Mom leaves twins in hot car for 39 minutes while she shops at a beauty store --

Okay, so this is a rant-ish post. I came upon this article which reports how a mom of 3 1/2 year old twins (very very close to my own boy's age!) left her children strapped inside the car for almost 40 minutes while she did a beauty run at Ulta. I mean, even if you lost your entire make-up stash, is that really such a dire emergency? And setting aside the fact that a lot of children had died from dehydration and metabolic imbalance because of the extreme heat that can build up inside the car once you turn the air conditioning off, what about the greater concern of security? Any stranger can break in and harm or steal your kids while you are gone.

The children have been rescued by child services and the mom arrested. And I hope other moms know better than this.

I ♥ Philippine Drugstore Makeup Tag (and a lot of blah-blah on why I buy high-end makeup)

Maica over at PinayBeautyinaBudget tagged me in this series months and months ago! I've been owing her this response for ages, and it feels good to finally get around to it. First of all, I found it difficult to answer because she specified that the products I have to answer will have to be local drugstore brands, and I don't have much experience with those for several reasons.

Okay, here's where I warn you that the blah-blah starts here. If you would rather, just scroll down to the actual questions-- I won't mind.

First, I'm a self-confessed makeup snob. I would rather have one Guerlain lipstick than ten Wet n' Wild ones just because makeup is my indulgence. I don't shop really horde clothes or shoes anymore like I did when I was younger because I'm trying to keep my life and my closet as simple as possible. I don't get to wear makeup everyday (I say this a lot on this blog, no?), so on the few occasions that I do, I really long for a more luxe experience. 

Second, I do most of my beauty shopping online, or from trusty direct sellers from Avon, Mary Kay, etc. Whenever I go to the mall, I take my little boy with me (sans yaya!) and it takes a lot of things to go right before I can have time to loiter at a local beauty counter. I never really stay long enough to get tempted by an impulse purchase! And well, online sellers mostly carry non-local drugstore brands e. 

Third, I usually check reviews and blogs before I buy something-- and search engines usually point to non-local brands. Which is why this tag is a really good idea, IMO. So finally, here are my answers below. Take note that given my limited experience with Philippine drugstore makeup, I have to modify the rules a bit: when I don't have a suitable answer in the Pinoy-made local drugstore category, I add some non-Pinoy drugstore brands but only the ones that I know are locally available.

One of the requirements I have for makeup shopping is that there must be space and a seat so the Boy can plunk down while I go a-swatching. Even then, I only get like a ten-minute window before he gets bored and asks for ice cream.

1. What is your favorite local drugstore makeup brand? That will be Nichido and Fanny Serrano. I like Nichido for their cheap lip liners and eye pencils. They're like e.l.f. -- their products can be a hit or miss but they have good prices. Aside from the pencils, I would recommend their loose powder (decent) and this green pancake foundation which is only about P150. If you have redness that you would like to neutralize, apply this wet on your face and then top off with a color-matching face powder.

As for Fanny Serrano, the brand is just amazing. It's actually my favorite local brand as of now. I have a Fanny Serrano lipstick (which I reviewed here) and their compact foundation in Rajah which I use as a matte bronzer. I look forward to buying Organza once I make a dent in the many compacts that I still am trying to use up.

2. What are your favorite face, cheek and lip products? For the face, I love Ellana loose mineral foundation (review here). Up to now, I still use it as part of my everyday simple look. It doesn't break me out and it's very light on the skin, plus I found a good shade match because they send you samples so you can try the powders at home.

For the cheek, I'm a Benefit and MAC girl actually but for local brands, I would say Fanny Serrano again. They have a peachy pink shade that I thought looked a bit like Benefit Bella Bamba (don't know the shade name though, sorry).

For the lips, MAC and Guerlain, but Fanny Serrano did impress me again. Also, I have swatched lipsticks by M&Co which I think is by Mikee Cojuangco and they had great pigmentation and staying power-- my arm was still stained the next day!

3. Least favorite product? I don't like face bases by Ever Bilena because when I swatch them, parang wala namang coverage then it had an oily feel.

4. What is the best makeup bargain? I don't go by sales and markoffs when it comes to makeup e. That's another reason why I buy trusted brands like MAC, because it really comes down to cost-per-wear. For example, a powder foundation only costs P200 per pan, but since you have to retouch several times a day, you use up two pans every month so it's just the same as buying a nice powder that has better staying powder-- less hassle pa. 

5. What is your favorite underdog product? (Something you love that often gets overlooked?) Does it have to be a brand? Because my answer would be a brow spoolie brush-- the ones that is mostly called "mascara brush". Newbies often just throw it out when they buy brush sets but it can really help give you well-groomed brows if you know how to use it.

6. A local drugstore product that is overpriced? Most drugstore products, for me, are overpriced. See #4 for the reason. Especially those poor quality eyeshadow palettes and chalky blushes.

7. Local drugstore product that isn't worth the hype? The copycat BB creams that are nothing but watered down versions of crappy liquid foundation.

And because the purpose of a tag is to keep it going, I want to tag

Shayne of Queen of All You See -- we seem to have the same makeup brand loves, I wonder how she would answer these questions.

If you would like to participate in this tag, just go ahead. I'm really just shy about getting initiating connections with fellow bloggers, not snobbish :)

Quick Tip: How to make your Clarisonic look almost new again

I'm on a roll here, posting two consecutive days in a row. This is, frankly, what happens when I don't have to produce or edit pictures for a post. I have no problems coming up with words-- it's really the photography that gets me behind. Anyhow, today is something that you are bound to find useful if you have a light-colored Clarisonic that has been looking dingy now.

My Clarisonic is a boring white, which really shows every bit of dirt on it.

I have had mine for a little over a year now (read my review here) and I still love it. I've changed my brush heads twice and I pretty much use it everyday. As you can see, my unit is white and since it gets wet, it has started to look grayish and a bit moldy. Gross, I know, but there was nothing I could do about it. I tried scrubbing it with shower gel, even tried diluted bleach but the grayish grime was still there. I didn't dare try harsher cleaning agents because I didn't want to risk damaging it.

You know what surprisingly worked? Plain white toothpaste.

I discovered this by accident; I dropped a gob of whitening toothpaste (mine was Arm & Hammer, but I suppose any brand would do) on the back of my Clarisonic one morning and didn't notice it until I needed to use it that evening. I just wiped off the toothpaste when to my surprise, the spot where it sat on was back to its original pristine color! I excitedly slathered toothpaste all over (without wetting it at all) and when I wiped off the toothpaste, the stains were gone. So now I can bring it again on overnight trips without being ashamed of other people seeing it.

So that's it. If you do try it out, do let me know how it works for you!

2 Firsts for me: a Farah Abu bangle and Shopping at AVA.ph

I know, I know-- it's been a couple of months since I posted. I would like to thank a bunch of you who still visited from time to time just to see if I have something new here. I am sorry that you have been disappointed and you won't believe how thankful I am that I still get traffic even if I am remiss. As for the hiatus, I would like to write a separate post for that-- for now, I am thinking of taking this blog in a slightly different direction. Yes, I still intend to blog about beauty stuff, but so far, the Kikaymom has been more kikay than mom and I suppose that's what lies behind the lack of blogging mojo. You see, although makeup and whatnot are things that I care about (and spend money on), my life is so much more. Maybe it is time to share more about the different aspects so that this space, my own corner of the web, can feel more like home where I can just kick my heels off and spend time with friends.

And anyhow, online shopping is one of those things. July is actually my birthday month. I'm not really the type who likes to throw parties or go clubbing for special occasions; I prefer purchasing items that I know I will be using and keeping for a long time. And a piece of chunky handmade jewelry is what I had in mind: a Farah Abu bangle.

Chunky is so pretty :)

Farah Abu is a Pinay architect-turned-jewelry designer. When I landed on AVA.ph, her chunky handmade pieces really spoke to me and I ended up getting my very own bangle. I figured that I could wear this with everything from cocktail dresses and tshirts. You can take a look at her other pieces here. Like most handmade jewelry, there are other bangles that look quite similar to mine, though not exactly alike. I love my bangle so much; it's not too heavy and it feels so comfortable on my arm.

And hats off to AVA too; I ordered this in the very early morning and by afternoon, I received an email notifying me that it has already been shipped (I paid online using DragonPay). Sure enough, the next morning, it arrived at the house. A good thing too because I was really excited to see my bangle in person.

Farah Abu pieces are also sold online at Lazada and Zalora but the nicer pieces are, I think, the ones listed in AVA.

Maybelline The Rocket Volum' Express Washable Mascara Review

Maybelline mascaras are my favorite but the "Volum'" part irritates the heck out of me. I think it's stupid. Anyhow, right before I bought this from Bon Marche, (to go to their temp online store, click here) all the mascara I had in my stash was the Rimmel iMax Volume Flash and a waterproof tube of Maybelline Colossal. Rimmel left me un-wowed and I only use waterproof mascara for when it's absolutely necessary so I was in the market for something that could give me vavavoom lashes just for everyday.

A few months ago, I actually tried the much-raved about Maybelline The Falsies formula but it left me with a sour taste in the mouth. I bought my tube from Landmark in Trinoma, put it away unopened for a few days only to find out that they gave me one that's all dried out. I've heard other local bloggers complain about old mascara being sold in malls and such; I buy mine online from retailers and never had a problem.

Anyhow, I was browsing through Multiply (before they went into a major revamp) and saw Bon Marche had one last tube left for only P300:

P300/9ml. Cheap and promising.

The Rocket mascara is being marketed as a volumizing mascara, just like the Colossal is. It promises to amp your lashes by 8x and to give clump-free application to boot. I'm not going to bore you with a lot of product information that you can find on their website anyway. I'm just going to go straight on to the nitty-gritty of this review.

Here's the rubber brush. As you can see, it's rather big and has often been compared to the Cover Girl Lash Blast. I have fairly long and curled lashes naturally and so I dig big mascara wands.

The formula is a bit wet but that's alright. I find this to be true with most Maybelline mascaras anyway. The wand bristles are a bit shorter than the Colossal's, which meant that I found it a bit clumsy at first. However, I soon got the hang of it and eventually managed to coat both top and bottom lashes (including the shorter hairs on the sides) without making too much mess. Here are some before and after shots:

Bare lashes

With two coats

Two coats, no curling

I'm sorry but I don't have full face-on shots of me wearing this; I'm still figuring out how to do those. But can you see how crazy long this product made my bottom lashes look?

The formula does not weigh my lashes down and I haven't noticed any flaking or smudging-- which is quite a feat in this awful summer weather we have been having. The pictures above were taken the first time I tried on this product and so it's a bit more clumpy and wet. I've been using this mascara for over a month now, and just like every other Maybelline mascara I've tried, I love it even more now that it's dried a bit. I would even dare say that it performs just as well, if not better, as the Colossal in that I've had people I got false eyelashes on when I use this with gel eyeliner and lash curlers.

Overall, I love this product. 

How about you? Are you in love with Maybelline mascaras too, or is your heart elsewhere? Feel free to share your favorite in the comments below; I'd love to expand my lash horizons!

All Used Up: Lush, Krave, Celeteque, Kiehl's, etc.

Hello, ladies! Since becoming a product junkie, finishing up something has been something of an accomplishment. I've been wanting to start this series for some time now, but somehow, I always forget to save my empties. Or I do, then someone goes into my bedroom and starts to throw them out. Empties reviews are always so useful, because too often, you can only judge whether something is really good after you've finished it all up.

I finally figured out that the best thing to do about it is to stash my empties in one of my dresser drawers. Last week, the drawer finally became too full so I took them out and got clicking. So, without much further ado, here's a mini-review of products I have recently gone through:

1. Septo-care Contact Lens Solution (P70/ 375 ml) - I'm a prescription lens wearer and I run through bottles of this stuff in a month. I used to spring more expensive brands like Sauflon or Bausche & Lombe but I realized that this works just as well. And because it's very cheap (other solutions cost about five times as much for the same amount) I don't need to scrimp at all. Definitely a repurchase.

2. Olay Oil Minimizing Toner (P299/ 212 ml) - I ran out of Etude House Amalgem toner and I grabbed this in a hurry from the grocery shelf. It stings my eyes when I swipe near the area plus I ended up with so much product wasted because the mouth of the bottle doesn't have any stopper-- it's just one big opening once you twist off the cap. Not repurchasing.

3. Dove Essential Nourishment Body Lotion for Dry Skin (P250 ml) - It was a run-of-the-mill body lotion as far as I was concerned. It claims to provide 24h moisture to the skin but I didn't notice anything special. Not repurchasing.

4. Lush Snow Fairy Limited Edition Shower Gel  (P450/ 250 ml) - As I said in my post about my Lush Holiday Haul last January (click this link), Snow Fairy is one of my favorites. It smells like candy and it's pink, so.... But I have to be honest and admit that it's really more about the scent than any skin benefits. It's pretty much just a great shower gel, but it only smells good in the shower and I find that the scent is easily overpowered by any lotion. It does double as a fairly decent shampoo; in fact, son is now using my 500 ml back up bottle for hair washing.

Not included in the picture but which I also want to mention is the Lush Snowcake soap. (Obviously, I don't have empties for that.) It smells good and lasts fairly long if you cut it up and keep it as dry as possible when not using it. Again, the kiddo ended up using it and it made him smell like vanilla cupcakes, which made hugs extra sweet. Will definitely repurchase both Snow Fairy and Snowcake the next time they come around.

5. Garnier Light Complete Multi-action Whitening Cream (P199/ 40 ml) - I started using this when my skin began to need more moisture but I didn't want to use 'real' moisturizers yet. I think I ran through four or five tubes of this. It does provide moisture but not the intensive kind. What I loved most about it was that it gave your skin a powdery finish right after application. As for whitening, I didn't really notice any effects because I didn't apply regularly. Not repurchasing anymore though.

6. FCUK Her perfume (30 ml) - It was a somewhat non-girly scent that had a hint of sexy. Sorry, but I'm not really that great at describing perfumes because I believe it's such a subjective product. This perfume got finished simply because I have had it so long. Not repurchasing.

7. Vitress Heat Protect Cuticle Coat (P90/ 30 ml) - I like putting this in my bag to smooth flyways when I'm out of the house. The bottle is small and the pump very convenient. Definitely repurchase.

8. Revlon Photoready Sculpting Blush Palette (P550/ 4g) - This is actually not an empty; it's got about 90% of its contents left but I'm throwing it out (not even giving it away) simply because its such crap. I ranted about it here. No way in hell am I repurchasing.

9. Bellagio Pour Femme perfume - refer to #6.

10. Celeteque Ultra-Lifting Restorative Serum (P599/ 30ml) - I got this from Sampleroom and I loved it. It felt so much like #11 bareMinerals Active Cell Renewal Night Serum (sample) which I received a with a Sephora order. Both of them are light, easily absorbed, and really makes a difference in how my skin looks and feels. Of course, the Celeteque version wins because it's locally available and less pricey. Have already repurchased and this has become a staple in my routine.

12. Olay Age Defying eye gel - this was actually not mine but my mom's. She left it behind during one of her vacations. I tried using it but I didn't really like it because it had a somewhat slimy texture and made the eye area look like you smeared snot all over it. Not a pretty picture. Obviously not repurchasing.

13. Avon Simply Pretty Jelly Belly lip balm (P120/ 4g) - one of my favorite cheapo lip balms. Not as moisturizing as my recent balm discoveries (Jack Black and Clarins!) but it does well enough when I just need something to add a bit of moisture during the day. Will repurchase whenever it goes on sale.

14. Krave Oil Eliminator and Skin Hydrator (P285/ 3g) - it's a silica finishing powder. I found that it didn't really work for me as a primer but because of its fine texture and white color, it's perfect for retouching foundation that has oxidized a bit after a few hours. Unfortunately, it's a loose powder which means that it's a bit of a hassle to bring along and use for retouches. Will probably not repurchase.

15. Kiehl's Acai Damage Correcting Moisturizer (sample) - Again, one of my Sampleroom picks and when used with the Celeteque serum, it made my skin so much better. Definitely repurchasing once I finish the other creams I have in rotation.

So there you have it, a pretty lengthy post because of all the empty stuff I've accumulated. Now off to dispose these containers...

Benefit Bathina Take a Picture Body Balm Review and Swatches

 Let me just add my hot weather rant to yours: this humidity is killing me. It's so hard to get the motivation to get out of the house, especially when you don't really need to. Anyhow, now that skin season is here, I thought I'd share a product that might come handy to some of you: Benefit's Bathina Take a Picture it Lasts Longer Body Balm. Whew!

Simply put, it's a cream highlighter especially intended for the body. The color is fairly similar to Benefit's Girl Meets Pearl-- pink with gold shimmer. It's supposed to give your skin a luxurious sheen. Does it? Continue reading below.

Benefit Bathina (P1600/1.5 oz.) is a pretty solid balm with a cloth puff for buffing into the skin. As you can see, the tin has a charming vintage vibe. This product is not at all new, (although it has been revamped a couple of years ago) but so far, most of the reviews that I have read about this product were written by bloggers colder climates than ours. I wanted to see for myself how it would fare in humid Manila.

The back of the packaging says: 

Gorgeous legs & arms when you dare to go bare. This irresistible golden-pink balm glides on sheer, glimmering body finish. So go ahead, take a picture... it lasts longer...

To apply: For glimmering results, apply evenly with velvet puff. To accentuate the glow, buff in a circular motion.

The product has a baby lotion-y scent which is noticeable for an hour or so. If you're like me who wears perfume on a daily basis, pick a complimentary scent to avoid clashing. It does not feel heavy or sticky as long as you don't touch the areas where you put it on. But if you make the mistake of wearing it on a very humid day, it can feel uncomfortable. Today I put some on my arms but just wiped it off ten minutes later. Too bad because it looks pretty nice too.

Sorry but no pictures of what it looked like on my arms-- I was running late as it was. But here's a swatch to show you:

The circled portion shows you where Benefit Bathina was applied. Can you see the sheen?

Bare hand

Hand applied with Benefit Bathina

Can you see the difference? Note that in the bare hand photo, my arm is held horizontally so the natural light makes a sort-of 'bloom' effect. In the hand swatch, my hand gleams even though it's directly facing the lens.

A lot of reviews (including Temptalia!) complained that Bathina is just too subtle. That was my first impression too, but I realized that you really had to swipe the balm a bit more generously to see the effect. Even then, it's not full-on shine but a lit-from-within glow. It's quite beautiful and subtle; in the right light you can even fool people into thinking that you just have gorgeous skin.

But... (of course there's one) but unfortunately, the effect will only last an hour or so before you have to reapply again. Plus, there's the humidity factor. You know the feeling when you wear a very rich lotion or body butter in the summer? That's exactly what you will get. Plus it does not have any SPF.

So the pros:

• Cute tin
• Pretty effect
• Easy to apply

And the cons:

• Expensive
• Can feel heavy for summer
• Not long lasting
• Scented

I would say that this is not a must-have but a nice-to-have. Before I finally got Benefit Bathina I tried to look for similar products but found none.

Do you think you're going to be getting Benefit Bathina anytime soon? Do you already have it? What do you think?