Glow by Lady E

  Whenever I travel, I try to strike a balance between bringing enough makeup to feel put together and not overpacking. For my Vigan trip, I curated a mix of tried-and-true staples and versatile products that could handle long road trips, sudden rain showers, and nights out at Calle Crisologo. My makeup bag for this trip Makeup Brushes & Tools The makeup bag has a place for storing brushes. I brought the following brushes: blush brush concealer brush eyebrow brush bronzer brush different eye shadow brushes blending brush These brushes fit perfectly in the case, making them easy to pack and grab on the go. However, the garter to hold the brushes is too big, so the brushes kept falling out whenever I opened the bag! My solution was to bunch as many brushes in one compartment so they won't fall out easily.  Face Base BYS Full Coverage Foundation  – reliable for long wear and humidity. Review soon!  NARS Soft Matte Primer – I use this for my eyelids.  BYS Hybr...

Tusen takk, my Glow Girls from Norway! 🇳🇴✨ You’ve made it to #2 on the blog rankings and I see you — glowing, growing, and shining from the fjords to the cities. Sending you all my love and a big warm hug from across the miles. 💖 Are you ready to glow up your week with me? This post is for YOU! There’s a certain kind of heartbreak that only makeup girls know — when a product looks so promising, feels luxurious, and still doesn’t work for you. That’s the case with the NARS Soft Matte Primer for me. Let’s get one thing straight: it’s not a bad primer. In fact, it’s beautiful on paper — lightweight, adds a luminous sheen, and blends effortlessly.  But here’s what no one tells you when you're just starting out: not all primers work with all foundations. 😮‍💨 I discovered this when I tried pairing the NARS primer with my holy grail NARS Punjab foundation. I thought, “same brand, they should play nice together, right?” Wrong. The finish didn’t sit right. It made my skin look cakey an...

Back in 2015, I shared How I Packed My Baguio Vanity Kit — and looking back, I realize how timeless some of those essentials were. This year, I returned to the cool Baguio breeze with a curated kit of products that do it all: hydrate, enhance, and perform — even in mountain weather. My vanity kit this time? Fierce and functional, housed in a bold red NARS pouch that I got last year as a GWP. Thank you, NARS!  Here's a peek at what made the cut: 💄 NARS Foundation Weightless, buildable, and my skin but better. A must for evenings out and cozy café moments. Since getting MCAS/Histamine flares and rosacea, this NARS foundation has been my go-to foundation to cover up all the rashes and the redness on my face. Let me know in the comments if you want a review for red/acne/rosacea prone skin.  🎨 Bobbi Brown Palette For subtle daytime definition and quick smoky eyes at night. It also includes a blush! ✨ Chanel Eyebrow Kit I used to use Bobbi Brown eyeshadows for my brows but ...

I’ve only used this a few times and now it has expired. So sayang. This is newer than my MAC lip glass but my MAC is still good to use. I won’t buy NARS lip glosses again.

I’m really happy that I was able to finish a lot of makeup in May aside from the usual toiletries. The Face Shop Nail Polish Remover and Johnson’s Cooling Powder I don’t usually apply powders but May was really tough and nights were so unbearably hot. My husband would “bathe” himself in this cooling powder. He would then apply some on my back. We would have a bit of relief, enough to fall asleep. Etude House Surprise Liquid Concealer and NARS Palm Beach This concealer is one of the best budget concealers out there. Back when I reviewed the NARS Palm Beach, I said that it was too dark for me but when summer hit, it was the perfect shade so I’m glad that I hit pan before summer ends. I finally finished this annoying nail polish remover from Etude House! Will definitely NOT repurchase. I super love this hand cream from The Body Shop. I just don’t like the packaging as the sides burst open. I won’t repurchase as there are tons of products out there that have bet...

I went to the doctor yesterday. I never imagined that I would look forward to hospital visits just so I can get out of the house for a few hours. Anyway, here’s what I used for my makeup. MAC Fix Rosebud Salve Estee Lauder Mascara Bobbi Brown Brow Shaper Shu Uemura BB Mousse Revlon Liquid Foundation Bobbi Brown Corrector Bobbi Brown Gel Liner Bobbi Brown Palette Too Faced Leopard Love Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler NARS 15 Palette UDPP Etude House Beauty Sponge Benefit Confessions of a Concealholic Revlon Bronzer/Blush Duo I used my Duwop Isla Sirena palette for my eyes and lips. I was really surprised that the lipstick turned out to be very pretty on my lips: Too bad it does not last long. I had to re-apply while I was still at home and when we got to the hospital my cousin handed me my Carmex. She said there was no more lipstick and my lips were chapping.

Thank God it’s Friday! I look forward to Fridays even though my husband and I both have work on Saturdays. Maybe it’s a leftover euphoric feeling from back when I still worked in the corporate world. Or maybe I’m just excited to have my husband all to myself the following day. Whatever it is, Friday is one of the best days ever! For you other ladies out there, Friday is a time to kick back and relax after work. You meet with your girlfriends or boyfriend and spend a relaxing Friday night. Now if you are going from work to party, I suggest you use stay-all-day products. I love applying makeup but I’m a bit lazy when it comes to touch ups so I always invest in long-lasting products. Here are my tried and tested ones. Bobbi Brown BB Cream When my skin is behaving, this product really stays on all day. Usually, I only have to apply powder on my T-zone and that’s it. This is an expensive BB cream that is totally worth the price. Too Faced Shadow Insurance My magic potion to make...

Continuing with our series, the next products you need are bronzers: You can use a cream bronzer (my current favorite) or you can stick to your regular powder-based bronzer: Remember that one tends to get darker during summer so you may need to change your shade. Bronzers look amazing especially if you have tanned skin from all that beach hopping! If you’re going to the beach, don’t forget to take your favorite bronzer with you. Opt for cream ones that have a bit of shimmer so you sparkle when the sun hits you. Next are cheek colors. Now I find that powder blushes are not enough during summer especially if you have oily skin. You need to layer your colors so they stay longer. I prefer using a lip and cheek cream or a cheek tint like Cha Chat Tint from Benefit. To avoid that sticky feeling with cream blushes, I set it with powder blushes in almost the same shade. I say almost because I enjoy mixing them up. By the way, Cha Chat Tint is the perfect summer shade for me! You...

I’ve always been a pink lipstick kind of girl because that’s what my mom always wore. Then I grew up and added red to my collection. But that was it – pinks and reds. I’ve never ventured into the unknown world of bright pinks or browns or neutrals. Then I studied makeup artistry and I was introduced to a whole new world of color. Here are some unexpected lip colors that I never dreamed I would wear but have come to love. Bobbi Brown Bikini Pink, MAC Koi, Kiss Me, Too Faced, NARS Schiap, Kiss Me. Here are swatches: I don’t wear these everyday, only on special occasions and when I feel extra glam. The most used shade is Bikini Pink although I have to top this off with my pot rouge to make it pop. Schiap turns into a deep pink on my lips because I’m acidic. The neutrals are great and I have yet to use the Too Faced Luster Liner.

I blogged about my top liquid concealers for my under eyes. Now, here are my favorite concealers. First is the Tinted Eye Brightener from Bobbi Brown which is also included in the other concealer post. It’s really a good versatile concealer. Next is the Erase Paste from Benefit. I got this pot from my Confessions of a Concealaholic palette. This is the best concealer in that palette. It’s very versatile too. Then there’s the Bobbi Brown Corrector. This is technically not a concealer but I can actually use this alone. I didn’t buy the concealer anymore as this gives me good coverage already. I’ve also been saving this and I only use this on special occasions. I already bought a backup pot because as you can see, it’s running out. This is the best in the bunch. Finally, the NARS Custard and Ginger duo which I depotted. I haven’t been using this for a while but when I did, I was really amazed. It glided so smoothly on my super dry skin and it didn’t cake the whole day! The Erase...

NARS makeup are so pretty! But their packaging sucks big time: They get dirty fast and the dirt really sticks to the packaging. Even if I wipe them from time to time, they still get so dirty. It’s a shame, they really don’t look nice in my vanity. I have been reducing my makeup collection for the past few months now and I’m trying to figure out which brands I’m keeping and will still be buying. NARS is a big question mark for me. I love their products plus one of my makeup artistry mentors is from NARS so it’s really hard for me to let go of this brand. But, if I really think hard about the money I’ve invested in these products and end up with packaging like this, I get really disappointed. I have depotted 2 NARS products because the packaging was already hopeless. They were very sticky and I couldn’t do anything about it anymore. I need to depot one more concealer combo for the same reason. I had to throw away one depotted cream blush because some insects decided to make ...

As mentioned in my previous post,  I will be grouping my cosmetics monthly so that I will be able to use all of them. If you only knew how much cosmetics I have! I really want to use and finish them all. So I hope I can have good results with this experiment. Here are my October Cosmetics: I know it looks chaotic but don’t worry! I grouped them and took individual photos. Let’s start with the face: I seriously need to finish my Laura Mercier cream foundation (Bamboo Beige). It’s hanging by a thread and I think I only have 3 uses left for this tube. Next is the Palgantong Powder in Pearl Beige. I haven’t used this yet although I have used it on my clients. Let’s see if it can at least live with my acidic face for a couple of hours. This Benefit That Gal primer is also hanging by a thread so I better finish it fast. Next is Benefit High Beam and ELF HD Undereye Setting Powder (to be blogged soon). Lastly, the Benefit Confessions of a Concealaholic kit. This is another produc...

NARS The Multiple. What can I say about this product except it’s ingenious. You can use it on your cheeks or lips or as a highlighter. One tube is enough to last you for many months. This is Angelika. That’s not even everything. There’s more inside the tube. I got this as part of a set sometime last year, I think. It’s a lovely pink shade that gives your cheeks some life. It has a bit of shimmer but I think that gives it the extra oomph.  It lasts almost the whole day. I use this whenever I feel lazy or when I know that I won’t have time to retouch my makeup. I have no idea how much a tube costs and I don’t know if it is still available. If you are a fan of blushes and lip and cheek tints, try NARS Angelika.