alert over at the Events page so you’ll be notified as soon as we drop the deets!

Although our tropical country doesn’t get to experience the variation of having four seasons, our early mornings and late nights have been chillier than usual! The rare gift of Philippine #sweaterweather is upon us, and we can slide into our comfy jumpers and knits even out of Baguio. While it certainly feels good to take a break from the heat, cold weather actually dries out our skin way faster than the hot summer sun. Dry, flaky skin doesn’t have to be the new normal though, and we’ve written about how to SOS (save our skin) from dying from the cold. But did you know that you should give your pretty pout some extra TLC, too?

Love Month may be over but we’ve still got our heart eyes on with this week’s beauty roundup! Prepare yourselves (and your wallets) for the latest from Glossier, Tarte, and Happy Skin! We’ve got deets on the makeup that can keep up with your #fitnessgoals and palettes that Jessica Rabbit would approve of. Who’s ready for some awesome beauty news?

Often I feel lucky that Manila is so close to beauty manufacturing capitals like Japan, Korea, Thailand, and China. We get so many innovations here much earlier than the Western side of the world! One such newfangled concept is the recently released K-Palette Lasting Eyebrow Tint Pen (P845). This promises to deliver the same days-long (!) staying power of the ubiquitous peel-off brow tint, which K-Palette also started offering in 2017. The difference here is that you don’t need to let it “cure” for a few hours and there is absolutely no peeling involved. Interesting, right?

Revlon has been around since 1932. For 86 years it has innovated and defined beauty for generations of women, proving itself as a cosmetics business that has survived the test of time and fickle tastes. In the last few years, however, I’ve felt that Revlon has become boring. The brand comes out with solid, reliable products all the time, but people don’t get as excited about it when the competition for eyeballs and wallet space is so fierce.

With the new Shoot The Moon Collection though, I feel like Revlon is getting out of their funk and becoming a little (okay, a lot!) more experimental with their offerings. This recently released 16-piece collection is all about outer space in all its weird glamour - the deep blue packaging is sprinkled with gold shooting stars, rocket ships, and UFOs.

Snail secretion filtrate is a popular ingredient in a lot of Korean skincare. The snail’s mucin (aka, the slimy trail they leave behind) contains ingredients like hyaluronic acid and humectants, and is scientifically proven to have anti-aging benefits. It is also an ancient remedy for burns and wounds as it helps skin repair itself. Apparently, brands like AmorePacific harvest the mucin by “letting snails crawl around a mesh net in a darkened room for half an hour, and then transferred back into their natural habitat to rest.”

With so many face masks in the market, it’s become daunting to find the best face mask for me. There are just so many options, at different price points, with Western brands catching up on the trend started by Asian brands. I think it’s a welcome development, as we benefit from different beauty philosophies and gain access to a wider array of formulations. I recently had a good experience with Olay’s Power Duo, so I was eager to see what their just-released Magnemasks Infusion face mask sheets could do for my skin.

I’m back with a new list of great beauty and hair moments, this time from the Oscars 2019 red carpet! While there were many pretty looks this year, I wanted to take a look at six moments that showcased the styling prowess of the best from Hollywood. I was drawn to looks that were well-thought of - decisions that seemed to be made in tandem with the styling and served to create something interesting, fresh, or even admirable. On to the looks!

Liquid lipsticks never seem to go out of style. Both drugstore and high-end brands are constantly putting out their own version of this classic beauty staple, but many a makeup addict asks for just one thing: a budge-proof formula. When the Maybelline Super Stay Matte Ink Liquid Lipsticks came into the scene, the beauty community was abuzz about how it was the most affordable long-wearing liquid lipstick ever. It flew off the shelves when it was locally launched last year, and recently released 14 new shades inspired by the vibrant hues of New York City. From pinks and deep reds, to oranges and dark purple - they got it all covered! Many have raved about this formula so I set out to test if it’s really worth all the fuss.

Thank goodness it’s the weekend! Have you made plans yet? Well, if you’re still in bed or debating whether or not to step outside (because the lazy feels are real) this week’s beauty roundup will keep you company. We’re talking about the latest YouTuber makeup collab (she’s one of the biggest content creators) to another Filipina sharing her beauty secrets with VOGUE magazine. Anastasia Beverly Hills has also just announced a new brow product (after three years!) and Maine Mendoza is celebrating her latest milestone. Happy reading!  

Matte lipsticks have gone a long, long way since their rise to popular culture in the 90s. They used to be thick and heavy on the lips, like you swiped a layer of cement on top. Today, there are some wonderful formulations that feel like practically nothing as they sit on your mouth! It’s completely unnecessary to suffer through a matte lipstick these days unless, of course, you’re crazy about the color.