Do you like painted nails but find manicures to be a chore? Or have you ever wanted to try having long nails, but couldn’t commit to growing them out? You should check out press-on nails!

Nine and I were supposed to try press-on nails with Den before, but chickened out at the last minute. So when Girlstuff’s Press-On Gel Nails arrived at the PV HQ, we volunteered to test them for the special events we were attending that weekend!

Do you have to pay a lot of money for good makeup? Well, if you asked me this seven years ago, I’d have to give you the bad news and say that yes you do, most of the time. There were such limited options back then from local brands, and imported brands cost a pretty penny - even affordable ones required international shipping and taxes factored in the price. But now, there are so, so many amazing products available in the home front! It’s good because it empowers Filipinas with the beauty equipment they need to conquer their day with confidence - no matter the budget!

I went a little mad for eyeshadows a few months ago, and one of the collateral damage during that time is the then newly-released Alyssa Edwards x Anastasia Eyeshadow Palette (P3,380 at Sephora.ph). This was exactly the kind of candy bright, has-zero-fucks-to-give palette that I was looking for! It’s my first ever Anastasia palette. I passed on their other ones because while I felt that I had them in some version in my other palettes, I have nothing like the Alyssa Edwards colors, period.

So, now that I’ve had this for some time, do I still think it’s worth the splurge?

You’ve probably seen this Thai cosmetics brand making the rounds on Youtube and online beauty communities. 4U2 has actually been in Watsons for as long as I can remember, with their packaging and marketing designed to appeal to teens. The brand has since upgraded their look, and the renewed interest has led to speculation that their cream blushes might be dupes for the popular 3CE Multi Pots. I’ll cut to the chase and tell you now that they are NOT.

With all the drama that’s happened in the beauty world this 2019, this week’s BNR features some familiar brands and faces moving on to the next chapter. Beauty gurus and brands alike have made some major changes, from Deciem’s apparent rise from the ashes, to a Japanese cosmetics giant Shiseido acquiring cult favorite US skincare brand. We're also anticipating two very different beauty brand launches from YouTube gurus both stateside and local, and it's definitely made the second stretch of October pretty exciting for us beauty news diehards!

Actress Anne Curtis is a keen lover of scents. She has a scent for her different moods, plus it’s something that her fans always ask her about, so it made sense for her baby blk Cosmetics to expand to this category.

According to Guttierez, blk wanted to step away from the usual offerings in the local market, balancing its scent blends with local taste. The result: four less common blends that embody Summer, Spring, Autumn, and Winter. These are made with 12% oil sourced from Dubai (while the mists are made in the UAE) as opposed to the typical target of 4 to 5%, says Gutierrez. 

Are you a big fan of beauty videos? Do you follow along or listen to it while doing your own face? I recently got hooked when I became obsessed with learning how to apply eyeshadow! While PV has a lot of great how-to articles, I feel the need to watch videos so I can see exactly how things are done. I play the video on my phone and plug my earphones in so I can hear the audio better. The setup is a bit of a hassle, especially since I don’t have a vanity table, but my life has been changed by Zhia Beauty’s Smart Vanity Mirror!

She’s one of the most sought-after choreographers in the country, guiding the biggest stars on how to rock the dancefloor. And with her distinctive and somewhat quirky style, it’s not hard to see why Georcelle Dapat-Sy (aka, Teacher Georcelle) was tapped by BYS Cosmetics to collaborate on a daring new line of lipsticks. There’s a new MOVE in town that you’re gonna want to try!

I grew up seeing Pond’s being used by my female relatives. My mom would talk about how Pond’s was a luxury back in the day, and how they had to source the famous Pond’s Cold Cream all the way from Hong Kong! Today, Pond’s is one of the most accessible and affordable beauty brands around - you can find their products pretty much anywhere you go. And it’s that accessibility and pocket-friendly price tag that made the PV team excited to hear about the new Pond’s Cleansing Balm. 

If you’ve been a long-time reader of Project Vanity, you might still recall when Liz used to do #ManiMondays. As a nail polish fan, I used to look forward to those posts because I didn’t know much about other brands besides local ones like Caronia, Bobbie, and Chic. Nowadays though, it’s rare to see Liz wearing any kind of nail color, and I get it. Manicures take time to do and need to be properly cared for - sporting chipped nail polish is the equivalent of having smudged mascara or eyeliner and not fixing it.

This week’s roundup is especially exciting because everything is happening right in our own backyard! First up is MAC Cosmetics and their very K-beauty inspired additions. Wondering what to do this weekend? We’ve got deets on which malls to hit for some special beauty treats, so read up and get ready to go out with your besties for some beauty shopping!

I’ve tried quite a lot of brow products over the years, and some of my former faves have since been replaced with newer releases. Even so, K-Palette’s Lasting Eyebrow Liner remains my pick for eyebrow pens! And I’m in good company, because even beauty and fashion icon Heart Evangelista packs it in her makeup kit.

Eyebrow tints have an added appeal to a busy working mom like me, so I was happy when K-Palette released their Lasting Eyebrow Tint. Who wouldn’t want to have gorgeous brows for five whole days?

The most potent skincare potions usually get the revered label, “Sleep in a Bottle”. As someone who doesn’t get a lot of sleep on the regular, the Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Intense Reset Concentrate (P4,800 for 20ml) promise of waking up to better skin certainly appealed to me. I especially I wondered how it could possibly improve on a routine that already included the iconic Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex II (P4,200 for 30ml) which made my skin smooth and glowy despite being sick.

Yesterday I posted a photo of me on Instagram where I thought my face looked ugly. I only had concealer and eyebrows on, and the photo captured me on my wrong side with bad lighting on top of that. If you know me, I almost never do this. I’d rather “throw” away what could be considered a good or at least interesting photo if my face so much as looked like it was wrong (to me). I have hundreds of photos I could have posted in my travels and my daily life that simply didn’t get shared because of this.

Taking a break is important for physical, mental, and emotional health but when was the last time you were able to disconnect and relax? To be honest, this is a real challenge for me because of how busy and fast-paced life can get! But the truth is: the busier you are, the more important it becomes for you to recharge. Slowing down and resting to take care of yourself also means you can find new energy to do what you have to do without burning out.

I recently went on a trip abroad, and while my skin was totally fine during my travels, all hell broke loose when I arrived back in Manila. My skin suddenly became a flaky mess after days of cold and airplane conditions, and my period arrived and brought hormonal acne with it. I routinely get post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), so my skin pretty much went from flat and somewhat even-toned, to dry and dotted. Nice one.

It’s never too early to start prepping for Christmas! With December only a couple of months away, now is the perfect time to start planning some rocking holiday #FOTDs to slay those parties with the first wave of holiday drops from Happy Skin and Caronia. Not the partying type? Get to work on those wish lists for your preferred stocking stuffers by brushing up on the cutest launch from Drag Race veteran Kim Chi or scoring Teviant's sophisticated new cheek line. 

The Colourette Velvetints were a hit for me when they first launched in 2018. There were three well-curated shades in a multipurpose formula that’s pigmented, comfortable, blendable, and affordable at P299 - I still have Birthday Cake on regular rotation! Colourette recently added nine more shades to the line with an improved formula and relaunched packaging so I was really excited to try these. Now at P349 each for 3.5ml of product (they used to be 3g), is it worth getting your hands on the new #VeryVelvet Velvetints? 

I’m usually willing to try anything once but one beauty procedure I’ve held back on is lash treatments. I’ve been scared of getting anything done to my lashes because they might damage my eyes and maybe even cause permanent blindness in the worst case scenario. To enhance my eye makeup game, I’ve been making do with a good lash curler and hoarding my fave P600 Japanese mascara. But let’s be honest: no amount of curling or mascara applications will ever result in a look like Sam’s fabulous lashes!

Last September 17, Clinique Philippines mounted this gorgeous event called Pink Oasis in Okada Manila. With it, they re-introduced the Clinique Moisture Surge 72-Hour Auto Replenishing Hydrator (P2650 for 50ml, at Rustans.) The Moisture Surge line has been so successful that several variants have come out, including an Intense variant. I have previously tried the most basic variant, the Moisture Surge, through travel-sized gifts and have always enjoyed the lightweight hydration the gel format brings.