Filipino brand Chu Chu Beauty launched a super sparkly collection just in time for their birthday, and I’m here to share some swatches! Chu Chu in my opinion is the underrated younger sister of Issy & Co., with lots to offer to makeup beginners as well as those who just want to add a little bit of magic to a basic makeup routine.

This year has seen such a rapid development in the quality and diversity of local makeup product options and with just a little under two months left to 2022, Filipino brands do not seem to have any plans of slowing down.

Issy & Co. has definitely shown that they will be finishing this year strong with their latest launch that revealed a total of 48 products for all of us to enjoy!

As a city girl with island girl roots, the sunkissed look is my version of the “no makeup” makeup look and bronzers are a necessity to achieving it. Yet, there seems to be very few local options to choose from as the majority of brands tend to push out contour products instead.

Lucky for me and my fellow bronzer-biased babes, Issy & Co. ended their trilogy of launches with their final release called Ode to the Sand. It comes in the form of fou bronzers and I’m excited to get into it!

Although beauty is a personal journey, we all know that SPF is non-negotiable. Admittedly though, it is one of the hardest beauty habits to get into. From childhood memories of heavy and extremely tacky formulas making beach and pool days less enjoyable to the price tags that are on a good SPF product - there is always something that holds you back from the path of sun protection.

Luckily, local beauty brands have been stepping up their game and giving the people what they want by creating sunscreen and sunblock options that are comfortable for both our skin and wallets.

One of the first makeup I ever bought with my own money is a liquid eyeliner from Ever Bilena. I was in college and wanted to learn how to finally apply eyeliner, but I only had a student budget! I remember bending in front of the mirror just putting it on, messing it up, and redoing it again and again until I got it right. BB Liz wasted so much product, but in the end I became more confident in going out with self-applied eyeliner for the first time. Eyeliner was my thing in college - I’d go to classes with full eye makeup ad thick cat eyes. That was my emo phase, haha, and it will always be a part of me.

We all have that Ever Bilena story. I bet most of us learned how to apply makeup with this brand!

I've always kept myself updated on new Happy Skin releases, be it skincare or makeup. Two of their recent ones really piqued my interest: a sunscreen primer and a tinted moisturizer. I know I need both but realistically speaking, how will they fare in my daily routine? These can be used separately or together, so let's see.

Beauty brands are stepping up these days in incorporating treatment with their makeup. Issy and Co’s Hydragloss (P209) has made waves in being a lip treatment and lip color in one cute tube. Let’s test it out!

The Hydragloss colors I have are Jell-Oh, H.O.T. and Punch. They appear super pigmented on the tube, making one think of fruity summer colors. Upon smelling, there was no fragrance or “flavor” that I would usually get in some lip glosses. I swatched them on my arm and it was surprising that I didn’t get a sticky texture. It glides more syrupy and didn’t leave an overt residue when wiped off with a tissue.

When I dived into the perfume-collecting rabbit hole, I discovered some homegrown perfume brands with a more affordable price range. They smell really good and are, to me, comparable already with imported brands. It’s great to know that we have some very talented noses right here in the Philippines. One of these brands is called Maison Phillipe.

Lightweight, sheer, oil-free and natural are what I look for in a tinted moisturizer. So many brands both international and local are promising these things, and I am glad that the local make-up scene has so many options! The first time I heard about Issy & Co. Active Skin Tint was from Miss Bea via her Youtube Channel. She compared this with a skin tint from another brand and she didn’t really like the coverage. I was curious, so I’m glad to finally try it out.