Beauty Matters: A "TikTok Made Me Buy It" haul that no one asked for
Am I ready to be in my trend follower era?
Hello there! As you can tell in the title, I did some shopping. I bought products that were influenced by my recent deep dives on TikTok. I know it’s not the most financially sound thing to do right now since I’ve been doing freelance work, but this is a quasi-investment of sorts as I pursue my own journey as a budding creator in the beauty sphere. Anyway, if you’re curious to find out about what I got, keep reading! It’s going to be a long ass read.
Colourette First Base: When Colourette first announced the release of their first skin tint, I was trying my best to not bite into the hype. In the back of my mind, I felt that I needed to buy myself time before trying it. However, I got sold by the morena-friendly shade range. It has twelve shades! For a local beauty brand, it feels good to find products that do not bend to white supremacy and colorism.
I got the shade Mayon, which is described as a “medium tan with a neutral undertone.” I probably could’ve gone for Talisay (medium with olive undertone) or Puerto (medium with neutral undertone), but Mayon matches my neck, forehead, and shoulders better (Thanks, Belle for the shade-matching tip!).
Overall, I would describe the consistency of this skin tint as the love child of Detail’s Fresh Filter foundation and Maybelline’s Fit Me skin tint. Detail’s Fresh Filter foundation is light and watery, while Maybelline’s skin tint has a thicker, mousse-like consistency. (Apparently, UV filters have something to do with the formulation? It has one UV filter, by the way. Please correct me if I’m wrong, or is it just some lousy kumburuhus of an excuse from a certain local influencer as an excuse to allegedly spite on the brand) At first, First Base feels a little hefty and moussy, but it blends into almost nothing once you spread it out.
Coverage-wise, it starts out as sheer, but you can build it up to a medium. The finish is demi-matte, which is somewhat different for most skin tints or light coverage bases. Usually, you would expect skin tints to feel glowy or dewy, but I guess Colourette’s product development team prioritized the needs of oily-skinned folks. Regarding staying power, it’s fairly long-lasting (it lasted on me for 6-7 hours), but it’s not transfer-proof.
To add, First Base also has skincare ingredients like Hyaluronic Acid, Niacinamide, and Azaleic Acid, which were aimed to address some skin concerns. I personally wouldn’t rely on this skin tint if I want to get the full spectrum of benefits from those ingredients, but they’re decent additions.
As for me, I enjoy this skin tint best when my skin feels plump and hydrated. 1 pump is fine to cover the whole face. If I don’t do the necessary skin prep and add more layers, it can feel like a regular foundation to me, which can be uncomfortable.
Lastly, in terms of pricing, I find it a little too steep compared to its other counterparts like Issy & Co, Vice Cosmetics, or BLK’s (at Php 599), but I’m sure that they’ll be on sale to whet the appetites of curious beauty lovers out there.
Will I recommend it? If you prefer light, demi-matte bases, yes. Sure, I’ve shared my gripes about it, but I’m here for local beauty brands with a mission to make Filipinas feel beautiful–regardless of skin tone.
Maybelline Super Stay Vinyl Ink: I was initially underwhelmed by this release. The first drop of shades did not call out to me. They were too bold for my liking.
However, what changed my mind though was an Instagram story that Sam (aka famamfa) posted a few weeks back. She looked good in Charmed, which was a peachy-pinky MLBB (my lips but better) shade on her. After some more digging on TikTok and Instagram, I knew I had to try one of those Vinyl Ink lipsticks. They seemed too good to be true. Long-lasting but demi-matte? Count me in!
I finally got them in two shades: Peppy, a muted warm nude pink, and Extra, a terracotta rosy red. Both shades are part of their Nude Shock line, which are nude or MLBB shades for a variety of skin tones. Extra’s color reminded me of Sunnies Face’s Fluffmatte in Girl Crush, NARS’ satin lipstick in Banned Red, Revlon’s Rum Raisin, MAC’s Marrakesh-mere, and BLK’s All-Day Intense Matte lipstick in Honey–-all of which are wearable red shades for an olive-toned morena like me. On the other hand, Peppy is a creamy, liquid version of my favorite Happy Skin lipstick of all time–their moisturizing lip crayon in Best of Friends. (PLEASE BRING THIS BACK, HAPPY SKIN. I BEG YOU)
In terms of wear and use, I can sense that there’s a bit of a learning curve with this lipstick. You have to wait for it to dry in order to feel its full effects, otherwise, it’s gonna be a mess.
Just like most lipsticks, expect that this lipstick will have varying degrees of fading and transfer based on the food that you’ll be eating for the day. If you do not eat at all, this lipstick would last you for around 10 hours. However, if you enjoy eating oil-based food, expect that it will last for 5-6 hours max on your lips.
Pond’s Hyaluron Hydrate Sunscreen - I first saw this on one of Kai Javier’s TikTok videos, and it made me curious. After all, sunscreen is a must in one’s skincare routine. The texture and finish of this sunscreen reminded me of the Belo Sun Expert sunscreen that I’ve loved since 2016: light but not greasy, with some mattifying properties thrown in there. It also doesn’t have a white cast, which is a nightmare for a morena girl like me. It’s also a little more comfortable than the Belo one, since it has hyaluronic acid as a key ingredient.
At Php 449, I find this a bit more expensive than my usual lineup of sunscreens. Its price is almost in competition with the Beauty of Joseon one that everyone yelled about. However, I can see this as my workhorse sunscreen because of the sun protection it gives me (SPF 50 PA ++++ anyone?!).
BLK Cosmetics Lip Liner in Tides - Wearing lip liner was not in my 2022-2023 beauty bingo, but here we are. As someone who has fallen victim to unflattering lip colors, lip liners are the answer to these mishaps.
Recently, I ran out of my favorite Vice Cosmetics lip liner, whose shade I jokingly refer to as the Vape Lips lip liner. It was amazing at neutralizing bright, unflattering lip colors. I would wear it underneath them, and I feel more like me whenever I take on those lip combos.
When BLK released their lip liners from their summer collection, I knew that I needed to get one of those. The shades seemed to suit a variety of lip colors and skin tones! I picked up the shade, Tides, which reminded me of my favorite Vape Lips lip liner from Vice. It was a neutral rosy mauve that made my bright lipsticks more wearable.
Price-wise, I find this to be expensive (at Php 349). It’s in the same price range with most drugstore-priced lipsticks these days. However, I guess the price can be attributed to the lip liner’s formula, which is similar to a creamy matte lipstick. I can honestly wear this lip liner on its own.
I hope you enjoyed reading this little haul-slash-review of the stuff that I bought based on TikTok, but I hope we can be a little more discerning with our choices as consumers. But then again, enjoy your hard-earned money—especially when you’ve gone through shit.
Until the next brain dump,
Lea