060616 + Summer Beauty Faves

June 11, 2016

Check out more of Tobi's must-haves : Formal Dresses, Maxi Skirts, Sunglasses, Gold White Dresses, Black Blue Dresses, Sandals

Naomi buckle sandals - Topshop

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Here's another dress the gals at Tobi were gracious enough to send me... Its breezy and flowy style was perfect for a warm weekend in Long Island! It's like I'm another person when summer comes. I'm instantly happy and look- I'm actually wearing color more and more! Well, I actually just stocked up on more blues (fave color) and whites- that's still a huge improvement for me.

Aside from posting my easy summer wardrobe essentials, I also wanted to share a bit of my new summer beauty favorites:

1. Chanel UV Essentiel multi-protection daily defense sunscreen anti-pollution broad spectrum SPF 50 ($55, Chanel)

I've gone through bottles of this since winter and I just love the scent and how it goes on really light. Perfect as a base layer under makeup and as the last step to your skincare routine in the morning. It also doesn't leave a white cast on my face (that ghostly post-flash photo look).

2. Tom Ford Neroli Portofino Parfum Spray ($220, Sephora)

I was testing perfumes at Saks when I fell in love with this scent. I picked up a bottle from Sephora without asking for the price and was shocked when I got to the counter- but it was so worth it! It's the perfect summer scent for me but like all scents it's not for everyone.

"Vibrant. Sparkling. Transportive. To Tom Ford, this scent perfectly captures the cool breezes, sparkling clear water, and lush foliage of the Italian Rivera. His reinvention of a classic eau de cologne features crisp citrus oils, surprising floral notes, and amber undertones to leave a splashy yet substantive impression.

Notes:Tunisian Neroli, Italian Bergamot, Sicilian Lemon, Winter Yellow Mandarin, Orange Flower, Lavender, Rosemary, Amber. "

3. Drybar Detox Dry Shampoo ($23, Sephora)

This was an impulse buy after running out of my usual Batiste dry shampoo. It's pricier but all it takes is one spray to combat the oily mess my hair becomes mid-afternoon on a hot day.

4. Oribe Apres Beach Wave & Shine Spray ($39, Oribe)

I received a bottle of this from Oribe since our team had the chance to work with them for a class. My sister has curly hair and she loves this stuff, too. It smells amazing and it's supposed to give you beach-to-bombshell hair -- tousled, touchable waves with sun-kissed shine without the salty stiffness after you've styled your hair.

5. Marc Jacobs Beauty Fineliner Ultra-Skinny Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner ($24, Sephora)

Best waterline liner EVER. Not the type of liner you'd use on your lids to smudge, though. It's too smudge-proof and stiff for that.

6. Marc Jacobs Beauty Velvet Noir Major Volume Mascara ($26, Marc Jacobs Beauty)

I ditched my Clinique bottom lash mascara since this is so long lasting (even if it's not waterproof) so I've started using it on my bottom lashes as well. It fans out my lashes beautifully and looks great with curled lashes.

7. Chanel Rouge Coco Baume ($37, Chanel)

A very fancy and overpriced lip balm, but it works!

8. Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Face Butter ($40, Sephora)

This is a godsend. The perfect moisturizer for summer if you have combination skin. I ditch the Argan oil in the morning and use this face butter instead.

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Let me know if you guys get to try out any of these beauty picks and tell me if they work for you!

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normy days

December 14, 2011

FACE:

MAC Studio Finish SPF 35 concealer (under the eyes/around the nose)

Chanel Purete Mat shine control powder

Guerlain Terracotta bronzing powder

NARS Orgasm blush

Urban Decay 24/7 glide-on eye pencil in Zero

Maybelline Great Lash mascara or MAC's False Lashes mascara

Clean & Clear's oil blotting sheets (I use 3-5 the entire day to keep the oilies away)

BROWS:

MAC eye shadow in Espresso

MAC Brow Set in Girl Boy

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I just wanted to post a self-portrait after getting treatments from Skin 911 during my most recent visit to Cebu. My friend Jennifer owns the clinic and she was kind enough to let me try some of their services for free. My mom also got a couple of treatments and so far we love it!!! They're at a temporary location in Banilad but will be moving to a place near SM Cebu early next year. They have non-invasive slimming treatments as well as skin pampering treatments at very affordable rates!

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I don't think I've updated my makeup routine too much. I use products I trust, and believe me when I say that the more expensive powders (blush, pressed powder, bronzer) and concealer last me a long time! My Chanel powder lasted me 7 months plus my blush & bronzer's pans aren't even showing yet. I bought all of them at the same time (last trip to Singapore)

My favorite mascaras would be Dior's Diorshow mascara or Chanel's Inimitabe Mascara but I just can't afford to splurge on things that dry out so quickly.

Urban Decay's 24/7 glide-on pencil in Zero is my holy grail liner and it's proven to be the one that stays put the longest as compared to all the other brands I've tried. It goes on creamy but stays put the whole day. It's too bad none of the stores in Manila carry Urban Decay makeup... I have to get my stash from Singapore or America.

(For those who are curious about my skin type and acne medication, see the bottom of this post for more info + my dermatologist's contact details.)

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CBTL acoustic tour (2nd performance) + my bare-faced self

November 21, 2010

Robin Nievera played first. And ended with the best impromptu mash-up ever!

Robin brought his own mic- which is the same Shure mic that Riz uses for our videos... Coolio... You guys think Rob should cut his hair??? He was talking about doing that... LOL

I'll say it again and again- Julianne never fails to give me that giddy feeling when she starts singing!!!

Red's one of my best buds and we've been classmates since the first grade... I can't believe that I rarely get to see my best buddies nowadays... We live in the same city and yesterday was his first time to see me with my ~~not-so-new~~ hair!

Some of the guys from Audioclef

I painted her nails yesterday and Mewa placed small black dots on them the next day... Judging by the expression on her face, I think she's never been more excited to sport her nails.

If you're wondering why we sang at different Coffee Bean outlets, it's to promote the "Are You Listening" CD that's being sold at the CBTL branches for quite some time now... We're part of the upcoming Christmas album and it's packed with songs by AWESOME local artists, and most of them also attend Church Simplified with us...

We sang with Salamin on Friday at Ortigas Park, then got a call to join Robin and Julianne for the one on Saturday at Bonifacio High Street. We really enjoyed performing and eating tons at CBTL!!! And lemme just say... You'll prolly find us nommin' there for the next couple of weeks (yes, more than the usual amount of time we spend eating frozen swirls, sippin lattes and enjoying the free wifi).

Get a copy of the Are You Listening CD for only Php 250.00! The Christmas album will be out by December so watch out for it! Trust me, you'll love all the tracks!

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Obviously cheated on this first one... Added effects to hide the discolorations but that ended up emphasizing my pores. LOL. At least it in my head that made it look edgy. *whatevs!!!

Really thin brows

I have really big pores... But I don't care about them anymore as long as I don't get too many zits as I used to when I was younger. I literally had bumps and craters on my forehead and chin! Oh, and excuse the redness around the bridge of my nose. I wore glasses just before I popped my contacts on before leaving the house.

My brows are incredibly thin when I don't fill them in. I am happy with the arch, but I can't let it grow out totally since my natural brows are super straight.

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I was thinking of doing an updated beauty/makeup loot post but I thought posting photos of myself sans makeup would be better. I think it's rare that I post those types of photos here on my blog since I usually upload the ones of me during events, gigs and parties, which requires me to look a bit more presentable than the usual face I sport when I run errands, hit the gym or go to school.

As I'v mentioned in my older entries, I used to be troubled with acne when I was in grade school up until college. Tried a lot of things, and they would work really well until my skin would get immune to the chemicals. I won't mention the long list of products I used before any more...

What works for me now is the simplest skin cleanser out in the market, which is Cetaphil (the one for all skin types). I don't even use a facial scrub unless I go to my mom's place in Cebu and use whatever she has in her bathroom. That means I exfoliate at least thrice a month, but I think I have to do it regularly, like once or twice each week...

As for my maintenance/acne medication, I'm sticking to a simple one from my dermatologist (Dra. Nellie Yu). It's just Clindamycin lotion and Salicylic acid in the morning, then Erythromycin gel and 2 other creams at night. The liquid medications are in small dropper-like containers and the creams i use at night are in small plastic pots... They're very easy to pack when traveling since they're all so tiny and a little product goes a long way! Even if I get tempted to go to Dra. Yu for a monthly facial, this skin regimen keeps me from having the need to do that. I HATE facials but the one she gives me is super gentle and I think I'm never going to try any other facials out there after my first 2 traumatizing experiences. Do you ladies seriously endure the pain of having your pores extracted and pinched that way? I think your skin deserves to be treated gently, no matter what condition it's in. I used to poke at my zits or apply so much product on them before, and I think that's the biggest reason why my acne never went away. The more irritated your skin is, the more it'll try to produce oil/dry out/get filled with even more acne.

I have the combination skin type, by the way. I used to slather on moisturizer on the dry areas before, but I think I'm better off without that. I think it's mainly cos Cetaphil tries to balance the PH levels of your skin. Which is great for me!

My skin will never be zit-free on all days of the month, but I'm so happy that I don't suffer from a face full of craters, bumps and blemishes anymore... I do get the occasional breakout on that time of the month and when I don't get to sleep for how many days, but it's nothing major. The medication helps a lot to treat it overnight or in less than 3 days as well...

My advice to girls suffering from acne is to be gentle to your skin... Use products with the least amount of chemicals. Let your skin breathe (I've been trying to reduce the amount of "everyday makeup" I use, and only pile on or experiment during events) and make sure to invest on good quality makeup when buying any. You only have once face to work with! Cosmetic procedures will only make you look so unnatural. Aging gracefully is the only way to go, and the best way to look good when you're older is to be good to your skin now. That's the advice I always get when asking my older titas (who look awesome without any makeup)what their skin care regimen is.

Lastly, I think the change in my diet helped so much as well... Won't deny that I used to eat so much processed foods when I was younger, so I'm sure that contributed to my acne problem. As with beauty products, eating well helps since that would entail eating home-cooked/clean food. The less preservatives/chemicals, the better.

Nothing's easy, but remember- an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.