Meet my new bestfriends

That's Majolica Majorca's Lash Expander Mascara and MAC's Penultimate Eye Liner

Neal got these for me in HK. At first I thought he'd go nuts trying to look for them. I totally underestimated him haha! After being so loyal all these years to Maybelline's Great Lash Mascara (I'll still buy another one for back up, that's for sure), I decided to try MM's Lash Expander because of the many good reviews I've read about it.

I first tried out the Penultimate Eye Liner upon my friend, Pia's, insistence one time. We were going to a party and I was snooping through her train case and saw it. I tried it and I vowed to get one for myself.

Look at how "alive" my eye looks in this photo

Come to think of it, my lashes look like they're extensions. That's how good this mascara is! And the liner on the upper lid really helped achieve that wide-eyed look I was aiming for.

Although some of the reviews I've read say it dries fast, I would tend to disagree. See those dark spots on my undereye area? That's mascara. I blinked my eye too soon so that's what happened. Just make sure you have eye makeup remover on hand.

What people are saying about MM's Lash Expander Mascara is also true ... it is really very difficult to remove. My trusted Vitamin E cream from The Body Shop can do it though, but it requires more than the usual amount I use. So if I were you, I wouldn't use this everyday. Only when you need your lashes to look extra pretty. But all in all, I'd still recommend this because of it's fabulous effect. It's like wearing false lashes, promise!

Coming Soon : MAC Lustering

I recently blogged about an epiphany of sorts, thanks to my good friends P and S.

I didn't realize (more like, I refused to accept) that I could get away with wearing red lipstick. But thanks to them, MAC Russian Red is now part of my lipstick collection.

Here's the 2nd part of that epiphany. Another color I've always been averse to (when it comes to make-up atleast), is pink. Who knew that they'd be able to convince me to wear it?! I still can't wear light pink shades though, they make me look so pale. DEATHLY pale, to be precise. Darker shades are definitely more "me".

Coming soon, because another friend snagged it for me in HK

It was "out of stock" in MAC Power Plant Mall, which didn't really come as a surprise to us.

Good thing HK supposedly never runs out of this.

Thanks, J for grabbing this for me! I can't wait to use it.

During our last family vacation in Subic though, I walked into the Body Shop store at PureGold and browsed through their lipstick selection and found a really nice shade of Fuschia. Their #69 lipstick is supposedly the best in their line. The best part? The shop turned out to be an outlet store! I got the lipstick for just P400, about 30% off its original price.

I'm on a (health and beauty) roll

My interest in skincare and make-up is seasonal. When I first got interested in mineral make-up, I was unstoppable! I'm glad MMU has no expiration because I bought quite a lot during that intense moment hee hee...

Then after that it was gone. I don't see make-up the way I see shoes. I can't stop buying the latter. My interest in them never wanes. It's been one of the most permanent things in my life for as long as I can remember. But see...it's that time again. I'm on make-up/skincare mode at the moment and I want to take advantage of the feeling while it's there. I think it all started when I felt the urgent need to address my oily skin, and I haven't stopped since then.

Here's a short (hopefully it stays this way) list of the things on my "to buy" list:

MAC Charged Water - charged water, fused with vital ions from a diamond and instilled with a spirit-lifting therapeutic aroma, then delivered to the skin in the soothing aura of a revitalizing, hydrating mist. Like its source, a diamond, on application it makes the skin feel clear, sparkling, pure and energized. Its aroma : a blend of green tea and citrus. Check out Sophie's review on this to find out why I'm convinced I should get it!

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Duo (in Medium Dark/Natural & Shimmer) - The two finishes of the popular Skinfinish presented in one convenient duo compact. One side provides a natural matte finish, while the other brings an ambient shimmer to cheeks and brow bones. My inspiration behind wanting this? I'm blaming make-up gurus, Sophie (again) and Olga.

MAC Electroflash Lipglass

Top to bottom :
Lil' Hot Pepper - frosty burnt red with multi-dimensional pearl
Sonic Vibe - frosty mid-tone pink with multi-dimensional pearl
Major Minor - frosty mid-tone beige with multi-dimensional pearl
Cultureclash - frosty clear baby pink with multi-dimensional pearl
My personal picks are Lil' Hot Pepper and Major Minor
According to Phoebe, this entire line is coming here in August
Image taken from: Temptalia

Here's another recommendation from Sophie (strike 3 ka na hehehe)

Skin Hour's Deep Cleansing Oil - a mild cleansing oil which has powerful anti-irritant properties formulated with tea tree for skin clarifying and papain extract to even out skin tone. Eden Mint variant relaxes and calms while deeply removing make-up, dirt and oil, and protects skin. Sounds good right? Go to Skin Hour's Multiply site for more info on this.

AND FINALLY...

LEYENDE's Beach Bomb Fragrance

It comes highly-recommended because of its fresh fragrance. According to Sophie, this is going to make me smell "bagong ligo" hehehe! Why not?! It's reasonably priced at less than P500. I want to try this because I'm not a perfume person at all. Anything that makes me sneeze is not for me. Soft scents like this will do the trick!
Image taken from : LEYENDE

Whew...that's it. That's my list. I hope it's final.
Maybe I should stop chatting with Sophie on YM until after I've bought all of these...

Product review : MAC Blot Powder (Pressed)

I'm really on a roll about finding ways to minimize the show of oil on my face. From EMU oil to Monistat...now it's on to MAC. I've been using mineral make up for over a year now and I recently realized how difficult it is to do touch-ups because of the hassle of swirling, tapping and buffing. You can't possibly do all of these when you're out in public! So I decided it was time to look at compact face powders again. The default choice was, of course, MAC since this was what I had been using for years, before switching to mineral make up. But I want to continue using my mineral foundation (currently it's Luminare's Tender Tan) so I chose to go (not with Studiofix this time) with the very famous MAC Blot Powder. I've read a lot of raves about this product. It's perfect because this is really used as a setting/touch-up powder. It provides very little coverage so you still need to wear foundation or pressed powder underneath. I've read that the oil controlling property of this product is just awesome. I got it from the MAC counter last night before going home from work (P1,050) but I did get to do a road test today --- at home, which was fine because the weather was so humid anyway. I'm happy with the results I saw! This is now my kikay kit's newest resident =)