Under P400 Beauty finds from Divisoria: YAASSS or pass?
For the most part, anyone who wants a good deal eventually winds up in the underbelly of Divisoria. Whether you are looking for fashion, school supplies, electronics, or home goods, Divisoria is the best place to look if you want to score great finds without burning a hole through your pocket. All you need is a bit of patience and the skills of a champion haggler.
However, the magical appeal of Divi doesn’t really extend to much of the beauty community, no thanks to the rampant selling of fake makeup. We went to numerous stores full of "MAC", "Anastasia", "Real Techniques", "Kylie", and other popular brands that are selling for so cheap. We can't support fake products hence they were a hard pass for us.
Still we had to know: what legit beauty items can we actually haul from Manila's ultimate shopping destination? Here's what we found!
Acrylic Lipstick Organizer, P200 from 168 Mall
This cheap lipstick organizer is the new home of my lippies! Makeup organizers come aplenty in Divisoria ranging from the P100 to P400 mark depending on the material, design, and size. I actually like this one a lot because it’s simple, sturdy, and it can fit tubes of different shapes and sizes. I’ll be back to buy two more if I find the time so this is a YAASSS!
Taiwan Lashes, P45 from 698
I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Divisoria is falsies heaven! Of course, there are the actual fake false eyelashes (with "branded" packaging) but you can also get generic ones like this for only P45 for a set of 10. I’d heard great things about these Taiwan 217 lashes from Facebook reviews, and they proved to be easy to apply, even for a lash virgin like me. Definitely giving a big YAASSS on account of the thin, bendable band, and the natural-looking lash length boost of the design!
Paddle brush, Mushroom brush, 10-piece brush set
Makeup Brushes
To my surprise, the paddle brush (P170) turned out to be a big YAASSS. I’ve been reaching for it more than my Beauty Blender these days because it gives me heavier, fuller coverage in just a few strokes! Using a moisturizing primer and buffing repeatedly ensure that I don’t get foundation streaks on my face. The bristles are soft and dense, but if I have one gripe with this product, it would be just how hard it is to clean.
The mushroom brush (P150) is a PASS for me though. While the bristles are actually quite soft, the short and compact design of the brush head makes them very stiff, so buffing and blending in circular motions is quite difficult. It also absorbs a lot of product, and I noticed quite a bit of fraying after just one wash.
Used the paddle brush to apply my face base, and the 10-piece kit to complete the rest of my look
I have mixed feelings about the 10-piece brush set (P350) though. If you’re a makeup beginner with a limited budget, then this might be a YAASSS for you just because you get a lot of different brushes for not a lot of money. As with anything, you can make this work but it does take more effort as compared to working with luxe brushes. If you have Zoeva, Sigma, or even drugstore faves like Real Techniques, EcoTools, or even e.l.f., just PASS or you’ll be sorely disappointed.
Weird beauty gadgets: Nose Up (P18) and Fullips (P40)
I know these two look sketchy as hell and that’s cause they are, haha! As I expected, both turned out to be a hard PASS because the only thing they did was to give me a hard time breathing. If you want a narrower nose and a fuller lip, just use the power of contouring and lip-lining. Don’t even bother wasting your P58 and get a few items from Watsons instead.
Have you ever considered shopping at Divisoria for your beauty buys? Let us know what you think of this haul in the comments below!
P.S. If you choose to patronize fake cosmetics, that’s on you, but there are a number of good reasons why you shouldn’t.
