I keep three to four mascaras on rotation at any given time. Too much? I don't think so! I like getting different lash finishes depending on the look I'm going for. Sweet and nice? Thin and defined lashes should do the trick. Need to look fierce for an event? Volumized and super long lashes will stand out in photos. Casual and lazy? Then I need my lashes to look curled but easy to wash off when I get home. See, it depends. I'm not some crazy mascara junkie.

If you're a fellow mascara junkie lover, then I think you'll love one of the newest mascaras out now: the Etude House Lash Perm 3-Step Volumecara (P748). This mascara promises to give you doll lashes with three different settings and I rather think it does!

The mechanics of the thing is simple enough - just twist the upper portion of the tube and settle on the number with the effect you want to achieve. Step 1 gives you clean definition, Step 2 has more volume and length, while Step 3 is an all-out thick fringe. You can really see the difference! Here's a more detailed take.

What I love about the product

• It's neat that you're basically getting three different mascaras in one tube. How it works is that the twist tube controls how much product gets on the wand. Step 1 only allows for a bit of product, hence the cleaner finish, and so on. Simple but it's a great idea.
• It brings out lashes you didn't know you had. If volume is your thing, this is one good mascara to try.

Hi folks! Last week I received my monthly box from Etude House Korea. This month, it's all about eye makeup! This has got to be my favorite month so far because you know I love eyeliners, mascara, and eyeshadow. <3

This month's main feature will be the Etude House Lash Perm 3Step Volumecara. This intriguing mascara has three settings

I have a LOT of lip products lined up for review so I'm trying to schedule them apart. Still, expect to see a parade of posts from balms to lipsticks in the next couple of weeks! So! Today I'll talk about a nice everyday lip and cheek tint: the Etude House Fresh Cherry Tint in Peach (P328).

The color in the bottle reminds me so much of the Benefit Cha Cha Tint but don't be fooled - they're two completely different colors. Cherry Peach is a milky peach shade that's flattering on fair to medium tones. It gives just the right touch of color, while keeping lips moisturized and shiny.

What I love about the product

• It doesn't streak. You get ample time to blend it because the color doesn't sink in immediately, unlike other stains where you only have a few seconds to work the product onto your skin.
• The color is a nice creamy peach - not overly pigmented but not faint either. You might want to apply a thick layer on your lips to really get the color going.

I wish that women would remove their nail polish as soon as it starts chipping obviously. I think that leaving cracked and fading nail polish on looks shabby; if you can't maintain it, don't wear it. Just keep your nails au naturale if you don't have time to touch it up!

Hmm, I should make a tutorial on touching up nail polish. For the meantime, I just want to share my current favorite polish eraser: the Etude House Nail Remover #3 Sensitive Nail (P278)!

This is all new to me. It's acetone-free and also supposedly infused with orange oil. It's oily and smells like tangerine, if that's any indication.

My main skin problem of late is pore blockage. I had dull, rough, and bumpy skin full of icky blackheads. Ugh. You see I hug my dog a lot, and I have also been trying a lot of new face makeup, hence the dirty pores. I unfortunately haven't had time to get a facial so I limped along with my mild cleansers and go-to exfoliator. No toner.

That is, until I started using the Etude House Wonder Pore skincare line. This stuff is AMAZING. Absolutely amazing. I searched for reviews of the older Wonder Pore toner and most of them were positive so I was encouraged to use the rest of the line, which included a new mousse facial wash and clay mask. I'm so glad I did it!

This review is gonna be long since I will talk about all three products, but to summarize: the Etude House Wonder Pore line delivers its promise to clean up pores and refine skin without drying it up like a flaky prune. After using it for just a few days, my skin felt like it just shook off all the dirt and product build-up, and it became smooth and glowy once more. After two weeks, my skin has majorly improved. I will definitely buy when I run out!

Here's a more in-depth review of each product in the line. :)

The Etude House Wonder Pore Whipping Foam (P798) is a facial cleanser that can also double as a mask. To apply, just slather it all over your skin and then massage it where your pores are most blocked.

Receiving the Etude House pink box from Korea is something of an occasion for me. The DHL guy would ring the doorbell, bearing gifts. I never really know what's inside the box until I open it. Sure Julie of Etude tells me that it has their featured product for the month, but they always put in a few more items for good measure. That's the source of the suspense!

So if you're dying of the aforementioned suspense, here you go!

This month, Etude wants bloggers to try their Wonder Pore line. I believe that the toner, which was released months before, is pretty popular among beauty bloggers. I saw a lot of good reviews!

I initially wanted to include my review of this powder compact along with its soul mate, the Etude House Precious Mineral Sun BB Cream, but I thought it deserved a separate post on its own. It is A Really Good Powder, after all, one that I've been using ever since I got it!

Truth be told I was initially excited and then intimidated about the SPF50 the Etude House Precious Mineral Sun BB Pact has. Would it be too white? Higher SPF products usually have more titanium dioxide in them, a minerally-derived substance that's responsible for the white cast in photos (or even in plain sight).

Oily girls, listen up! I have a great reco for you: the Etude House Precious Mineral Sun BB Cream (P978). It's a long-lasting, water and oil resistant BB cream that has SPF50 to boot. It's ideal for those days when you need to hustle under the sun for long periods of time - super useful here in our country where summer is the default weather.

I'm really diggin' this product, and here's why!

Coverage and finish. The Sun BB Cream has a medium to heavy coverage. It can hide minor blemishes and eyebags - really useful for those who have far from perfect skin. The finish is quite matte (not flat though) and very smooth. Just remember to blend it very carefully to avoid uneven coverage.

Shade selection. There are three shades available, Light Beige (for fair skin), Natural beige (fair medium), Sand Beige (dark medium). The one I have, Natural Beige, is roughly two shades lighter than my skin upon application but it settles down to one shade lighter.

Last Friday I received another pink box from Etude House. I was just about to vamoose out of the door for work, so I HAD to patiently wait all day before I can come home and open it! Well, the suspense was worth it I think. Here's what's inside!

Hi folks! It's Independence Day today! I'm sure no one is throwing a party, but I hope that we can all sit down for a moment and think about what this day means to the Philippines (technicalities aside). Freedom is something we take for granted here in our country, I think.

We complain about the corruption and the poverty, but we sometimes forget that here we live in relative freedom - we're free to worship wherever, speak our mind, work the jobs we want, dress the way we want. We can choose our partners (gender notwithstanding) without much hate from society. The Philippines is far from perfect, but freedom is (for me) one of our strongest suits.

Anyway, today I'm going to quickly review the Etude House Dear My Blooming Cheek Blush in Breathless Pink (P548). It's a pretty blush-highlighter hybrid that gives a pinkish sheen on the cheeks. Don't be scared - I know how you guys are averse to shine! But if you use just a small amount of this blush, a pinkish glow is a swipe or two away.

BB or blemish balm creams have gone a long way. From being overly thick and white just a few years ago, they have now evolved into light textured semi-foundations that come in different shades. Everybody wins, really! 

Today I'll be reviewing the Etude House Precious Mineral BB Cream (P798). It's a nice BB cream with heavy coverage and the lasting power of your average liquid foundation. No, it can't be categorized as tinted moisturizer. It's a nice brightening foundation that comes in four shades which can accommodate Pinay skin.

What I love about the product

• It delivers an even, smooth finish that looks like skin. It has brightening properties so you get a glowy finish!
• Medium to heavy coverage with only a small amount.
• Has SPF30 PA++! Pretty good sun protection, so even if you only use a little, you still get adequate cover from the sun.

I love receiving and opening packages. Unfortunately, I'm not the only one. I got a pink box from Korea last Friday so I was extremely excited to open it...but a certain pomeranian got to it first. THIS HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. I'm not kidding.

To wit:

"A box from Etude House full of goodies! Yaay!"

"OMG IS THIS MINE. CAN I OPEN IT."

"But - "

"BUBBLE WRAP MY FAVERIT THING."

"We need to recycle that Snaps. Stop popping the bubbles! Hey!"

Annika Wester is a famous illustrator who has done work for big names like Vogue, Anna Sui, MAC (to name a few) and has shown her art in galleries all over the world. According to her blog, her "...work presents a various number of characters, silhouettes and items displayed throughout her own stylish way of drawing. The features are softened and the colors often bright, which gives the viewer a feeling of joyful indolence..."

The Etude Girl illustrations by the talented Annika Wester

Cool right? And now, Ms Wester has partnered with Etude House for their Wannabe Collection! It's a rather expansive collection with a face palette, powder, lipsticks, nail polishes, scent and gloss combos, and even falsies all incased in Ms Wester's trademark artwork.

The Etude Girl is, surprise surprise, Sandara Park of 2NE1

Okay, this is a rather long intro, but I am just amazed by Annika Wester and Etude House's awesome idea in partnering with her. Whoever said that art and makeup can never mix is deadly wrong! So! I'll be reviewing some of the Wannabe pieces I have with me.

I loved the concept of the Etude House Party Queen Gradation Nails from the minute I saw it. Frosts and silver glitter, oh, count me in! It's a gorgeous set of matching polishes that'll really draw attention to your hands in any party.

I've had Etude House nail polishes before and really enjoyed using them. They're easy to work with and dry quickly which makes them such a steal at only around P50 each. Please do read the review for a few more details, but the short of it is that these polishes are pretty good considering the price. 

To use this gradation nail set, all you have to do is apply them in three layers, from the lightest to the darkest.

Yesterday, I dropped by Market! Market! to pick up a lovely gift from Etude House. We agreed that I was to pick it up today, but since I was in the area yesterday, I thought I'd take a chance and just see if the package was already available. And it was! I know that sounds like a small thing but it was a very pleasant surprise for busy bee me.

I got the Wanna Be Collection as illustrated by Annika Wester. The packaging is, to put it mildly, absolutely gorgeous! The illustrations are ace but the matte, thick cartons really add to that expensive feeling. I can't bear to throw the boxes away!

The Etude Girl illustrations by Annika Wester

I paint my nails whenever I'm stressed or when I need to focus. If you've ever done a perfect paint job, then you know it takes quite a bit of concentration and patience to achieve. Painting my nails calms me down and allows me to be single-minded for the next hour or so. That's valuable for someone whose day requires too much multi-tasking!

Anyway, one nail polish brand that I really like is the Etude House VIP Girl Nail Polish. It's pretty awesome! It's cheap (only P48), applies smoothly, pigmented, and dries quickly with no streaks or bubbles. I didn't experience any staining so far. For P48, I think I got a great deal.

Etude House VIP Girl Nail Polish in GR605 and YL802

I love both the shades I got, especially the turquoise one. It's more green than blue with a matte finish. Very in season right now and surprisingly versatile - it feels right with whatever outfit I have for the day. The egg yolk yellow (no other description for it!) shade instantly brightens up dark and tired-looking cuticles.

One of the gifts I got last Christmas was a set of Etude House face masks (thanks Tanya!). I have to admit though, I don't like using face masks. I have this sneaky feeling that leaving on a concentrated product for more than five minutes will cause a breakout. But since I have really bad skin lately and I didn't have much to lose, I opened up the Essence Mask Vitamin C (P58) and hoped for the best!

Too pretty to open: Lemon mask, Pomegranate, Essence Mask Vitamin C

Well, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The foil pack is full of this gel-like substance that neither stinks or smells good. It smells serum-y, if you can call it that. The mask itself is incredibly moist and stuck on with no trouble. It felt cool and relaxing on my face, so I was content to just let it stay there for 15 minutes while I was taking (backlog) product photos.

It's the weekend! How's it going for you? Me, I don't really have weekends since I mostly work from home. Right now I'm preparing to go to my mom's house, but before I leave, I want to share a product that I've had for a few weeks now: the Etude House foundation brush.

I find myself struggling to say something about this brush. Why? Because all I can think of saying is "meh". It's so-so. I can live with it, I can live without it.

What I like 

• No shedding
• Easy to clean with only baby shampoo
• It looks neat, compact, professional
• Relatively affordable for only sub-500 pesos