As 2022 draws to a close, I want to take a moment to list down all the things that I’m grateful for this year. When I was younger I would usually end the year with a list of things that I accomplished - the things I was most proud of. But now that I’m a little older I realize that gratitude brings me more joy than feelings of pride. Do you feel the same?

Here’s what I’m grateful for this year!

Last minute gifts for your Secret Santa at a holiday party can be tricky to find: you might need a Christmas-y gift, or a gift costing around P500 more or less. A good place to check out is The Body Shop where you can get skincare, lotions, bath products, fragrances, and a whole lot more!

If you're anything like me, you're always on the lookout for the best skincare products to keep your skin feeling its best. That’s why you should explore Augustinus Bader, a luxurious German skincare brand, which has recently become available in the Philippines!

With Christmas right around the corner, Parlon is here to level up your gift giving skills because now, you can easily give your beauty besties and loved ones the gift of self-care with a Parlon Gifting!

‘Tis the season of gift giving! As we count down the days to Christmas, have you got your gifts sorted out already? If you want to #SkincareAboutSomeone this holiday season, Kiehl's has released their limited edition holiday sets.

Christmas is literally just around the corner, PV Community, and have you completed your shopping already? If you haven’t, then you might want to consider what you’re about to read below. Spoiler alert - I’m kind of biased towards one over the other three.

Who loved watching Emily In Paris these past two seasons? Me! I think it’s entertaining and fun, perfect for days when I just want a quick pick-me-up. I love the crazy fashion and the twists and turns of Emily’s glamorous life! I’m definitely watching out for the new season - I can’t wait for it to come out on Netflix.

Just in time this December, Starbucks is launching a collaboration with Emily In Paris to bring a trendy, eye-catching line of daily essentials to Starbucks stores in Asia.

I am no newbie when it comes to eyelash extensions. I’ve already tried a number of different lash salons in the Metro, even the expensive ones, but everything seemed to just have left an okay mark on me - until I got to try Tokyo Glam’s Glam Lash.

We all know that this December rush comes with a wave of events and Christmas parties, and so do we really have time to squeeze in some extensive holiday shopping? Being the busy bees that we are, Burt’s Bees has made picking out gifts easier by releasing a collection of sustainable gift choices for everyone - naughty or nice!

Selsun Blue hasn’t left my bathroom since I first discovered it over a year ago. I know, I was so late to the game, but I’m just happy that dandruff is no longer a problem for me! I make sure to keep backups so that I never run out in the middle of a shower. I only need to use it twice a week (it’s a treatment shampoo) and that’s enough to keep the flakes and itchiness away.

I like to joke with my fellow beauty enthusiasts that I am somewhat of a mist connoisseur because it is one of the few beauty products I always find myself deep diving into. I am always ready with a checklist of required features that are non-negotiable. With that being said, I am used to reviewing face mists but I have recently been stumped by the latest one to hit the local market - the Ready Set Glow Badass Face & Body Mist (P249)!

I’ve recently moved out of the apartment I’ve been living in for 12 years. It happened really fast - my husband and I viewed our current home on a Saturday and by Friday next week we were fully moved in. We’ve been wanting to make this change for a while because most of James’s work is in Pasig and Mandaluyong, and our friends and family are also in this area. As you know, traffic in Manila is extreme so we needed to be closer to where we spend most of our time.

Do you have that one product in your vanity that seems to be irreplaceable? That despite you trying out new ones every so often, you keep on coming back to it? For me, it is the Cure Natural Aqua Gel Gentle Exfoliator (P1,500 / 250g). It was in 2013 when I was first introduced to Cure and ever since then, I can no longer count how many bottles of it I have repurchased and downed. Yes, it has been almost 10 years but I still can’t stop gushing about it!

Are you ready for December? I don’t think I am. I still don’t have my Christmas tree up. I haven’t selected my gift wrapper for this year. I don’t even have my holiday red lipsticks in order yet! How about you? Do you have any Christmas traditions? Anyway, speaking of tradition, let’s talk about the latest in this week’s beauty roundup!

Engenes rejoice: BYS is bringing Enhypen to Manila! The Korean boy group with members Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Ni-Ki will be gracing Araneta Coliseum for a fun meet on December 3. Want to see them live? Then you need to get a BYS Enhypen Kit. This kit contains BYS’s best-selling products as well as a ticket to the meet! Plus, you must be on the lookout for a Golden Ticket in 10 BYS VIP Kits because a special surprise awaits. Make sure to check the BYS Philippines social media channels for more announcements.

Lipglosses, lipsticks, and powders were my first makeup items from Avon. They have always impressed me with their vibrant colors and good staying power with an affordable price tag. The Avon Power Stay 24-Hour Liquid Foundation (P499) is my most recent discovery from the brand and here's what happened when I tried it out.

That was why I was so excited to try these Kracie products. This is my first time to try Japanese hair care! For a bit of context, I have wavy hair and have been doing the Curly Girl Method on and off for a year as I now have the freedom (thanks, mom!) to explore my newfound interest in dyeing my hair to match all those tumblr girl pictures I had saved in my phone from circa 2010.

James asked me a really interesting question the other day. He asked, if money is no object, what would you buy to make yourself as beautiful as possible?

I really had to think about this. Makeup can only do so much because there’s a certain point where it will look like the caricature of a person no matter the skill level. Skincare, even dermatologist-prescribed skincare, also has a limit as to how much it can transform skin. It’s not magic.

Have you heard the saying “Your eyebrows are sisters and not twins”? Well, grooming my brows was one of the makeup steps I had a really tough time learning. From being heavy-handed to not knowing how to properly shape my brows, it was a rough process to try to get them to look like cousins - let alone siblings.

Seven years into my makeup journey, I would like to think I have gotten better at it, especially now that we have so many products and styles to try and choose from!

How’s your holiday shopping list, PV Community? Have you created one already? I haven’t! I like participating in the holiday rush. I do, however, have a holiday wishlist for myself already - how selfish, I know. But hey, we have to reward ourselves, right? Anyway, these new beauty releases in beauty might make it on your list.