The Best Filipino Makeup I Bought in Manila
A complete haul of humidity-proof, morena-friendly products I discovered while shopping with a local beauty editor. Save this for your next trip to the Philippines!
I spent over 9,200 pesos at SM Beauty and have zero regrets. While in Manila, I tapped my friend Belle Rodolfo, a fellow beauty editor turned content creator, to be my “tour guide” around the beauty aisles. She came prepared with a list of her favorites (specific shades and all!) and shared so much knowledge and insight on the local beauty scene in the Philippines.
Filipino makeup formulas are truly made to last. Longwear staying power isn’t just a unique selling point; it’s the status quo. That doesn’t surprise me, considering how sauna-like heat and humidity are an everyday reality. It’s no wonder that multi-use, lip and cheek stain formulas are incredibly popular. Meanwhile, the shade match on complexion products and the complementary tones on blush, lipstick, etc., for morena skin are unmatched. (You won’t find cartoonish-orange foundation shades or ashy grey bronzer here!!!). I’ve been so impressed by their performance that I’ve swapped my everyday summer makeup routine to all-Filipino brands.
I’ve spent the last month testing out products, and below, I share what I’m loving from my Manila beauty haul (note: I didn’t include Sunnies Face because I’ll dedicate a future post to that!). Save this list for your next trip to the Philippines!
Complexion
Colourette First Base Everyday Skin Tint
This is perfect for that no-makeup makeup, daytime coverage. “It has such a cult-following because it’s so affordable but feels like a luxury formulation,” Belle said. The shelves were literally empty when I went to find my shade and got the last bottle of Mayon, a medium tan with neutral undertones.
Issy Active Skin Tint
This oil-free, SPF 35 formula has less coverage than Colourette’s Skin Tint, but still provides a nice veil that evens out any redness or discoloration. Think of it as your one-step, just-running-errands, weekend go-to. “It’s just such a fresh formula. When you put it on, it feels refreshing,” Belle shared. My shade is Brulee.
Detail Fresh Filter
I’d never heard of Detail, what Belle called “an older sister brand” and “more sophisticated.” They carry one of her all-time favorite foundations: Fresh Filter. A little goes a long way with this lightweight foundation formulated with rose water. It gives a skin-like finish that’s undetectable yet full coverage—no heavy, cakey feeling at all! My shade is Cashew.
Blk Cosmetics Radiant Glow Filter
This multi-use product is very similar to Charlotte Tilbury’s Hollywood Flawless Filter: You can wear it alone, as a primer, or as a highlighter for extra luminous skin. I use the shade Toast. The recent Bretman Rock collaboration has a different colorway, Soleil, that I love for a deeper, warmer bronzing effect.
Teviant Ultimate Skin Master Loose Powder
This cleverly designed package dispenses product in a hollow center (like a donut) that prevents powder from getting all over your vanity. The powder itself is extra fine and blurs pores and fine lines like a filter. I’d use a light hand with this one—it has a powerful mattifying effect! According to Belle, the shade Custard is “morena-friendly.”
GRWM Cosmetics Life-Proof Fixing Spray Matte
“It is humidity-proof, the best; it locks in everything,” Belle said of this setting spray. I’ve been using it nearly daily as the days get hotter in NYC, and not even the hot garbage air of the subway could make my makeup budge. It really does have a matte finish—a rarity for setting sprays. I regret not buying the bigger size!
Happy Skin Rescue Me Cooling UV Mist
Belle told me this is an SPF you’ll look forward to reapplying, and she’s not wrong! Like the name suggests, it has a cooling effect on skin and a fine mist that provides even coverage over makeup. It’s not sticky or greasy and doesn’t have that obvious “sunscreen” smell (my main complaint for other sprays like Supergoop’s).
Cheek
Vice Cosmetics Dew It All in Always Sweet
“This is one of my favorite blushes. It’s super affordable and goes such a long way – one dot!” Belle said, joking, “This will last you [so long], it’s going to be a family heirloom.” I got the shade Always Sweet, a baby pink that’s giving Sabrina Carpenter.
GRWM Cosmetics Bronzer in Twilight
I am more often than not disappointed in bronzers on the market. So many of them are too warm-toned, or worse, the shade range doesn’t go deeper than my skin tone. This powder bronzer strikes that perfect balance of a cool-toned brown that creates the shadow effect you want when contouring. I’d build gradually, though, it has a lot of color payoff!
BLK Cosmetics Creamy All-Over Paint
I love how hydrating and blendable this formula is. The Bretman Rock collection has a shade called “Tropical Nude” that is the perfect deep rose for morena girls. Since it’s a multi-use product, you can use it on your lips, face, and eyes.
Ever Bilena Pillow Pop Liquid Blush
Ever Bilena is one of the legacy Filipino beauty brands that’s been a staple in so many Filipinas’ lives (see: the Jelly Lip & Cheek Stain Belle informed me every girl had at one point). Consider Pillow Pop Liquid Blush the Philippines’ answer to Rare Beauty’s Soft Pinch. It is extremely pigmented–great if you want your cheeks to pop on camera, stage, or at a special event.
Detail Melting Touch Velvet Blush in Tutu
This blush has a unique mousse-like, cream-to-powder texture. It leaves a more diffused, soft-focus finish that gives you a natural glow.
Lips
Happy Skin Lip Mallow Plush Matte Lip Tint
Of all my purchases, this might be my favorite one! I wish I had bought more shades. It is a cushiony, moisturizing formula with a refreshing cucumber scent. It leaves your lips looking pillowy and plump, and I can confirm the color lasts through eating a greasy meal (kare-kare, anyone?).
Detail Lip Trace
When I tell you this lip liner swatch on my hand would not budge even after I took a shower?? I don’t know what sorcery is used, but if you don’t want to reapply your lip liner all day, Lip Trace should be at the top of your shopping list. “It’s so glide-y, and once it sets, you can’t move it,” Belle said, adding a pro tip, “You really can’t wear it alone, it has to be worn with a product on top, because it might dry you out.”
Blk Glossy Serum Stick
This has quickly become my go-to everyday lip (I use the shade Orchid)! It’s your all-in-one lip with the color of a lipstick and the sheen and comfort of a lip gloss.
Extras
Vice Cosmetics Brow Curve
I’m very picky about brow products, but this Vice Cosmetics pencil won me over. It’s retractable and has a thin blade shape that allows you to both shade and draw precise, brow hair-like lines. It’s become an everyday staple for me.
Saborino Morning Sheet Masks
I’ve never been much of a sheet mask lover, but this might’ve converted me! Dispensed like a pack of baby wipes, these ultra-hydrating, calming masks are great for pre-makeup skin prep, according to Belle. Per her suggestion, I tried out the Minty Yogurt variation, and it is like having a mini facial.
GRWM Cosmetics SPF BFF
I finished an entire bottle of this while in the Philippines (you could see the logo rubbed off in my picture, haha)! Formulated with glycerin and niacinamide, this sunscreen-meets-serum leaves a dewy glow and feels super moisturizing. I didn’t observe any white cast, either!
Are there any Filipino makeup brands/products you love that I need to add to my list next time? Let me know in the comments!
Links I’m Loving…
My heart has been heavy this week watching the crisis of democracy happening across the U.S.: Military deployed on protestors in LA, cruel courthouse arrests by ICE in NYC, families being violently torn apart – it is a horrific loss of humanity. Lisa Angulo Reid beautifully articulated why Filipinos must speak out against these injustices. “We are not the exception. And it’s time for us all to realize that keeping our heads down and being invisible isn’t going to save our communities.”
My friend Marianne Mychaskiw, a LA-based Filipina beauty editor, made this great video explaining why you should avoid wearing oil-based products if you plan to join protests this weekend. “Those particles from tear gas and pepper spray actually cling to oil-based formulas in your skin, and you run the risk of getting a chemical burn as a result,” she says in the video. I followed up asking her for some product recommendations: “I like something super gentle, like an oil-free hyaluronic acid. The Ordinary does a good job with their Soothing and Barrier Support Serum. And, I’ll be wearing either the La Roche Posay SPF 70 or the new Bondi Sands SPF 60. I’d err on the side of caution and just avoid anything that can make your skin sensitive while we’re out there fighting the good fight.” Thank you, Marianne!
The New York Times announced its new Chief Restaurant Critics: Ligaya Mishan and Tejal Rao. Ligaya is Filipino, and notably co-wrote Filipinx: Heritage Recipes From the Diaspora with Angela Dimayuga (I love this cookbook!). Mishan is a longtime Times reporter who’s covered the tradition of kamayan and the comforts of chicken tinola in the past.
Business of Fashion interviewed me for their story on the rise of Filipino influencers in fashion and beauty! Pearl even got a shout-out! As excited as I am about this story, I want to add that I disagree with another source's statement: “We’re Asian. We’re also Latino. We understand aspects of both cultures.” This is inaccurate…I’m honestly surprised BoF printed it. We share a colonizer with Latin American countries, and there are commonalities because of it, but I think it’s wrong to claim Latinx culture as our own!
Yours truly got profiled in The Beauty Edit, and it’s one of my favorite interviews I’ve done. It covers my career as a Filipina in media and charts my evolution from beauty editor to content creator. It’s behind a paywall, but I shared some excerpts here.
Erica Gonzales, a Filipina editor covering culture at ELLE.com, wrote a great feature on the representation of Filipino nurses and healthcare workers in shows like The Pitt and St. Denis Medical. One Filipino writer from the latter put it best: “I think what networks were afraid of was, if you get too specific, the show is not going to translate to a wider audience….but it’s almost like the opposite of that has been true—the more specific you get, the more universal it becomes.”
Thank you! My Tito is going to the Philippines so I’m making a list and this is so perfect.
so many products I want to try. Looking at the Colourette first base and Teviant powder right now.