Here we go again, my list of top finds last month! November has been a good month for me, blogging and work-wise, because I got to try a bunch of great stuff plus finalize new projects. It also ended with good news, so I'm in a really great mood right now. Happy is the word. How was your Movember?

Before you let me know, read through my top picks first! Lol.

The MAC Mineralize Blush in Love Joy looks amazing on me. It's a gem of a shade. This is my favorite blush as of the moment! The formula is a little intimidating to use at first but once you get the hang of it you'll love it too.

Love the Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation Mineral Makeup SPF15! It's my default foundation of late, when I expect to be out for half a day (I use a longwearing foundie when I plan to be out 8-12 hours). It looks amazing on me - like, no joke. Really looks like skin just better! 

Looking for eyeshadows on a budget? Fret not, for the IN2IT Eye Colour Palettes are there for you. They're pigmented and the texture is amazing. Must-try.

For someone who used to buy only a total of one bag a year, this is a huge development! I think this is the fourth bag I bought with my money this year. I consider this as an early Christmas gift to myself - there's nothing better, is there? 

Anyway! Before I babble on, I just want to share what I got from Nine West in High Street yesterday. I was alternating between the Turn The Corner Tote and this black, multi-textured bag, but I ended up getting this one since it's younger and more casual. The color scheme can take it from day to night plus it was the perfect size, too.

A few weeks ago Lancome Philippines invited bloggers to visit their Greenbelt 5 Atelier. It's my first time to actually go inside so it was, to say the least, an interesting afternoon for me!

The atelier is posh, all gleaming glass and silver panels decorating the bright interiors. I immediately scoured the displays for makeup (surprise surprise?). Hehe.

One of the brand's latest foundations - Blanc Miracle

The makeover table

After lunch at Greenbelt 5 yesterday with friends, I stowed away to visit the Pinkbox kiosk at the third floor. I actually didn't know there was a branch there until Kira pointed it out! Silly me.

Anyway, I immediately gravitated towards the earrings collection. I haven't seen them before in any store, and to be quite honest they were beyond that I expected since the last time I visited! I like the price points, too - most of them are in the neighborhood of P200 only but they didn't look cheap to me.

Bow earrings with tiny details

Here are my top picks! There is literally more than a hundred other designs but I just snapped away at those that immediately caught my attention.

Last night I watched Lisa Eldridge's video on how to wear red eyeshadow. I was so inspired, I re-recreated the look as soon as I woke up! I'm bored with all the neutrals I've been wearing lately so I really wanted something that would POP. I also wanted to play around with some of the new makeup I got.

Obviously, this isn't a look that you can wear to the office. But if you have a party to go to or if you just really don't care if you get stared at, then by all means try red eyeshadow! Anyway, since I have yellow-toned skin, I went for a bright, tomato-red eyeshadow. I just used one color and blended it up the crease.

Here's how I did it.

I have a red lip version, see it after the jump!

It's the first day of December today - the last month of the year! Omg! I can't believe that 2011 is coming to a close. But before we all reflect on that important bit of news, let's all look into the upcoming bazaars this month. It's time to get your shopping claws (and eco bags!) ready as cool deals and finds flood the metro.

The Moonlit Bazaar at Rockwell Tent will be resuming for the next two weekends of December. Fashion fiends will love the great buys there, but if you're a true beauty addict, you MUST visit Digital Traincase's booth! That's the best place to buy affordable NYX, Milani, and Sleek makeup.

Benefit is a wildly popular brand worldwide, not just because of their cheeky names and packaging but also because their products deliver exactly what they promise. Ever heard of Benetint? This cult classic has actually been around since the 70s, when twins Jean and Jane Ford started a backyard business selling cosmetics. Over the years, it has become one of the most well-known cheek colors and one of Benefit's top-selling products.

The brand is finally arriving in the Philippines this December 15, and I want to show you what to expect! Think cute and vintage-y interiors, our fave Benefit products (of course), and friendly prices that matches Hong Kong's. Yes, the Benefit here is reasonably priced and is actually cheaper than in Singapore! You can check out the complete price list at the end of this post.

Okay, ready to see what happened at the blogger sneak peek in the Benefit office? Here goes!

If you are about my age then you know that Skechers was The Cool Thing To Wear when we were in elementary. I used to dream about owning those platform rubber shoes back then! Remember the heeled rubber shoes? Those were at the top of my list too. But I was just a student then and my mom didn't believe in high rubber shoes, so I could only dream.

Seriously, I had an obsession with Skechers when I was a kid. That's why when the brand asked me to visit a store and to pick my own shoes, I immediately said yes. I normally don't write about sporty brands like this but I thought I'd make an exception for something that was an inspiration during my childhood.

And so, here I have a virtual tour of the big Skechers store in Market Market, The Fort! Read after the jump to see the brand's latest selections and of course, what I took home with me.

Surprise, surprise. This is me raving about IN2IT for the nth time! I can't help it, not when they have amazing products that can rival expensive brands for only a fraction of the price. Remember their blush, eyebrow powder, eyeliner, and foundation? I have them and they are all super products. This time, I want to talk about their new eyeshadow palette called the IN2IT Eye Colour Palette (P380).

Shade selection and texture. These palettes come in four variants that contain wearable, flattering shades that is obviously chosen for Asian skin. The eyeshadows have excellent pigmentation and far from being powdery and chalky. They do contain a bit of sparkle which makes them grittier than I woud like, but overall the texture is fine and silky.

Vibrancy and staying power. You can definitely use these without primer and they will come out vibrant. They will also stay in place, but do expect creasing if you have oily lids.

We all have pores, but some of us have bigger pores than others. A lot of beauty products claim to cure you of them but the truth is that they can't work miracles - if you have large pores, you will most probably have them forever! It's just how your skin is. Short of surgery, the next best thing you can do is to use makeup and skincare that hides and fills pores.

One of the most promising pore fillers out in the market is the newly-released Z-Pore (P1,600). It's literally an instant pore-refiner since the silicon-based cream is super fine, slipping into those holes like a boss. It also has a matte finish that smoothens and evens out skin. 

I'm not going to scare you into using sunscreen. Seriously, you won't die extra ugly if you don't wear sunscreen. You'll just have a few sunspots, more wrinkles, and uneven skin, but really, nothing life-threatening! 

Now we have that out of the way, let me tell you about my new sunscreen discovery, the VMV Hypoallergenics Armada Face Cover 30. It's great! Now I understand why it's such a popular SPF product, after years of hearing about it from friends and magazines extolling its virtues.

The VMV Armada is a non-greasy, light day moisturizer that protects your face from sun damage while offering maximum comfort. It doesn't feel like a blanket of oil and sweat on my face. Better yet, it didn't break me out! I find that most SPF products give me pimples, but that's not the case with the Armada. It didn't block my pores either.

I've been thinking a lot about designer bags lately. Before, I wouldn't give them a moment's hoot - why blow P20,000 to P100,000 and beyond just for a bag? There are equally beautiful bags for much, much less than that. It didn't make sense to me. But now, it sorta does.

Let me tell you a little bit about my line of work. I work in the fashion industry as a PR and marketing person. I meet a lot of clients and people from the media, so it pays to reason that I always need to be at my best. You won't trust someone to represent you if that person looks shabby and all over the place, will you? Some people call it vanity, but I call it simple survival.

They say good shoes will take you to good places. That's true. But I do think that quote also applies to bags, too.

Let's make this Clinique Day! Since I just posted about the last Clinique Party, I thought I should also post a review of their newest product to hit the Philippines: Lid Smoothie Antioxidant 8-Hour Eye Colour (P1,550). It's a liquid eyeshadow that comes in a tube with a cooling silver applicator. It also promises to have ingredients to soothe skin and fill in lines.

I think the applicator is a cool (literally and figuratively) add-on, but overall, I can do without it. It's easier to spread the eyeshadow with a finger or a concealer brush instead of trying to use the silver tip to even out the color. 

As for the eyeshadow itself. It's sheer, like most of Clinique's eyeshadows. Clinique is a brand that's all about natural-looking makeup so I'm not surprised!

I know, I know, this is rather late but I wanted to share what went down at the Clinique Real Women Party anyway. It was, as all Clinique parties go, an intimate affair. All my favorite people were there plus I got to meet one of my readers, Mina! It was chika all afternoon at the Clinique Rockwell counter and even most of the evening as we had dinner together. Super fun. 

The new Clinique counter in Rustan's Essences, Powerplant Mall

That's Mina and that's me!

Are you sick and tired of your blackheads, white heads, and pimples? Tell me all about it. I know how it feels to try lots of treatments and products, get so hopeful, and still end up where you started. It may be that your acne is a genetic pre-disposition, which means that there's not much that you can do to cure it except lessen the appearance and discomfort.

My ongoing battle with acne

But maybe, just maybe, you are doing a few things that you don't know causes or worsens acne. Acne is generally caused by over-production of oil, bacteria, and uncleared dead skin cells which clog pores. Using the wrong product will trigger acne, but sometimes it's what you do rather than what you use that causes the problem.

Here are five common habits that cause acne. Any of these sound familiar?

1. Over-drying your skin. It sounds like common sense to strip your face of oil to prevent more oil, so a lot of people use drying products such as harsh facial washes, alchohol-based toners, and abrasive exfoliators to get rid of the sebum. But it doesn't work that way.

We all know makeup testers can be home to bacteria and diseases, but of course sometimes we need to try them first before purchasing. I wonder: what do you do to avoid risking your health when you want to test products in the store? Thanks! -Leng

Hi Leng! Thanks for your great question! A lot of girls can be careless when it comes to swatching makeup before buying them. They're not aware that it's not safe or even if they are, they disregard the issue because they really want to test the makeup before they buy it. I can understand that; I mean, who wants to buy something that's been untested? 

So here's my main rule for testing makeup on the counters: don't put anything on your face unless you know it's been sanitized.