WIMMB: EB Advance BB Cream in Oriental

As someone who describes her makeup skills as “a touch above mediocre”, I get pretty intimidated when it comes to foundation.  I never want to look as if I have a full face makeup on, I prefer a really subtle natural look.   That’s why I shy away from most kinds of foundations, especially liquids.

A great alternative to liquid foundations is of course, the ever-so-popular BB Cream.  This makeup sensation popularized by South Korea has become a staple in most makeup kits here in the Philippines. A moisturizer, sun-protector and light coverage formula all in one bottle.  And our own local brands definitely took advantage of this popularity to bust out their own formulations.

I’m talking about EB Advance, the “high-end” version of the Ever Bilena Brand.  I stumbled upon their EB Advance BB Cream in my never ending quest to find affordable yet quality makeup products.

I got this BB Cream for 220 pesos at Watson’s.  This BB cream has two varieties:  Anti-Aging in Natural shade and Whitening in Oriental shade.  I chose the latter because it’s the one with yellow undertone.

It comes in this convenient plastic tube; makes it easy to take anywhere.  Also I love the silver cap and the tiny nozzle which provides good control in dispensing the right amount of product.  Downside is that the nozzle gets messy.

The Oriental variant does have yellow undertone but it goes light at first when applied to my face.  However, as I mentioned in my concealer review, I have acidic skin, so I can get away with light foundations because they oxidize on my skin.  The consistency is quite thick so you know it will give pretty much a medium coverage.   Because of the thick consistency I use a makeup sponge to apply instead of my fingers, but that’s just preference.

WITHOUT FLASH

WITH FLASH

The BB cream feels lightweight on the skin, considering its thick consistency.  It dries to a demi-matte finish, which gives my skin just a hint of dewiness.   I do apply powder to set the BB cream because I tend to get oily on my T-zone, and I personally don’t like a dewy finish.   It’s not sticky at all and feels comfortable on my skin.   Coverage-wise, it definitely brightens up my skin, covers the redness and evens out my skin tone.   It also covers the darkness under my eyes and the veins on my cheek, which are pretty much all of my facial concerns.

Around the 4th hour mark, my skin starts to get oily, especially on my nose area and forehead   The good thing about this BB cream is that it doesn’t transfer to my blotting paper or tissues or whatever I used to remove the oiliness.  At the 8th hour mark I can definitely say the BB cream holds up very well, still managing to hide the redness and veins on my face.  I can definitely tell the difference when I take off my makeup at the end of the day.

And that’s it! I’m glad I purchased the EB Advance BB Cream.  I’ve been using this for 6 months now and I did not break-out at all.  This for me is a truly excellent buy, a good alternative to foundations.

Thanks for reading!

Read More »

WIMMB: Careline Extra Shine Lipgloss

Hello everybody!

My actual go-to makeup look is what I fondly call the gandang minadali look.   I’ve mentioned it before on my previous post, where I only need concealer, powder and lip product and I’m good to go.   For this kind of “look” I always reach for my favorite lip tint or lip gloss.   And the lip gloss I’m currently loving at the moment is the one from Careline, the sister brand of another favorite, Ever Bilena. It is called the Careline Extra Shine Lipgloss (enriched with Vitamin E)

First of all, isn’t the packaging just adorable?  The tube looks so cute and you can actually see the color of the lip gloss.  It comes with a doe-foot applicator which makes application really easy.  

I got the shade 04 and I was actually surprised at how pigmented this lip gloss is. You may not see it in this arm swatch, but it actually comes out as a somewhat deeper glossy red when applied to my lips. That's because my lips have dark edges and are quite pigmented. Nevertheless, this lipgloss is quite opaque, almost reaching liquid-lipstick levels, and gives me a really nice pop of color.

It also has a bit of a scent, almost peach-like. I absolutely love its scent.

The formula is super bouncy, and it's difficult not to play with the applicator. It's really creamy as well, and an absolute delight to apply to the lips. One thing to note though is that this lipgloss is not heavy on the lips at all. Sure you can feel that you have something your lips, but it is definitely annoying or troublesome.

As for the longevity, well, it only started fading on me around the 4th hour mark, but it still has enough pigment to avoid actually having naked lips. It does tend to feel somewhat drying on the lips by this time, but again, nothing too troubling. Even after eating this lipgloss stays put, and that's an impressive feat for an inexpensive product.

I really hope you give this lip gloss a try, but since it has been around for quite some time now, I'm sure you already have. This Careline Extra Shine Lip gloss lives true to its name, giving a nice extra shine to your lips for a totally cute everyday look.

Happy reading!

Read More »

WIMMB: Fashion 21 All day Matte Lipstick in Russet

Hello everybody!

Story time: It’s pretty hard for me to look for good and affordable lipsticks.  Don’t get me wrong; I know that local brand lipsticks are stepping up their game, it’s just that I have pigmented lips.  Like, I have dark lips.  I can’t wear most nude lipsticks because they make me look sick and washed out.  It’s a chore for me to look for a good MLBB shade.

That’s why I was very impressed by the Fashion 21 All day Russet lipstick.  I was on the hunt for a good quality everyday lipstick and All day Matte line from Fashion 21 was really well-hyped.  Of course I had to give it a try, and what can I say, I absolutely fell in love with it.

I got this for only 175 pesos, which is definitely within my budget as I promised myself that I will only buy lipsticks not surpassing 200 pesos.  Cheapskate much?

I love the packaging.  It looks very sleek and the metallic gray color of the tube gives off a high-end vibe.  Plus, you can definitely hear a click when you close the tube which means the cap won’t get taken off easily inside your makeup bag.

I was actually pretty intimidated by the shade when I first saw it. I don’t want to wear only dark lipsticks (even though it’s basically what works for me) because they weren’t girly enough for my taste.  I wanted to get a different shade from the same line at first, like Bronze or Sushi, but when I tried Russet on I fell in love immediately. It’s a gorgeous reddish pink with hints of brown and it works beautifully on my lips even if they are pigmented on the edges.

You do need a couple of swipes to get the true pigmentation, but it’s okay for me. It sets to a matte finish without making my lips dry and emphasizing my lip lines, although a thin layer of lip balm underneath never hurts. Also, I do not detect any noticeable scent when I put the lipstick on.

As for longevity, it lasts a good 4-5 hours on me without eating, which is pretty good in my book. There’s a tad bit of transfer on utensils when I eat and I definitely need to retouch afterwards. But the color is just so gorgeous on me that I don’t mind reapplying. Once or twice for an entire day is not bad all.

I therefore conclude (haha) that the Fashion 21 All day Russet is a total steal. Great price, great packaging, great shade, and great longevity. I will definitely check out more shades from this line.

Thanks for reading!

Read More »

WIMMB: EB Advance Perfect Eye Concealer

Hello everybody! 

The next item in my makeup bag that I will be giving my thoughts on is: my concealer.  Not to brag or anything, but I do have quite clear skin (thank you Lord for that) and not a lot of darkness under my eyes.  Basically there’s nothing much to cover up, I just usually use BB creams or foundation to even out my skin tone and get rid of the redness on my face. That’s why I purchased a small concealer stick, just enough for when I want a no makeup-makeup look.

The EB Advance Perfect Eye Concealer Stick is perfect for those days when I’m going somewhere really quick, like a trip to the grocery store or to my niece’s school to pick her up.  Just pop a bit of concealer under my eyes, on the visible veins on my cheeks, redness around my nose, and then follow up with some powder and I’m good to go.  I bought this stick for 100 pesos, and I believe you can get this at any huge grocery store and Watson's stores.  Ever Bilena is an easy brand to look for, don't you think?

EB Advance Perfect Eye Concealer

Yeah, the label had completely rubbed off, leaving me with a blank tube.  Other than that, it is a basic packaging with a twist bottom, and you get a decent amount of product.

I got mine in the shade CO1 Light, and I remember there were only two shades available in the mall I got this from. It's a smidge lighter on me but I can get away with it because my skin is acidic and the concealer oxidizes on me by the time I leave the house, so no big deal.

Here's a swatch of two layers of the product.  I drew a line with eyebrow pencil on the back of my hand, and as you can see it covers the line pretty well.

I normally use around 1-2 layers of the product under my eyes, then 1 layer each for the veins on my cheeks and around my nose.  Then I set my face with powder; sometimes when I’m too lazy to reach for my face powder I just use baby powder.  It has a creamy consistency which makes it fairly easy to blend.

This concealer stick for me gives light coverage under my eyes and medium for my veins and redness.  It does tend to crease under my eye area especially since I wear glasses and I do get oily.  But anyways, like I mentioned earlier, I only use this concealer for really quick trips, when I don’t want to put on BB Cream or foundation and I just want to look presentable.  

For me, the EB Advance Perfect Eye Concealer is a decent buy.  If you can make it work, like I did, it's a nice addition to your makeup bag.  Good for those gandang minadali days, or if you want a good concealer for an affordable price.

Thanks for reading!

Read More »

WIMMB: Ever Bilena Kleopatra Eyebrow Pencil

Hello everybody! For the first part of my What’s in my Makeup Bag series, I will be talking about one of the very first makeup items I’ve bought: the eyebrow pencil. I’ve always been a pulbo lang, pwede na kind of girl. And since a good chunk of makeup gurus on Youtube puts emphasis on the terms “kilay is life”, I figured my eyebrows were a good place to start practicing.

Enter Ever Bilena Kleopatra Eyebrow Pencil in Dark Brown. I bought this pencil at our nearest 7/11 store for only 65 pesos.

It comes with its own brush, which was very convenient.

The shade I got was Dark Brown, which I believe complements my hair nicely. The actual pencil is very soft and creamy, making it easy to blend. I only need light strokes because it is pretty pigmented.

I absolutely love this pencil. This was what I used to learn how to properly shape my eyebrows. I use this to outline my brows, and then fill in the sparse areas. However, because of its creaminess, I tend to smudge a bit outside my brow area, but that can be easily resolved with a bit of concealer or foundation.

I find that it also stays on my eyebrows for an entire day, or at least until I take my makeup off. Then again, I don’t particularly have oiliness around my brow area, so the pigment stays put for a long time.

Overall, the Ever Bilena Kleopatra Eyebrow Pencil is a solid purchase: inexpensive, easy to use and easy to find. For those who are just starting with their makeup, like I was when I first bought this pencil 3 years ago, this is a good product to start with.

Thanks for reading!

Read More »