Have you ever acquired something so pretty that you didn't want to use it at all? Some products look precious enough to just be started at, not disturbed in any way. That's how I felt about the Bobbi Brown Brightening Brick in Pink (P3,250) when it arrived on my doorstep!

This beauty is part of the Bobbi Brown Navy & Nude Collection which just came out recently. Navy & Nude is an interesting mix of sheer nude shades in pink, apricot, and beige, accentuated by rich navy and taupe hues. Elegant is one word that comes to mind, but of course that's always the best word to describe Bobbi's eponymous makeup line!

The Look: Navy smoky eyes, glowy pink cheeks, bronzed skin, and an opaque nude gloss

Lovely. Anyhoo, here's my review and swatches of the Bobbi Brown Brightening Brick in Pink. 

It was love at first sight when I saw the promo materials for Bobbi Brown's latest collection, Sea Pearls. The look was perfect! The coral pink blush and lips whispered dainty, while the big lashes and shimmery green shadow flashed drama. It was a great study in contrasts, with such an elegant output. Of course I had to copy it!

I initially wanted to do the full smoky eyes yesterday but I ran out of time, so I came up with a modified, simplified version of the Sea Pearls look. I also don't have the full collection which is why I used other brands - but I have the exact same blush! It's amazing. I mean look at it. Coral Pink is my current favorite blush!

To achieve dewy, natural-looking skin, I used the Bobbi Brown BB Cream, concealed whatever needed to be concealed with MAC Studio Finish, then topped everything with a thin layer of Ben Nye Banana Powder.  

I've done many events for my clients but I still get nervous. What if no one comes? What if something goes wrong and there's no way to fix it? What if I look horrible in all my pictures? The jitters usually strike on the event day itself. So I'm a bag of nerves right now!

But let's talk makeup before I start fixing the final details for today's work. I know that most girls would be worrying about their outfits during a special occasion, but my main concern is always the foundation. The observer's eye tend to focus on the face, so if the face is a weird shade of gray or white then nothing else would look right. In my opinion anyway!

If you're part of an event then you should be ready for the long hours sweating it out behind the scenes and/or in front of the crowd. Your foundation should be able to stay on and look good in person AND in photos! So choose wisely. The foundation I'd be using today is none other than the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Compact (P2,400).

Sorry about the messy compact, I couldn't find the first set of photos I took of it

Coverage and finish. Its liquid sister is actually my favorite for events, but this cream version is waaay easier to use! A few swipes with a sponge or dense brush and I'm all done with my base. The coverage is medium to heavy, hiding most blemishes with just one thin layer. If you don' want to bother with concealer

Bobbi Brown palettes are often too beautiful to use, but hey, someone's gotta do it! How else would I be able to review them for you? Haha. Seriously though, the new Bobbi Brown Luxe Eye Palette (P3,200) is a sight to behold. It comes in a chic silver case that has a mirror-like surface, housing six silky eyeshadows and two small brushes.

The layout of the palette is different from the usual, as is the size (it's bigger). I wouldn't be using the brushes since I find them too small and unwieldy. And the eyeshadows? Well, they have good pigmentation, this gorgeous sheen and ultra-smooth texture - quality typical of all Bobbi eye colors. The six eyeshadows also come in different finishes, from matte, metallic, shimmer, and sparkle!

This review is part of a series: the Blush Week at Project Vanity. Read my first three blush posts (if you haven't yet)! ;)

It's a Blushin' Week at Project Vanity: My top five blushes | Artdeco Blusher in 38 First Love | MAC Dollymix Sheertone Shimmer Blush

Yesterday I was in a mild panic over losing my entire image database. I use iPhoto to store all my photos, and apparently, it became corrupted. It contains thousands of pictures but I can actually live without most of them - the crucial ones are the few hundred photos of products I have yet to write about. Sure I can retake these photos but I'd rather not because it would take me hours and the products aren't fresh anymore since I've used them.

Thankfully I was able to repair the whole thing. Whew. That's why I missed my blush post for yesterday. So! Today I'm going to talk about the latest product from one of my fave brands: the Bobbi Brown Sheer Color Cheek Tint in Sheer Cherry (P1,350).

This is part of Bobbi's Pink and Red Collection, which is now available in Rustan's. The collection features nail polishes, lipsticks, and glosses in pink and red - two color combinations that everyone says won't work, but do! It's a pretty interesting concept and I would LOVE to show a look to break that myth. For now though, let's discuss this cheek tint.

It's pretty awesome. Red can be intimidating, but this basic color is the most natural and versatile for all skintones. Ever wonder why most tints in the market are red? It's because a sheer wash of red on the cheeks blends seamlessly with any coloring! You can't go wrong with it, no matter how fair or dark you are. You just need to adjust the intensity to your liking.

The Bobbi Brown Retouching Powder in Rose (P3,550) is a superfine tinted powder than can be used all over for that rosy glow, or layered as a subtle blush. It smoothens pores and adds that elusive freshness without ANY shimmer. I'd say it has a petal-matte finish. 

I prefer to use this as a blush more than a retouch powder because, well, it's in loose form. Staying power is average. It's the super smooth texture and the finish that attempts to justify the luxe price.

A lot of people think it takes me forever to do my face (forever being an hour and a half upwards) but the truth is quite far from that. I don't have time for foolin' around so over the years I've cut down my full face routine to about 30 minutes, 40 tops. Spending 30 minutes can get me a nice, colorful look but an additional 10 could mean a glamorous dark smokey eye. Quick yet polished, they should write that on my gravestone.

So imagine what I could do with just 10 minutes. I'm a quick worker, but I won't take all the credit!There are certain products that help cut down the time I need to be polished and presentable, and one of them is the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Rose Gold (P1,550).

I like v-neck shirts. I love watermelons. I LOVE THIS STUFF. This simplifies my makeup routine immensely! It's a cream eyeshadow that you can just draw on your eyes without needing any brushes. Use your fingers to blend the edges and poof, you're done. Seriously, this is perfect for girls who are intimidated by eyeshadows.

The shimmery pinky gold shade can make your eyes look brighter and more awake in an instant. Aside from using it as a lid wash, you can use this on your waterline and tearduct area to banish the redness that appears from exhaustion. It can make tired eyes look whiter.

"Shimmer" is a word that has a lot of negative baggage in terms of cosmetics. Especially here in the Philippines, girls run the opposite direction when they hear about shimmer in face products! Well, it's hard to blame them when everyone is so oily and sweaty all the time here. Nonetheless I personally like a bit of shimmer on my face. I like how my complexion looks brighter overall, more skin-like and fresh. 

Now I've said this before and I can go to my grave saying it: nobody does shimmer like Bobbi Brown. It's sooo fine, subtle, and twinkly when it needs to be! It's never vulgar or cheap-looking, but more importantly, it doesn't make skin look like a disco ball.

I'm currently loving the limited edition Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Lilac Rose (P2,400). This looks like blush at first glance, but it's really more of a skin illuminator and highlighter than anything else! It's a sheer golden pink shade that makes the skin look flawless and fresh. Seriously. Illuminators like this are the cosmetic world's best obvious secret.

I've had Bobbi's Shimmer Brick in Bronze for about two years now so this is more of the same, except it's considerably less pigmented. It can be a veeeeeery subtle blush if you layer it with a blush brush.

How often do you use hand cream? I admit I can be pretty lazy most days. I usually put off using hand cream until my hands can't take the dryness anymore - by that time, they're already so wrinkly and hard! Yuck. That's a bad bad habit because the hands, other than the neck, betray our age sooner than we'd like. That's why it pays in the long run to use a specialized moisturizer for them.

I've recently been enjoying the Bobbi Brown Extra Hand Cream (P1,700). It's a 50ml tube of moisture-boosting cream that contains shea butter and clary sage to improve our hands' moisture barrier, glucosamine to gently exfoliate, and licorice extract to help lessen discoloration.

This is a very heavy cream - a little goes a long way, and it indeed helps soften super dry hands instantly. It's like you coated your skin in this cocoon of smoothing, reviving oil! This actually has avocado and corn kernel oil for that purpose.

I hereby declare the next five days as Bobbi Brown Week at Project Vanity. Seriously, I have quite a few Bobbi products piling up (they're all fantastic) so I want to release the reviews in one themed week. I'll be featuring one Bobbi product everyday for the next five days, so stay tuned for those posts. ;)

To start off the series, here's an FOTD-slash-review of the Bobbi Brown Twilight Night Shimmer Ink. This is unfortunately limited edition from the Desert Twilight collection last year. However, I think that the brand has something similar in the cream eyeshadow line. I'm sure you can also find dupes in other brands if you're on a budget. ;)

Now Twilight Night is actually a gel eyeliner, but the twinkly dusky color is so pretty that it deserves to be used as a cream eyeshadow.

A dark cream base can make eyeshadows really pop up, plus the uber fine shimmer in this particular product adds more dimension and light to the eyes. I dabbed a layer of it on my lids using just my fingers.

Last night I dreamed that Bobbi Brown herself did my makeup. No kidding. It was a fantastic look and I did a lot of selfies, of course! I wonder what it would be like if I met Bobbi for real. She is someone I look up to, and love quoting whenever people ask me why makeup is important. 

I believe that every woman is pretty with makeup - but with the right makeup can be pretty powerful. Bobbi Brown

Anyway, I would like to invite you to join an awesome contest by the brand. Simply submit your unique Pretty Powerful Beauty Story on the local Bobbi Brown Facebook page for a chance to win a trip to New York with a friend! This contest is actually on an international level with 11 countries participating. It's part of the Pretty Powerful Campaign, as it celebrates the beauty of real women from a variety of backgrounds through their inspiring stories, photos and videos.

Know more about the contest after the cut!

Bobbi Brown is one of the most underrated brands in the Philippines. The price intimidates most people, I suppose, but in my experience it delivers what you pay for. Each product does exactly what it is meant to do and some, even a little bit more! I don't want to play favorites but out of all the brands in my vanity, Bobbi Brown is one of the names I pick up the most. It's been consistently amazing since Day 1.

A lot of praise, I know, but it's from the very bottom of my heart. If you have a few gs to spare and want something that you will actually finish up, Bobbi Brown is a foolproof choice. :) Anyway! I actually want to talk about Bobbi's February release, which is called the Sparkle & Glow Collection.

Sparkle & Glow is designed to give the skin some much-needed lift and brightness. There's shimmer of course but it's very subtle and fine; just enough to bring light to the skin, but not too much that it looks tacky. I have one of the sparkle eyeshadows so I'll talk about that in a bit! In the meantime here's more information about the individual products in the collection.

I feel like a total traitor saying this, but the Bobbi Brown Eyelash Curler (P1,200) can rival the one from Shu Uemura. There. I didn't think it was possible for me to like any other lash curler as much as I like Shu's, but hey I've been wrong before.

Now let's backtrack first. What makes Bobbi's curler surprisingly amazing?

The thing I love most about it is that it never goes near enough to pinch my lids and lashes. In so doing, it doesn't erase the careful eyeliner work I've done on my upper lids! It also fits my eyes perfectly so no lash is left uncurled - yes, even the innermost ones. It's easier to angle than the Shu curler because it's sliiiighly smaller, so I get to all the hairs I want to reach.

I am so late but The Beatles have taken over my life. I wake up to a Beatles song in my head, clean the house with a Beatles song blaring in the background, and at odd moments during the day a Beatles song pops up in my head and I play it there in full as if I were listening to it from another source. I can't explain why this is happening, and why now. But there it is. It's like a massive album-long LSS! 1 to be specific, a collection of their top hits.

Well, I hope this fades away soon. I'm one of those people who can only think when it's relatively silent.

Anyway - a good Monday morning to you! Today I'll be talking about the Bobbi Brown Rich Caviar and Black Pearl Holiday Palettes (P3,200), which were released as part of the brand's holiday collection. I apologize that I'm writing about this only now, when it's sold out almost everywhere except in Mall of Asia! I just wanted a comprehensive post on it so it took me a while to photograph the looks to go with this post.

The 6-color palettes feature gorgeous shades that you will enjoy using until they run out. There's a blending, brow bone, lid, smoky, gradient and glittery color in each palette, colors which you can use in different permutations - sky's the limit!

The big makeup trend for 2013 is brite n' matte lips. Pinks, reds, plums - all matte and all opaque. I think this trend is something everyone can jump into because it requires minimal skill to pull off. Plus, it would look good on just about any set of features and complexions! Loud lips are also a good excuse for girls who don't want to wear much makeup, as they require only a flawless base, some mascara, and polished brows to look modern and ultra-cool.

The Bobbi Brown Creamy Matte Lip Color (P1,350), released last quarter, is something you should look into if you like matte lipsticks. The formula is opaque in one layer, doesn't transfer, and lasts over six hours even with eating and drinking. It is dry, as expected from matte lipsticks, but it doesn't flake compared to its drugstore counterparts.

Creamy Matte glides on nicely even with the dry texture. I don't wear a lip balm under it if my lips are in prime condition, but if they're dry, I just apply a very thin layer.

The Bobbi Brown Illuminating Face Base (P2,650) aka the reason I can go out without foundation is now a mainstay in my routine. It has SPF25 which is always useful during the day, but most importantly, it makes my skin look amazing. You'll see a photo later. For now, lemme run through what's awesome about this product!

What I love about it

• The micronized pearl pigments infused in this cream base gives skin the perfect glow. You'll see a bit of shimmer if you look reeeeallly closely but when worn, there's just a can't-put-your-finger on sheen to your skin. Don't worry, it's subtle that it won't make oily skin look oilier.
• Helps makeup glide on better as it smoothens skin. It also helps keep your makeup look fresh longer, although it won't block oil in my experience.

When I first heard that Katie Holmes is the first and (so far) only celebrity endorser of Bobbi Brown cosmetics, I gave a big internal whoop. The pairing is perfect! Katie has always been polished, elegant, and discreet, much like the trademark Bobbi Brown look. I honestly am looking forward to their upcoming campaign together, see what these two pretty powerful girls can come up with!

Anyway today I want to review some things that I've been using for a couple of months now: the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Eye Collection. It features a mascara, eyeliner, and cream shadow that is guaranteed to last from coffee to cocktails. I love the concept, and I'm sure you would too if you hate touching up your eye makeup! 

Here's what I think of each product in the collection.

The Bobbi brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow in Shore (P1,450) is my favorite out of the bunch. The formula and shade is absolutely amazing! It's super creamy yet thin, then dries into a velvety, budge and smear-proof layer on my lids. This doesn't crease at all.

At first I was all "meh" about Shore, a boring-looking matte neutral beige, but when I got to know it better it's now one of my favorite eyeshadows.

Scenario: you're an office girl and you have caffeine-powered meetings all throughout the afternoon. After work, you plan to chill with some friends over cocktails or maybe attend where you need to step up your look. You have your outfit prepared but what about your makeup? It has to be up to the task! What you need are long-wearing products that need only minimal retouching as you transition from day to night. That's where Bobbi Brown comes in.

No other brand understands working women better than Bobbi Brown, I think. Her focus has always been on natural-looking, polished makeup that's easy to do AND carry around. The Long Wear Eye Collection is perfect for all you office girls out there, or anyone who wants long-lasting makeup for that matter. 

I will review the products separarely next time. :) For now, I want to show you a look I did entirely with Bobbi Brown products I have in my kit. It's what I would wear to the office (clean, natural makeup) straight to cocktails (darker, more intense eyes and lips). Here's a step-by-step tutorial!

Step 1: Apply a reliable, sweat and oil-resistant foundation such as the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation. This foundation just doesn't quit! It's also heavy coverage so I can use it to conceal most of my blemishes. 

I work mainly from home, as you know, but there are days when I am rushing all over the place. Contrary to popular belief I do have a life and a real job! Lol. One example: I went to the Ferretti office in Marikina to coordinate with one of our suppliers for a shoot. Afterwards, I went to Eastwood with my Ferretti boss to meet my Pinkbox boss to talk about stuff. Then, I headed to The Spa with my Pinkbox boss to try Barre3 (easier than Plana Forma btw). 

These women, I swear, are more of a riot than I am! They are hyper all the time! They are also my pegs in life.

Suffice it to say, I am haggardo versoza that day. It was super hot too so I was sweating buckets. However, I am very happy to report that my foundation didn't quit on me even after the Barre3 work out! Care to know what it is?

Ta-dah! It's the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation (P2,650). This foundation is specifically formulated for Asian skin, with a lot of consideration for our hot and humid weather. As far as I am aware this is available in Asia for now. That says a lot about Bobbi Brown's dedication to the needs of a specific market, don't you think?

Anyway, here are my thoughts on this foundation after using it for a few weeks!

What I love about the product  

• Delivers an uber-smooth, flawless, and heavy coverage that doesn't look like a thick mask. Just remember to set it with a sheer translucent powder instead of your normal pressed powder / foundation powder; otherwise, your makeup will already look too heavy.