“Oh, we have one gentleman here,” said Dr. Rica Cruz while looking at me, in the middle of her talk about women sexual empowerment. Taken by surprise, I responded, “Yes! Power to all the women!”

Project Vanity celebrated its 14th Anniversary last August 27 at the Rockwell Club in Makati, and it was an afternoon filled with beauty, stories and most importantly, conversations. Now, in true beauty roundup fashion, I’d like to go through them one by one.

This idea of bravery is the central point of the Project Vanity x Revlon Beauty and Bravery event that we recently held in Makati. Project Vanity community members gathered with us at Xception for an afternoon of milk tea, coffee, and sharing brave moments. It was a one-of-a-kind event as it was very intimate and really allowed us to talk and listen to each other. Plus, it turned into a bonding session as we became real-life friends with people we’ve only interacted with at the PVC Facebook group!

11 years strong - what a crazy feat! Whenever I think about how far Project Vanity has come, my heart swells with pride and joy. I’ve been a PV reader since 2012 and a writer since 2016. I’ve seen firsthand how much the content has evolved and how big the community has grown. I feel very grateful that I found this space that Liz built on the internet many moons ago. Project Vanity to me has always been a fun, safe space to celebrate beauty with smart and passionate women.

You guys might know that I started Project Vanity while I was still in college. It was a simple review blog featuring the best makeup that my public school allowance can buy - i.e. not much! I was a different person back then, being utterly self-conscious and secretly ashamed that I looked like the way I did. Now, I am myself. I run a pretty good business with an amazing team, living a dream that didn’t even cross my mind whenever I thought about my future, 11 years ago.

I started reading Project Vanity roughly two years ago. At the time, I wasn't an active subscriber - I would only drop by the site every so often but what really hooked me in was the Project Vanity Facebook page and community.  The community posts were interesting and engaging, and I enjoyed Liz's GRWM vids. Occasionally, I would open the links to articles shared from the PV website, but it was only a year or so ago that I found myself opening it habitually.

My earliest memory of Project Vanity was writing one or two paragraphs on how why I started a beauty blog. This was in 2008. I put it up on a platform that no longer exists (unfortunately) and I remember feeling a bit ashamed about it back then. I know, why would I? It's just that I've always felt I was too, well, smart to like makeup. Why should I care about what I look like when there are other important things in life?

Then I spent the next ten years figuring that out. I learned that makeup (and beauty products in general) isn't just about outward beauty, but also a shield, sometimes, or a sword. It can also be used as a way to express ourselves. It can also be a serious hobby or even a professional pursuit, if we're passionate enough about it. Makeup empowers us to speak out, without words, even if it only involves red lipstick. It inspires us to literally be more by arming ourselves with confidence on days when it's absent.