From Manila with Love

These are just one of the times I'm thankful I have a sister close to my age instead of a brother or my ever coveted fantasy of a "cool older brother who could beat up bullies or exes in a jiffy". We understand each other and by that sense I mean skin care and make-up kind of understanding.

I didn't buy SQUAT in this latest haul of mine and I'm so giddy and super excited because I really love all of "my" purchases.

Let me tell you a little bit about these brands. Ever Bilena and Fanny Serrano are just a couple of household names when it comes to local makeup products that are tried, tested and very much loved.

Despite those facts I've never tried anything from their respective lines, powder and foundation-wise {except a lip and cheek tint from Ever Bilena that I didn't care much for because its smell turned rancid while I was using it; it has the doe-foot applicator and THIS dip eyeliner a.k.a waste of freaking space.} because the smell from the products, the powders especially, turned me off so much when I was younger.

I always attributed that smell to old ladies and grandmas, so you can imagine my aversion to them. Plus I didn't want to experiment with my own face, with it being super sensitive, oily and adding the rosacea I have, which adds to the ingredient-sensitivity of my "princess skin" I wasn't that game to just trying whatever. Ugh aren't I the lucky one?

The two palettes in comparison.

First off, I really like the packaging. The quad is housed in a sleek glossy plastic case. Not completely black as there's some blue or violet in it. The logo stamped on the top is in classy script, very simple and elegant. The manufacturing date is also printed on the box as well as at the back part of the quad itself, which I commend. The lock mechanism is also well made and not flimsy at all. This actually reminds me of the Chanel Les Fleurs Summer shadows.

The four colors are bright crayon green, golden yellow, deep purple and this gorgeous forest green shade that's my favorite out of the palette. It also comes with two sponge-tip applicators, which aren't considered sponges at all in my opinion. They're, tougher, sturdier, smooth as well. I guess they're comparable to insoles of most shoes, more specifically the jelly-like middle between the two cloth-like strips. That's the best I could do to describe them hahaha.

Swatches on some linen paper.

The consistency is smooth, not buttery smooth per-se but not powdery or chalky either. They're actually kind of hard in my opinion, as opposed to this duo. Fall-outs are minimal and has good pigmentation as you can see. It also applies really well and blending them is non-problematic.

Swatches on my arm with some home-made primer.

All of the shades has some tiny glitters in them that are a combination of gold and pink, as far as I can see. Not overly glittery, and definitely not metallic. But blended out, especially the dark green and deep purple, you can barely see the glitters.

It retails for around 400+ Php but I got it for 150 Php (around $4) at SM Megamall because they were re-stocking I think?

Next up is my new favorite waterproof pen-type black liquid liner. And when I say waterproof, I really mean it.

I tried removing it with soap and water, olive oil, wipes, oil-based makeup remover and gentle toner, all in that order {I repeated some steps as well and I still had some bits of eyeliner on} . I was wowed and annoyed at the same time. Now I have to get myself a proper waterproof makeup remover. {Any recommendations?}

On another note, I'm completely singing a different tune when it comes to this product unlike here. I like everything about it. It has the typical inky liquid liner smell and inconsequential in my book since it isn't that strong and goes away quickly enough. It dries pretty fast. The felt-tip is precise, not too hard nor flimsy and opacity of the ink is just ♥.

It retails for around 200 Php (around $5)

UPDATE 10-19-2013 : It smudges on me now. I think the formula tends to break-down after a while. :( New liquid liner suggestions please!

Next up is the Ever Bilena Powder Foundation with UV/UVB protection in Soft Beige.

The packaging is simple and professional like the Fanny Serrano quad I mentioned. The compact is black with a matte finish and logo stamped on top. Nothing fancy like the Fanny Serrano but this one's cheaply stamped, you can see it's fading already and with a couple more uses it will be completely erased. Too bad. The lock mechanism is ok, not as sturdy as the Fanny Serrano quad but I don't think it's going to be breaking too soon.

It has a good amount of product since it's 11 grams, with a mirror and sponge included at the bottom compartment. The sponge isn't bad either, not the cheap kind that're stiff, this one's pretty soft.

The scent is very powdery, like sweet milk candy tablets. To those who have an issue with scented make-up this might not be your cup of tea, as the scent lingers on the skin. The consistency is very smooth and soft and applies really well on my oily-combination skin. I use a big fluffy brush to apply this for a lighter coverage but you can still use the sponge that's included for a more opaque application.

The color Soft Beige, which has a yellow undertone is also a good match for me and blends well on my skin.

The color range caters to most skin tones and the powders have either a yellow undertone or pink-beige undertone. But unfortunately they don't have {in this foundation line}, anything for tanner and more deeply colored skin.

This compact retails for around 300 Php (around $8)

UPDATE 10-19-2013 : The powder cracks and crumbles when you've hit pan. And by hit pan I mean, leave a big gaping hole. This is still an OK powder in my book but I noticed the lock mechanism became loose after so much use, still locks but not sturdy like before.

That's it for this post! I'm going to be looking at all the other products that they have since I've been thoroughly impressed with these. All-in-all I'd say they're definitely worth checking out.

As you can see, they're a bit pricier than Drugstore make-up in the U.S. , especially the powder foundation. I believe you can get the same consistency, quality and pay-off for a lot less with brands like L'oreal, Maybelline, Jordana and Wet n' Wild just to name a few.

Have you tried anything else from these two brands? I heard the FS powder foundations are really really good as well as the EB concealers.

xx,