Things to Quick Change Your Day Look to Party Glam

If lugging around a big bag of makeup kit is impractical if you have a get-together or party to go to after work or a daytime affair, here are a few items you can keep in a pouch that you can place in your bag, car, or desk to transform a daytime look to a stunning, glamorous evening look.

Change your look from day to night with these essentials. No need for a gigantic makeup kit!

Hair Donut

Hair donuts from PinkBox Php119,75/small, Php 129,75/medium, and Php 149.75 large

Keep sticky, sweaty hair away from your face and neck with a fuss-free hair donut which sculpts and styles your hair in an elegant bun that looks like you slaved over it. Whether it's an elegant low ballerina bun or a high bun at the top of your head (bonus: it makes you look taller!), you have a fuss-free, sophisticated updo in minutes.


Highlighter

The Manizer Sisters AKA "The Luminizers" Highlighter Palette, Php 1,395

My pole teacher Amaya loves makeup highlighters and I know why: it adds instant glow to the skin and adds texture to a matte-out look. The Manizer Sisters AKA The "Luminizers" , a highlighting palette from The Balm which combines all three highlighter shades (Mary-Lou Manizer, Cindy-Lou Manizer, and Betty-Lou Manizer) into one palette. Use this to add some glow to your cheekbones, collarbones, shoulders, shins, or wherever you want some shimmy to capture light.


Metallic Lip Color

Carmen Claire Cosmetics Matte Lip Frosting  Heavy Metals Collection
Penny Late and Rock 'n' Ruby
Php 395 each

Long-lasting metallic lip colors are making waves lately. They have both shine and pigmentation. Choose a lip color with a pretty, long lasting finish.  Try CarmenClaire Matte Lip Frosting in Penny Lane, an elegant, copper bronzey color. It's long lasting enough to last coffee, snacks, food tasting, and a plate of raclette.


Festive Polish

Morgan Taylor Nail Polish in Ruby Two-Shoes and Tinsel My Fancy
Php  350

Your tips also make an impact. Frost finishes usually dry faster so keep one if you're pressed for time. Red also is a classic that looks great on anyone. Keep a fast-drying topcoat as well with you so save lots of time


False Eyelashes 

Ingredients for sexy, fluttery eyes: sturdy lash glue (I use DUO), Red Cherry Lashes, Php 160 over at Digital Traincase  

Even with just simple neutral browns, false eyelashes and eyeliner already make a big difference. For newbies with falsies, I recommend Red Cherry lashes since they are light enough to be worn for extended periods of time (I use this on my brides). For your eyeliner, choose a pen-type eyeliner for easy maneuvering. No need for a separate brush as well!

Fragrance

Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Scent Spray 

Boost the plus points for beso with a signature scent. Choose a scent that you love. To liven up your senses in a party after a tiring day at work or sitting through traffic, citrusy scents or green tea inspired scents lift your mood. Just a few spritzes on your pulse points and you're good to go.


Image Directory

Headshot by Alfred Mendoza

Carmen Claire Lip Frosting
carmenclaire.com

Hair Donut
facebook.com/pinkboxaccesories


Store Directory

Carmen Claire Cosmetics
carmenclaire.com; facebook.com/carmenclaireco; instagram.com/carmenclaireco

Digital Traincase
Unit G118 Corinthian Executive Regency, Ortigas Ave, San Antonio, Pasig City;  +639173116912 dtcmakeup.com; facebook.com/DTCmakeup; instagram.com/dtcmakeup

Elizabeth Arden
available at Rustan's

Morgan Taylor
available at Nailaholics, Beauty and Butter, Sundrops, Nailandia, and other leading nail salons nationwide

PinkBox Accessories
pinkbox.com.ph; facebook.com/pinkboxaccessories; instagram.com/pinkboxph/

Red Cherry Lashes
available at Digital Traincase, Suesh, and BeautyMNL

The Balm
Available at Beauty Bar

Taking Flutter False Eyelashes to Work at the SMT Christmas Party with the Polecats

I have a vast collection of false eyelashes. When AJ went to the house and started going over my stuff, he was surprised to see that I have not one but two toolboxes full of falsies. One toolbox is for the thick avante garde falsies used in photoshoots and I have another box for the ones I use in beauty shoots/brides/personal clients. So what I did when Sophie and I chatted and she mentioned that she's also selling falsies? I got myself a box! Hello Flutter lashes!

I got this box at the Moonlit Bazaar in Rockwell a few weeks ago. It's pretty affordable, Php350 for a box of ten pairs that's super reusable provided you take really good care of them.

They have various styles and thicknesses available for your own need - from bridal to glamour events, and in my case, for dance performances. The pair I got is called Feisty. The strands (made of synthetic hairs) are styled criss-crossing each other then winged out for a very pretty eye-opening and lifting effect a-la Bond girl. I've been watching James Bond movies every night so I think my style's been influenced a lot.

For shows, lashes are a must to bring life to the eyes. As makeup is more heavy-handed than everyday makeup, the lashes we use for shows when I have gigs with the Polecats or during our own performances have to be thicker than bridal lashes, but not too drag like that it impairs the sights or we'd be gaining muscles on our eyelids from trying to keep our eyes open at the weight of the lashes.

So where did I take my Flutter lashes to work? At last Wednesday's gig with the Polecats at the SMT Christmas Party. :) Kayleen and Margaret were asked to perform for the company's annual Christmas Party. The employees also brought their kids with them, so the dances are also kid-friendly.

They were going to have doubles at their finale number and since the theme of the party was sailor or nautical party, I got inspiration from Naughty Nauticals, a MAC collection years ago with smoky blue eyes and bright red lips, which matched their doubles costume, but I made it okay enough to fit their costumes at the solo performances.

Up close Kayleen's eyes with the Feisty Flutter lashes. As you can see, it really enhanced her eyes so they don't get lost with the bright blue and deep black. I still want them to look pretty for photo-ops and of course, she still needs to see while doing tricks.

Kayleen was up first and she danced to Surfer Girl. It was one of the songs we danced to in class, and I remember Kayleen teaching us the choreo last summer, but of course, her version had more advanced moves like knee hold, reverse butterfly, and her trademark hummingbird.

Also, I curled Kayleen's hair that day for Surfer Girl prettiness.

Margaret did her solo on a spinny pole. I swear, I don't know how she does it - looking absolutely graceful and long and not getting dizzy at all. Spinning pole is harder than it looks. She danced to a song from Finding Nemo and with all the fishies around the function room, we were taken under the sea.

Not only does she have enviable abs, her splits are jaw-dropping with their perfect form - straight legs, square hips, toes pointed.

Anyway, I asked the girls what their comment was with the falsies and they said that the lashes didn't feel heavy at all. They're used to wearing falsies, even thicker and heavier ones for shows. This however, felt light and Margaret told me that they felt like they weren't wearing false eyelashes. However, they still had the thickness and length we wanted for "show" level. For application, we just had to cut the ends to fit the wearer's eyes to make them more comfy (plus the ends are long) and use good-quality lash glue (I use Duo) so we could use them again and again. So eyesight and comfort level shall not suffer for the price of pretty lashes. Yay! Oh yes, if you want to know where they can be purchased, they can be purchased at Purbeauty Co. at Serendra and Crossings Shangri-La Plaza Mall and Trinoma.

The comfort level lasted from a meal break their doubles. They performed Candyman in Sailor Costumes.

It was a fun night and the employees of SMT and their families enjoyed their performance. Thanks Polecats for having me again and Sophie for introducing me to Flutter false eyelashes.

Glamming with Glambox's Mink Lashes

When you hear of mink, it sounds sosyal, like mink coats worn by heiresses and socialites to keep them warm on a winter day. However, aside from the very lush and plush coats, mink also comes in the form of lashes. Yes, ladies, lush lashes are already available and we don't have to be Hollywood celebrities to wear them. Remember Madonna's eye popping luxe lashes that costs £5,000? These were made of mink fur and had diamonds too. As NY Times called it, it was "Blink of Mink." Clever.

I'm glad the girls of Glambox got creative and brought mink lashes to our shores at the fraction of what Madonna would purchase. Now we don't have to be celebrities to wear mink.
Before anything, I would like to stress that Glambox Mink Lashes are animal friendly. No animals were slaughtered or harmed during testing and creating these products. These fibers are made from individually selected mink furs that have been -take note - harvested by gently brushing live farm animals. These fibers are not chemically treated or dyed, and before assembling them into falsies, they are sterilized first so they are 100% clean. Each fiber you see in these lashes are made from 100% real mink fur.

I had the pleasure of doing the makeup for the presskits and promo materials of Glambox Mink Lashes so I got to experience them from a MuA point of view. I found the pair quite easy to work with, and I didn't have a hard time maneuvering them to fit the eye of my model. All I had to do was measure the lashline length and cut the lashes at the ends. I prefer cutting the ends not only to make sure that the falsies have a good fit, but also the ends kinda tend to get painful in time. I like being comfy. Then, I dabbed a thin line of lash adhesive on the lash band. It does come with a tiny tube of lash glue, but you could use your favorite lash glue if you wish, like DUO or Aido. I wait for the glue to get a tad tacky before positioning the lash bands on my lashline for a perfect fit.

When I got to attach the lashes, I asked the model how the lashes felt. She told me that it felt really light. On packaging, you think the lashes would be heavy on the eye since they look quite thick but it was actually very light, she didn't think like she was wearing very thick lashes. Here's a very natural eye makeup that I did on her. If you look at it, Gwen (the model) looks like she has naturally long and thick lashes.

On heavy smoky eyes, mink lashes enhance the smokiness and makes the look more dramatic, framing the eye well.

Of course, lashes like these aren't for one-time use. With proper care, the Glambox mink lashes could last you about 15-20 uses. To store lashes, we need gentle eye makeup remover to take out the dirt and remove makeup from the eyelash area, being careful not to soak in the fibers. Wait for a few seconds so the glue loosens up before peeling off the lashes from your very own lashline. Eye makeup remover should then be used to wash lashes before soaking them in water for a good 5 minutes. Soaking softens up the adhesive (especially if you like using the heavy-duty ones) before using a pair of tweezers to carefully remove the excess glue. Then, lashes should be stored in the box until the next use.

The price of these lashes cost Php 1,500 a pair. Come to think of it, these lashes are way cheaper than what Hollywood celebrities would pay for. It would look great on very special occasions like a wedding or any major event. I like the soft flutter it has and it really looks like we naturally have long and thick fluttery lashes.

Weekly Lash Hauls from Mang Ed

Love them for opening up the eyes or hating them for giving the lids a workout, false lashes have been a staple in my kits, shoots, weddings, and other gigs. It does take an extra ten minutes or so to put on, a bit more for tricky eyes but the effects are fabulous. I have lashes in different lengths and materials... rainbow, natural, glam, everything, since I don't know what I need.

Lash staples are of course, the natural falsies that we use for bridal. Not only are they cheap, but they're entry-level length and thickness similar to lash extensions for a low-commitment lash length should mascara not be enough. When our usual source of falsies increased its rate to 10 pesos more expensive, the search for more affordable lashes came to be.

Thanks to Mikee and Rza, I was introduced to Mang Ed when I was complaining at where to get natural-looking falsies at a cheaper price. It's now my third time to buy lashes from Mang Ed and I wanted to share them to all of you. Mang Ed has been supplying lashes to freelance makeup artists, makeup students, makeup addicts, clubs, showgirls, and even celebrities. He told me that Iya Villania gets her lashes from him.

Yesterday while waiting for Rza, I was talking to Mang Ed after purchasing lashes and he allowed me to photograph his products. He's actually very friendly and coordinating with him is a breeze. He's never late, never misses appointments, and would always answer text messages.

This is Mang Ed's bagful of lashes! Sometimes on a good day with lots of customers, that bag comes home empty.

Here are the usual lashes for bridals and beauty editorials.

Medium thickness for those who want extra oomph. These are Rza's favorites.

Ultra-thick and ultra-long for avante garde shots.

They are actually human hair lashes. His wife makes them and he delivers them to his clients. It's a husband-and-wife team of business. He even showed me a picture on his cellphone of him and his children. He actually has a son who's a lawyer, who finished his studies just right in time.

His lashes are actually very affordable. You buy them in bulk. A bundle of 1 dozen lashes costs Php 200 bucks, so that's roughly Php 17.00 per pair. The medium thickness ones cost Php 300 for 12 pairs of course and the extra long ones are Php 100 a pair. Aside from delivering the lashes and meeting up with clients, Mang Ed also takes part on production by making the boxes as well.

Applying the lashes are actually quite easy. I like that they're very easy to handle and they mold in well to the eye shape. I use DUO lash glue to apply falsies and adjust with tweezers. Are they heavy? If you're not used to wearing falsies, they could take quite some time getting used to. If you're used to wearing falsies, they're okay. I just cut off the edges since I find it more comfortable that way.

My own lash haul. See how long the avante garde ones now. Mang Ed tells me the ultra-long falsies are the ones used by drag queens doing shows. But with the right concept, they could be very fasyon too.

Actually, we're planning a meetup soon for makeup artists who want to purchase lashes, so holler up if you're interested to purchase a bundle. He usually does meetups for a minimum of 5 dozen orders.