Reader question: What are the beauty products you can't live without?

Feb 18

Hi Ms. Liz! Just curious, are there any beauty products and/or tools that you can't live without? :) - Yana

Hey Yana! This is a difficult question. I am utterly useless when people ask me "what products will you bring to a deserted island?" or "what will be in your zombie apocalypse survival beauty kit?" I intensely like a lot of things and making me choose destroys me.

Seriously though, this is easy to answer once I start thinking about the products I use all the time. You know what I'm talking about. There are things that you immediately reach out for, without any thought process involved. Now it would be too easy to just list down skincare. Hence, I won't include any skincare in this list because that would be facial wash/toner/moisturizer and you already know what my favorites are.

I also decided against body products since I'm very low maintenance in that department. So, here are my five absolute favorite beauty aids for the face!

Artdeco Camouflage Cream Concealer. This concealer is opaque and stays on all day - considering it's less than P500, that's quite an achievement. It's a concealer that I finish down to the last swipe; it's what I've been using consistently since Artdeco came back to Manila last year. The only other concealer that would rival it is the MAC Studio Sculpt but only because it has a better shade match.

Shu Uemura Hard Formula Brow Pencil. No matter how messy my brows are, this pencil can make them look magazine-worthy. Best P1,400 I spent on one pencil. Sulit since I've been using it since July 2011 and I swear I'm not halfway through!

Fairydrops Platinum Mascara. Sooo many amazing mascaras out there but I use this tube one the most. It gives me beautiful lashes that do not smudge, and yet it's easy to wash off at the end of a long day. That's really important to me, the "removability" of a mascara. I don't like spending over five minutes trying to take out black sludge from my eyes!

Lucas Papaw. This ointment keeps my lips in top condition. It's also fantastic on dry nails and cuticle beds, as well as wounds and minor scrapes. Oh it's also great on healing zits!

MAC Russian Red. If I were to choose only one lipstick I would use forever, it would be this classic red! I would use it as a lip stain and cream blush, too. It has a dry texture but I can depend on it to stay until I take it off.