I have been online shopping at shops like digitaltraincase, stuffinstyle, makeuphub, redgirlshop and others. I keep seeing those words "authentic" on some brands. For example, Authentic BenNye Banana, authentic Mac.. Etc. what does authentic actually mean in terms of makeup products? I researched definitions of authentic, its like a veryclose replica of the original. Another definition is, it is made the same way. So what is it with shops adding "authentic" to their products, because sometimes I doubt if its oroginal or its whatever. So what is it really? Is it fake products if theres "authentic" in it? - Maggie

Sounds like a straightforward question, but not really! Authentic means "genuine" or "original". If an online store claims that its products are authentic then hold them to the fact that their wares are the exact same ones sold in retail locations. If they say their Benefit Hervana Blush is authentic, then it should be exactly what Benefit sells in its Greenbelt store.

Digital Traincase is a store I trust 100%! Stuff in Style too.

But it gets confusing once a store claims that its products are "Singapore authentic", for example. Perfumes, cosmetics, and bags are usually tagged as such. The sellers would even post elaborate descriptions and photos to prove that their products are not bootlegged from China or something. (Even though most things are made in China these days anyway.)

So are they fake or not? They're fake. :) They might even be a class A or B replica, which means that the products almost look like the real thing, but make no mistake - they are not authentic.

Have you seen the new Revlon Photoready Eyeshadow Palettes? I think they're created for women who want to play with eyeshadow, but don't really know much about application. The palette is packaged in a way that no one can possibly mistake the placement of each color, and it comes with a gorgeous creamy primer, too. 

That said, if you're a bit more advanced in makeup (as I am) then I don't think this particular line is something you need in your life. Still, there's a lot to be said about the lovely shades in the Revlon Photoready Primer, Shadow + Sparkle Palette in Impressionist (P775)! It caught my eye the minute it arrived in my doorstep.

Most shampoos, hair conditioners, and toothpastes have sulfates (or listed as sodium laureth sulfate), which is a cleansing agent that gives such products a rich lather. It has gotten a bad rap in the past few years due to rumors of it causing cancer and other skin maladies, but according to my research, the worst it can do is irritate sensitive skin or give you diarrhea if you ingest it. There's not much difference between using products with and without sulfates - except for the slightly higher price tag since the alternative ingredients cost more. Oh and less suds!

"Sulfate-free" does not necessarily beget a better hair product, however, if you have sensitive skin like I do then it may be a safer choice. :) My current hair buddies are the L'Oreal EverStrong Hydrate Shampoo and Conditioner (P449 each), and true enough they haven't given me any breakouts or dandruff. I finally decided to use them after I had my hair colored!

The EverStrong line is 100% sulfate-free, 100% vegan, has no harsh salts, and contains natural botanicals (whatever that means). Okay even if I sound cranky I swear I love them. :P They smell like rosemary, quite herby and aromatic! The shampoo has a rosemary and juniper fragrance, while the conditioner has mint. It even feels cool on the scalp.

Julia of Bless My Bag first got me interested in the Nivea Baby Smoothy Cream (P167) when she raved about it last year. Then, Dinna Vasquez, an editor at Manila Standard, told me on Twitter that she couldn't live without it! I take raves seriously, especially when they're from people I respect, so I hunted high and low for this moisturizer.

It's not easy to find. It's usually out of stock, or simply not available in the baby section of drugstores and supermarkets. I finally got hold of in the Mall of Asia Hypermarket some months back! It was in the bottom of the Nivea baby section then. Anyway, true enough, this "miracle" cream is something special.

This is designed for baby skin, so it's gentle and tested to be hypoallergenic. It doesn't contain parabens, alcohol, and colorants. It also contains natural calendula which is a well-known herbal remedy for wounds and skin irritations. It's meant for the sensitive skin of babies, but surprise - it's also great for big girls like us!

I haven't tried the famous Embryolisse moisturizer, but people say that this is a good dupe.

Second post for Drugstore Week! Nothing really ever beats the high of finding a good beauty product at the drugstore, agree? ^_^ Today I will be featuring a recent release from one of the hottest affordable brands in the country.

I have to say this, before anything else: 3D glitter nails are extremely impractical. They don't last long, and the glitter gets everywhere if you don't clean it up properly. But boy are they ridiculously fun to wear! I enjoyed gazing at my emerald nails at random times during the day. As shallow as it sounds, I felt cheered up by the bright color and the glimmer as the sun hits it juuuuust right.

The BYS Glitter Dust in Luck of the Leprechaun (P499) is a kit that includes a nail polish, brush, and a pot of fine glitter. It's quite easy and quick to use, surprisingly. I was able to do my nails in 15 minutes since I didn't have to focus so hard on perfecting the base. A single layer will do, in fact. Here's the step-by-step!

The process is straightforward, as you can see. Paint your nails with the base, carefully avoiding the skin. It doesn't matter if the color is patchy just as long as the polish doesn't go beyond your nails.

I might be the last person to find out about this, but still, I'm pretty blown away. Background story: I was rushing out to my 6:30 AM yoga class the other day. I have these new Real Techniques brushes, but I haven't washed them yet even though I planned to use them later when I go out. So I deep-cleaned them before I left for yoga, and laid them on the first towel I could find. 

I checked the brushes as I was about to leave, and lo and behold - the big brush was almost completely dry! It hasn't been ten minutes since I washed it!

Granted, this brush wasn't particularly dense, but still! Apparently, the towel I used is no ordinary towel - it's an Aquazorb. It's designed to absorb water quickly, and is commonly used as a bath or gym towel. I honestly didn't know that I had Aquazorb since this towel was just a gift.

This week's theme will be all about drugstore products. I'm pretty excited about my line-up because I adore all of them! I'm going to feature one drugstore item for the face, hair, nail, and body this week. Today, we're all about eyes!

I picked up these Essence Long Lasting Eye Pencils (P149.75) last month. I found them inside the MOA SM Department Store, where a huge-ass rack of Essence products are just hanging around with their crazy affordable price tags. I thought the texture, colors, and staying power of these pencils were impressive, so I purchased them even if (truth be told) I rarely buy cosmetics these days.

I swatched these pencils last February when Essence first arrived here. I was pleasantly surprised that the swatches remained intact even though it's been hours, and I've washed my hands several times already! For a P150 product, that's quite a feat. But how does this pencil fare on my eyes?

Hi y'all! I finally have the commenter of the month for April - Ohms! Congratulations, you just won a Pinkbox mini-closet! Please email your full name and mobile number to liz [at] projectvanity.com. As stated in the terms, you can either pick up the closet in the Pinkbox office or have it shipped to your address. :)

So, for the May gift I'm giving away generous samples from Clinique and a full-sized Chubby Stick in Two Ton Tomato. I love the Chubby Sticks, and I'm sure you will too! They're easy-to-wear lip colors that you literally just swipe and go, while also taking care of your lips. There's also a smaller size of the Chubby Stick in Super Strawberry (the best-selling shade) for you to enjoy. ;)

Oh, please don't forget to like Clinique Philippines on Facebook to get up to speed on the brand's latest breakthroughs!

Okay, same mechanics as before!

Good day Miss Liz! I have been contemplating for a few months now on whether to have my brows bleached or not since I found out about a brow salon that caters to such services. What's your take regarding this?

Would you recommend a made up or bleached brows? Thank you so much. :) - KD

Hi KD! Bleached eyebrows are only flattering on two occasions: if your hair is naturally/ dyed very light or if you have thick, black, and masculine eyebrows. Bleaching brows is a great way to soften them without any extra product, but believe me - a lot of girls don't actually need to do it!

If you have thin to normal brows then it's best to just have them groomed regularly at a brow salon. Some salons, like Browhaus, even offer temporary dyeing. It's a service called Browgraphy. After sculpting the brows, the aesthetician would shade them with a dark dye that's matched to your hair. The color will stay on for a week! It's an expensive service but if you're going on a holiday and you don't want to bother with makeup, then this is nice to try.

For everyday brow shaping though, there's a slew of excellent products out there. They can go as light or as dark as you wish - without the commitment. :) Here are some recommendations!

You don't need to suffer through bleached brows when there are products like the MAC Brow Set in Girl Boy. This instantly lightens brows due to its golden blonde shade.

Pond's joined the BB cream bandwagon rather late, but they believe they came out with something that's totally worth the wait. True enough, the Pond's Flawless White and Age Miracle BB Creams (P399) did not disappoint. It's fairly good considering how much it costs.

I'm pleasantly surprised by how nice the texture of this Pond's product is! It's water-based and therefore non-greasy, and it does help brighten and even out the complexion instantly. It's easy to apply and it also dries in a few minutes. You won't even need a setting powder if you're not particularly oily, but if you want to extend the wear time then you must set it with foundation or at least a face powder.

By itself, this BB cream lasts for about 3 hours before it starts to fade. I don't like to think of it as foundation - it's really more of a skincare/ makeup base, the way BB creams were originally supposed to be.

The Burberry girl is chic yet classic. She doesn't succumb to trends, instead preferring to invest in basic pieces that she can mix with each other. She's quiet but she's also headstrong. She might not be the life of the party, but she's the girl that people listen to in the boardroom.  

Would you describe yourself this way? I think that people choose their perfume brands according to the affinity they feel for them. I mean, all perfumes are designed to smell good, but which one will you actually wear? Mood and preference play huge roles in the process of choosing, of course, but the brand is still something that sticks in our mind.

Burberry's latest perfume offering, the Burberry Body Tender Eau de Toilette, is a sparkling citrus and floral scent. I feel that it captures the essence of the Burberry girl, since it's quite sophisticated without being flaunty about it. 

Congratulations, you just scored your first series of job interviews! You've hurdled college with everything you got, but now it's time to embark on a new journey - one that is considerably tougher and more unpredictable. You need all the advantage you can get. There are thousands of equally experienced fresh grads vying for the same job, so you must find a way to set yourself apart other than a kickass resume. 

Dressing appropriately yet stylishly for a job interview is one way to stand out, but of course, you must also put your best face forward. If you're new to makeup, don't have a clue on what to buy, and only have a limited budget - never fear, here are some of my recommendations! You can get all these for just P3,017, but even though they're inexpensive, they're a great foundation for your "work makeup" kit.

Your job interview makeup should be light, yet polished. You don't want to look like an awkward teenager when you enter the office - you want to look focused and competent but not overly vain. Here are five simple steps to achieve the look!

1. Apply a heavy coverage powder foundation such as the Human Nature Perfect Coverage Mineral Foundation to even out your skintone (focus on spots and dark eye bags if you have them). If you have very dark blemishes, cover them with a concealer before applying the powder foundation. Tip: don't forget to bring the compact for retouching! Do so shortly before the interview begins.

One of the best things that you can do for your skin is to get a bottle of Cure Natural Aqua Gel (P1,500 at Beauty Bar). I have yet to meet a person who didn't fall on her toes (figuratively) to buy this after a couple of tries! This is actually a cult favorite product in Japan, changing the way women exfoliate their skin for many years now. I'm happy to announce that it's finally here in the Philippines!

Okay let's backtrack a little bit. I tried Cure about two or three years ago, when a friend gave me a sample. I felt it broke me out (my skin was extremely reactive then) so it dropped from my radar. Fast forward to today. I got a bottle of this early this year and held off using it for a month. When I felt that my skin could take a breakout, I finally tried it and holy cranberry - it is amazing! I didn't get any pimples too.

But wait, what does Cure do exactly? It's a gommage exfoliator. It's a gel product that hardens into soft, paper-like bits as it dries. These bits, when massaged onto the skin, exfoliate gently and thoroughly. I cannot emphasize enough how thoroughly this gets rid of dead skin and even mild blackheads! My skin feels squeaky clean after I rinse it off. Think of a newly washed plate, and how the surface is so clean that your fingers get some resistance when you drag it. That's what a newly "Cured" face feels like.

Since I started using Cure twice a week, the tiny bumps around my eyes, nose, and chin have significantly lessened.

How oily are you, on a scale of one to ten? I have combination skin but in this weather, I'm quite oily most days! During normal weather I'd say I'm a 6.5 in oiliness, but this season's deadly combination of heat and humidity makes me feel like I'm an 8! Ugh. Good thing I managed to grab the Ben Nye Banana Luxury Powder (P1,050 for 3oz / P700 for 1.5oz) from Digital Traincase early last April. It really helped me manage the extra oil, and gives my skin a super smooth finish to boot.

Here's a rundown!

What I love about the product

• Helps me control oil on my face longer. I usually oil up in two hours, but if I wear a layer of Ben Nye on top of whatever foundation I have on, I delay the oil for at least two hours.
• The translucent, slightly yellowish coverage allows me to wear it with any base makeup. In fact, I can wear it by itself and it would still smoothen and somehow brighten my skin (due to the yellow tint).

What is it they say - happiness shouldn't be a goal. It's a journey. We spend much of our life thinking that if we suffer just a little bit more, we'd be rewarded with happiness in the end. By who or what we're not likely to know, which is why we shouldn't bet on it so heavily. We ought to try to find pleasure and joy in what we have right now. It might all end in flames - or not - but at least we know how things stand in the present, and that we can influence it.

Okay hope that made sense. :P Moving on, here are my top ten favorite finds last month! 

I am a huge fan of Avon lipsticks. I was already pretty happy with the Ultra Moisture Rich formula (even with its limited staying power), but the Avon Totally Kissable Lipstick blows the UMR out of the water. It stays on better, while the colors are pretty daring. Hope Avon makes this line available again, stat!

My favorite brow product right now is the MAC Fluidline Brow Gelcreme in Dirty Blonde. It's the perfect shade of brown for me, and it still works even with my new slightly reddish hair color. It's easy to apply, doesn't slide off in humid weather, and looks quite natural while still giving much-needed definition to the brows. I wish MAC makes this permanent in the future.

And here's my current concealer - the Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation. I've always wanted to have this since Lisa Eldridge featured it. Now that Digital Traincase carries it, I've finally gotten my hands on it! It's back in stock girls.

I took my first yoga class last Wednesday, with minimal expectations. Well I expected to struggle (I did quite a bit of that since I went for hot yoga on my first try) but I didn't expect the feeling of lightness and calm after the class. I felt happy, focused, less worried about all the things I can't control. So I went back, and today I've already gone through my fourth yoga class this week!

Yoga helps me clear my mind and challenge my body. I have the flexibility of a wooden plank but that doesn't stop me from trying. ;) It feels good to stretch and stretch until I can't go further, and then try another day to see how my body has improved in that span of time.

I love yoga because it gives me a workout without making me tired. I tried it with the sole purpose of losing weight, but now it's not a priority anymore. The huge burst of energy and overall feeling of well-being after each class is more than enough for me! Okay let me list down all the other reasons I'm into yoga right now:

• It makes me sweat SO MUCH. After each hot yoga class, I'm dripping wet as if I took a shower. The sweat is a great way to remove impurities from the body, moisturize the skin, and unblock pores on the face. Now that's natural skincare!

So you have a big event, a broken heart, a life overhaul, or just want a little grooming and relaxation. You find yourself in need of pamper and polish. Where do you go? Let me help you there! Here's a list of where I go when I need something (non-invasive) done on my body. These are my absolute favorite beauty services in Manila!

JURO Salon. The best hair cut and color I've ever had was from Jude and Rose, the owners of JURO. They are the most talented hair professionals in Manila, I believe, with over 20 years in the industry. Having your hair done by them will cost you P7,500 but I swear they're worth it. As it happens I just got my haircut there recently (another short one) and my love for this couple is still as strong as ever.

If you're not willing to shell out that much money for your hair, you can go to their junior stylists. It's about P1,500 per cut. I would still trust them to do a great job because they're trained by Jude.

Wink Laser & Wax Studio. This is a new business but it's already making waves in the local hair removal industry. The place looks expensive and chi-chi, but not in a snooty way. The people are warm and easy to talk to so you'll find yourself relaxed while getting your treatment. Oh, they're also anal about hygiene here, so no double-dipping and all paper sheets are used only once!

Even with the upscale look and location (BHS Central), Wink is surprisingly affordable. A full leg wax for example would be only P850, while a Brazilian is P680. The painless laser is also inexpensive compared to its competitors, plus it's offered on installment too.

Blo Blow Dry Bar. For girls who are clueless on how to style their hair, Blo is their savior. It's quite expensive for just a blow dry since it's about P500 per session. However if you're going to a special event and don't want to leave your hair up to chance, or worse, in you're inexperienced hands, then Blo can give you the best possible version of your current cut and color.

This review is part of a series: the Blush Week at Project Vanity. Read my first three blush posts (if you haven't yet)! ;)

It's a Blushin' Week at Project Vanity: My top five blushes | Artdeco Blusher in 38 First Love | MAC Dollymix Sheertone Shimmer Blush

Yesterday I was in a mild panic over losing my entire image database. I use iPhoto to store all my photos, and apparently, it became corrupted. It contains thousands of pictures but I can actually live without most of them - the crucial ones are the few hundred photos of products I have yet to write about. Sure I can retake these photos but I'd rather not because it would take me hours and the products aren't fresh anymore since I've used them.

Thankfully I was able to repair the whole thing. Whew. That's why I missed my blush post for yesterday. So! Today I'm going to talk about the latest product from one of my fave brands: the Bobbi Brown Sheer Color Cheek Tint in Sheer Cherry (P1,350).

This is part of Bobbi's Pink and Red Collection, which is now available in Rustan's. The collection features nail polishes, lipsticks, and glosses in pink and red - two color combinations that everyone says won't work, but do! It's a pretty interesting concept and I would LOVE to show a look to break that myth. For now though, let's discuss this cheek tint.

It's pretty awesome. Red can be intimidating, but this basic color is the most natural and versatile for all skintones. Ever wonder why most tints in the market are red? It's because a sheer wash of red on the cheeks blends seamlessly with any coloring! You can't go wrong with it, no matter how fair or dark you are. You just need to adjust the intensity to your liking.