Full-on matte lipsticks have had their day in the sun, but now their time is over. It’s all about hydrating tints and glosses these days as the beauty crowd moves towards a more comfortable aesthetic! Today I have a new release from one of my fave Japanese brands called the K-Palette Lasting Semi-Matte Lip Tint (P795). It promises to be non-drying and long-wearing - two things that are non-negotiable to the discerning lipstick connoisseur.

The intense heat we’re experiencing this summer has made my lips drier than usual. Although I love wearing matte lip products, it’s just too uncomfortable to wear now because even with a balm underneath, my lips still dry out like a raisin. I’ve been reaching for tinted lip balms more instead, as the fuss-free application gives me juicy moisture and a hint of color at the same time! Whether you want just a sheer tint or full-on pigmentation, we’ve got great recos for every kind of budget.

It’s gonna be May! Well, it’s already May, but that doesn’t mean we can’t start the weekend without a little song and dance, right? There’s loads to celebrate because this week’s beauty roundup has a ton of new-ins, bright and bold colors, and a fantastic way to support a charitable cause with just a lipstick purchase! Find out what Glossier has been working on for years, and why Rihanna is sporting the craziest and brightest eye and lip looks. And if your skin has been damaged by a nasty sunburn, Ouai might just have the perfect solution!

Apart from coconut oil, one of the OGs in the Philippine skincare scene is sunflower seed oil. Human Nature’s Sunflower Beauty Oil catapulted the ingredient to fame, and it’s become a cult favorite, and for good reason: it has a lot of beauty benefits! Let’s take a closer look at what this miracle oil can actually do.

Remember when Lush Sleepy became viral online? People claimed that this body lotion helped them sleep within twenty minutes of application! I thought that was incredible. There’s really nothing in the ingredients list that will help you do that; the lotion banks on its sweet lavender vanilla scent to relax you and leave the rest to the power of online suggestion. Otherwise it’s a normal body lotion in terms of composition. If it works for you (in terms of improving your sleep), that’s great! It’s a lovely lotion and quite enjoyable to use if you like the scent. If it didn’t work for you then, I am sorry to hear that you spent P925 on false hype.

Getting physical has a multitude of health and beauty perks, but who says you can’t also sport a winning #FOTD while doing it? Read on to our cop our kikay tips and tricks for sweating it out while staying in style.

As someone with dry skin, I always thought that moisturizing would be the key step in my skincare routine. For many years, I would slather thick and heavy creams all over my face in the hope that they would get rid of my dry patches and ashy gray complexion. And then I learned about the existence of acids. I researched about chemical exfoliation feverishly because “acid” sounded so intimidatingly potent and I was afraid of burning my skin like Liz did when she did a chemical peel. The treatment worked for her but I didn’t want to deal with the downtime!

Konnichiwa! Were you able to visit Japan in time for the cherry blossom festival this year? That’s personally on my bucket list of things to do when I travel but until then, I’m quite content with all the goodies that J-beauty offers! But before I go into that, we have an important announcement:

What’s good, PV fam! Happy weekend! We hope you enjoyed the restful Easter break and are now fired up for yet another beauty news roundup. This time around we’re talking about a K-beauty staple that’s gone local, a new foundation (with A TON of shade options), and Kendall’s new toothpaste (we know, it’s weird, but we’re curious). And as we steel ourselves for the big battle on Monday, we’re cooling our nerves with even more Game of Thrones makeup!

Your girl loves a luxury foundation. Although it’s not necessary for creating the perfect base, I do find that there is a difference in formulation and how much easier it is to blend and wear versus what you can get from the drugstore. That said, I’ve always invested in full-coverage, long-wearing foundations when I buy luxury brands, so I was surprised to find that Guerlain’s L’Essentiel Foundation (~P3,500) provides a happy medium that’s suited for every day. We’ve reviewed a fuller coverage Guerlain foundation before, so I was curious to see how different this take on ‘natural’ foundation would be. I tested it for two weeks, and here’s how it panned out:

Truth time: I rarely use watery lip tints. While they deliver a nice pop of sheer color, I find that they are ultimately too drying to wear by themselves. I end up having to use proper lip balm afterwards, so what I do instead is dot a bright/dark lipstick, blend it out in a sheer layer, then finish up with lip balm. It’s a lot of work but on casual days out or if I’m just playing tennis or rowing, I want my lip color to be as stained and therefore low maintenance as possible!

In the 36 years that Ever Bilena has been playing and slaying in the local beauty biz, the brand has clearly mastered the fine art of adapting with the times. Far from being relegated to distant memory as your lola’s tukador staple, EB has grown and expanded with several notable sub-brands for makeup and body care, an edgy beauty line for today’s trendsetters, and even a high-profile cosmetics collab with the Queen of All Media.

Since its grand launch in 2017, Vice Cosmetics has firmly established itself in the local celeb beauty brand scene with a resounding pak! Last year saw a major focus on tarush-colored pouts with a line of moisturizing matte lipsticks, the Philippines’ answer to Kylie Jenner’s lip kits, some juicy-looking lip tints, and a glittery collab with stylist-to-the-stars Bang Pineda. Let’s not forget that the brand also got ‘cheeky’ with the Aura collection of powder blushes, highlighters, and contours!

Over at the Project Vanity Community page, we often get requests for sunscreen recommendations. Everyone looks for the same qualities: no white cast, not sticky or heavy, and ideally without that distinctive sunscreen scent. By and large, Asian Beauty (AB) sunscreen formulas are the clear favorite, with most recos coming from Japanese and Korean skincare picks. Having so many options can be pretty overwhelming though, so let’s attempt to answer the billion dollar question: which sunscreen has the best formula?

It seems like with each passing week, a new patent is filed and another celebrity is venturing into the world of cosmetics. Hey, we aren’t complaining! This week’s beauty roundup has the latest in FENTY skincare (#GlowLikeRihanna), an “old school” makeup collection with Moschino, and... Bieber Beauty?! Yeah, we know. There’s a huge Sephora sale, too, so get your carts ready!

I grew up with dark brown skin. It was strange because both my mother and father have fair skin, and my brother - born two years after me - have had their creamy color since birth. I remember not caring when I was a child, but the older I got, the more I was compared to my brother. My parents’ friends would always comment that it’s a pity that I’m dark (“sayang maitim”) and that my brother was good-looking because he has such fair skin. This is the kind of crap that messes you up when you’re young, but when I entered college, my skin just lightened by itself. I didn’t use any product other than normal body lotions so I assume that this is my natural coloring.

Hi, I’m Stacie and I am obsessed with SM Beauty. I feel the urge to pass by whenever I’m in an SM mall, even when I’m not actually looking for anything! Recently, I’ve noticed that more and more products are becoming available in sachet packaging, including face bases. Ranging from P25 to P99, they’re a tempting option for those on a tight budget or for when you need a quick fix. Sure, they’re quite cheap but are they worth it?

Say annyeong once more as blk Cosmetics releases a second K-beauty collection! Inspired by Anne Curtis’s love for Korean teleseryes, the homegrown brand released their first K-beauty collection last year featuring a mix of best-selling favorites and some new items all in dreamy K-beauty shades. The second collection follows pretty much the same strategy, so it’s no wonder fans immediately snapped it up. As soon as it was launched on April 1, a handful of SKUs immediately sold out online and in-store, well ahead of the official media launch on April 2!

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any hotter (it’s currently 42 degrees outside), this week’s roundup might just up the temperature a bit more. We’ve got the tea on a newly opened skincare shop, a pineapple glow serum, and a foundation that promises ultimate hydration for this insane heat. We’ve also got a beast of a concealer and deets on the newest celebrity beauty brand. So, pour yourself a cold drink and take a sip, cause things are about to get extra hot!

With Philippine summer in full swing, temperatures are steadily rising. PAGASA says that it can reach a scathing 38 degrees Celsius this April, so the PV team is scrambling to find ways to keep ourselves looking and smelling fresh despite the crazy heat. Apart from swapping our daily makeup for waterproof options, we’re especially conscious about super sweaty armpits! I’ve already shared our  secret for totally odor-free underarms, but is it possible to stop them from perspiring as well?