NiceLadiesThings

When I was still working in an office environment, (BPO to be exact) I used to wear very light make-up. No, I don't wear colored eye shadows - but I make sure that my eyebrows are filled in, even and has a nice shape, and that I have put some powder foundation on so that my face is not shiny. I wore either a light pink lipstick or a lip balm. If I have time and feel like it, I would put a little amount of white eye shadow on my upper and lower eyelids just to make my eyes look wide and awake.

I bought cheap drugstore eye shadows in the past - mostly impulse buys but I guess its more of the fact that I love make-up. So now that I work as a home based ESL tutor, I decided to use my eye shadows and other cosmetics. I knew I have to look good in front of my students.

Then I started to think and want quality eye shadows. I've known Urban Decay's Naked line - but never imagined I would buy one - its priced at P3,000 to P3,500 and its plain simple that I couldn't afford it.
It's a cult favorite and all over the world make-up artists use them and swear by them. If I had the money why not? But recently I admit - I have the money! But I realized I am a frugal girl when it comes to cosmetics. This is really not my type of splurge.

Anyway, so I tried researching for dupes - found a W7 brand that duped all of the Naked palettes. But I did not like its packaging - it's bulky as it was housed in a tin compact just like the Naked palettes, and it was a bit pricey at P600 to P800 a palette. The compact doesn't even have a mirror.

I am glad I came across a new popular drugstore brand in the UK - Make-Up Revolution!
They have also duped the Naked palettes and I've read some reviews from other bloggers too before I decided to purchase. I've heard a lot of good reviews -so I decided to get all three - for only P450 each.

I first bought Iconic 1 and 2 - then a few weeks later I decided to also get Iconic 3

Shot with flash

I am very satisfied with these - the colors are beautiful, I couldn't say that they nailed the eye shadow shades of Urban Decay because I don't have those to compare with, but the colors are soft and simply beautiful. They are rich and apply well - with very minimal fall out. These are good buys! Especially if you do not want to break the bank just to look beautiful.

Shot with flash - from bottom to top: Iconic 1, 3 in the middle and 2 on top

ICONIC 1

ICONIC 2

ICONIC 3

These palettes are housed in a plastic case and though it may not have a mirror - I love the design, its black and glossy- simple yet it doesn't look cheap. At a glance you can see the lovely colors of the palette because of its large transparent window.

Following a Naked tutorial online, here's how I looked like when I used these:

I must admit that I am a beginner when it comes to make-up. Good thing I got these! I am very happy with my eye shadows and my pocket is okay too hehe. The good thing about my current job is, aside from the fact that it is easy, I am home based - and that I get to play with my face using make-up which is what I love too! Applying make-up is a must now because I have to look pretty and presentable for my students.


I am very satisfied with Make-Up Revolution and so I also bought a blush and contour palette from them too..I might have to post a review on that soon. As for Urban Decay, I won't sour grape, I wanted them too of course! Maybe I can get my hands on one of their palettes soon this year, I am thinking of Naked 3 -still not so sure though because I love using these new palettes :-)


Note: This is not a paid / sponsored review

In my L'oreal Excellence review I mentioned that I am not fond of Coppery, orangey hair color products because I feel that it doesn't suit my skin tone. Today I am reviewing Kolours in Thai Tamarind just because I got it on a buy 1 take 1 promo last year, the Medium brown shade was bundled with Thai Tamarind.

Anyway, I tried this because I was curious, and quite bored with Medium brown. The color of the model's hair on the box look promising.

Without flash under fluorescent light

With flash, see that my black roots are visible

Under fluorescent light, without flash

Excuse my selfie :-) this is what it looks like under natural light

After giving birth via caesarean section for some reason, like my mom, my tummy had not gotten rid of its bulge. I am 4 feet 11 inches tall and weigh 50kg so a larger middle part is still questionable. But I have to live with it and rely on girdles to feel confident since I cannot find time to exercise although I do watch my diet.

So seeing a Munafie panty had me thinking, does it really work for that price? I am a Shopee shopper and a lot of sellers offer these Munafie slimming panties that they say are from Japan. Some sell it for P200 or more- some sell it for as low as P70, and I bought mine for P180. Most of these sellers claim they sell an authentic Munafie. I bought mine because the seller's post said she is selling the original Munafie and there are so many great reviews from her buyers. Here's my take on the Munafie:

If your waist line is 32 - 34 inches, save your money. Buy a more expensive girdle if you want a flatter tummy.
Why? This didn't work for me. I tried it on right away after receiving it but got disappointed.
It only made my tummy feel firmer but it did not minimize my tummy's size. My sides were a bit smoother but that was just that - it didn't make my tummy look flatter even for an inch.

So the ads are misleading - or I got a fake one? Had this been thicker, it would have worked.
What I like about panty though is that it is so soft.

The Munafie Slimming Panty (packaging)

I ordered a nude color - the material is very soft

Lining doesn't look impressive, even the product's printed name doesn't look good.

So some people claim that this product works. The videos shown about it looks promising even the pictures but nah I will not buy another one. I do not know if what I bought was fake or if there is a real one out there that actually works like magic as shown on the videos and ads.

When matte lipsticks became a trend, I didn't jump in the bandwagon right away. I still prefer glossy lipsticks and lip gloss. There's a certain appeal in your looks if your lips are glossy - you look fresh and healthy.
My first matte lipstick was from L'oreal - now I mentioned before on my first Avon lipsticks review that I am the type who would run away from a red lipstick - it just doesn't look good or right on me. Then the mattes came in - my first red matte was from L'oreal - a Pure Garnet shade - I so love it. I will post a review for that separately.

So all these brands Maybelline and L'oreal among the popular and affordable ones were probably making a lot of money because women these days go gaga over a perfect shade of nude or red matte lipstick. I still buy Avon products and religiously check their brochures - and then I wondered - why is it that Avon doesn't have a matte lipstick?


Finally last month Avon launched their new lippie - Avon's Perfectly Matte lipstick. I did not need to decide or think about it- I had contacted my Avon lady rightaway. The best part is its cheap at P399 and during the launch they provided freebies!  A mascara and pressed powder!



Here's a screenshot of their ad:


I bought the Pure Pink Shade and I am soo glad I did. The first time I tried this, I was in awe of the lipstick - its smooth and oh so matte...doesn't cake (unless overly applied) and color stays put for hours.



Here's what it looked like on me, its a cute pink shade - looks natural!





(Note: This is not a paid review.)

I've been meaning to buy an eyebrow mascara but because its expensive online and I do not know which brand to buy, I waited and its been on my to buy list for quite sometime now. You see, like my mom, I'm not blessed with bushy brows or say thick eyebrows. So I've been dependent on eyebrow pencils and lately with eyebrow powders. I am curious on how a brow mascara would work and I was dreaming that it will make my eyebrow hairs thicker. So when I saw that L'oreal Philippines has released Brow Artist Chisel Straight I got excited and bought one right away!

On L'oreal's Facebook page it says this is priced at P400. When I went to Landmark Trinoma last week I was surprised to find out its only P300 - the sales associate said that is the regular price for this product.



I have been using L'oreal's eyebrow powder for a couple of months now - the genius kit, and I sooo love it! (See my seperate review for the genius kit) And I only got it for P200 from its original price of P400 because it was on sale :-) So now they are buddies!

My face bare: no eyebrow powder on, no make-up

So I decided to use this alone, Chisel straight, without any eyebrow powder on, just to see how it works and how I will look. It actually wasn't that easy to use. I applied the mascara first on the hairs of my brows, but because it wouldn't make my brows thicker than I hoped I had to rub gently the flocking tip on my eyebrows as it dries giving me an eyebrow pencil effect. If you mistakenly applied more, it would be a mess, but you have to be prepared with a spoolie brush - good thing the genius kit has one, or you can just use the mascara comb.

Me all glum looking - but at least my eyebrows are looking good here LOL

My conclusion is - I would stick to my L'oreal Brow Artist Genius Kit but then since I have this - I might have to use it on top of the genius kit for a more straighter brow tip look. I hope with regular use I'll be an expert soon!

Although I am not a fan, (I've never watched Aldub) I was surprised  and excited to see Maine Mendoza as this year's endorser of Avon's Skin So Soft lotion. I didn't watch her shows at Eat Bulaga but I like her because she is very pretty and quirky and she seems like a very nice down to earth person. So, after seeing her ad on an Avon Brochure as I said I got excited and contacted my Avon lady right away to order.




The ad on the brochure will court you and would make you like/want/order the lotion after reading its description:

I've used SSS lotions before, but I am not a fan. I do love its light floral fresh scent, so I buy a bottle once in a while. Last year, they featured Ina Raymundo on their Collagen lotion and I bought that one too.
I used it but I didn't even finish the bottle.


But this lotion is different though, Skin Whitening wise, I would say don't expect too much. I've been using the lotion for about a month now and I haven't seen any improvements yet - my skin is not fairer. Take note that I am a stay at home mom, I rarely go outside, and I use a Kojic soap as my daily bath soap.
On the other hand, I don't really mind that the lotion doesn't help a lot in whitening because this lotion is just WONDERFUL! It's just great! I can probably say for now its my HG! The 3 forever young benefits as stated are true! After a few days of using it, I felt my skin is softer, silkier to the touch and its very moisturized - I can't feel any dryness in my legs and arms when I use this. I love touching my arms its sooft! The lotion's consistency is not heavy and its good because it makes it easy to apply evenly on my skin. For now I am still using this, I am almost done with my first bottle and will order another one. This lotion is also okay to use this summer, it doesn't feel sticky and uncomfortably hot on my skin. I do not know how long I will be using this hopefully on my 2nd or 3rd bottle I'll have that white porcelain skin as promised!

Update: I am currently on my 2nd bottle. Still lovin' this lotion :-)

Disclaimer: This is not a paid review.

I remember seeing an ad on  a fashion magazine of a powder foundation that stays put on your face for 12 hours and makes it flawless and oil free - that was years ago and I think it was a Shiseido brand which an average earner like me wouldn't be able to afford unless I save up for it. But since make-up is really not my choice of a splurge I had to live with drugstore brands - mediocre powders and foundations and of course, my oil control sheets.

My face is like an oil factory - I have big pores and super oily skin. I got this from my mom who has a very oily skin too. Though I've heard that people with oily skin are lucky because of the fact that it helps keep wrinkles at bay I still envy women with matte oil free skin (dry type?). They do not have to deal with applying a lot of powder or foundation to hide that ugly oil or shine - they do not have to worry after a few minutes or hours after applying make-up if they still look fresh or already shiny (sigh). So when L'oreal came up with their product Mat Magique powder back in 2014 I was intrigued because of its  low price at Php400! Then Maybelline came up with their own oil free 12hour foundation too and that one was way cheaper but that is another story.



Anyway here's the description of the product according to its box:

L'OREAL MAT MAGIQUE IN G1 VANILLA IVORY

If you have a very oily skin like mine, then chances are you will only be disappointed with this powder.
It didn't last me 12 hours! 2 hours and I am already a bit shiny with this one. Another 2 hours and I can already feel the oil if touch my face. I still love it, though. I love the shade of the powder and how soft it is. I use this on top of L'oreal's true match foundation in G3 Gold Vanilla and they're a perfect match. I like that I can easily tap it on my face after I apply my foundation and my pores are instantly gone as well as the shine too. After an hour or two, I would use an oil blotting film to remove shine and oil, and then I'd look fresh again.



The compact is surprisingly light - as I am used to IN2It and ZA's compacts which are quite long and very glossy. It is stubby but it is cute. The back of the compact is made of transparent matte plastic but it is still smooth to the touch which is nice - it is curved and hollowed - which I think is better so the powder won't break if you drop the compact.

Beside Maybelline's White Superfresh

Matt Magique in G1, Maybelline White Superfresh in 02 Nude Beige

Overall, I still like this powder because it is very soft and finely milled. After using it all up, I would probably try L'oreal's Infallible Pro Matte 16H powder next. This is priced at P400 and I got it for only P320 which is not bad. Last January, I remember this powder was even on sale at 50% for P200 and P150 for the refill! If I catch it on sale at that price, I will of course buy one again :-)