MY FIRST BEAUTY MANILA HAUL!

Hey, you guys!

I hope you are doing great as we head towards the second half of the year. Wheew! I hope I'm not the only one doing a mental inventory of the things I've done and lipstick brands I've been using the last six months!

I know what goes inside a girl's mind when she hears MID-YEAR...

SALE!!! Am I right?

And speaking of sale...did you know that BeautyMNL is currently on their MID-YEAR sale!?! I was actually not aware of it until I got an email from them several days ago. I was fortunate enough to be given a chance to do a test run of this user-friendly site. Yay!

See, I usually get all confused and overwhelmed whenever I scan beauty products down the makeup aisle. I get even more confused when a saleslady starts a small talk and eventually convince me to buy something I didn't even want in the first place. Yes, I want info about the products that I'm checking out, but I don't want to be bugged the entire time I am shopping. Haha! There are also times when I really don't feel like going out at all because of the awful temperature or maybe I'm just plain lazy to get dressed and walk out the front door. Sometimes, I don't even feel like talking - you know that by now, right? When I'm not working, I'm usually just reading or writing. But there are times when I would get totally busy doing some personal errands too and I literally won't have time to shop. 

But it's still our job to take care of ourselves in the midst of the crazy-busy city life, I know... and that's where BeautyMNL comes to our rescue! They guarantee NEXT DAY delivery within Metro Manila and 5-7 working days in other parts of the Philippines. (They don't deliver on holidays and weekends though.) 

 

BeautyMNL aims to help Filipinas in their quest for the perfect skincare and makeup products. They partnered with more than 300 brands, local and international, to make sure we can find something that would work best with our skin type. Whether you are a morena (tan/olive skinned) like me, chinita or mestiza, you will definitely feel at home with the country's number one beauty site!

You can search through a number of SKIN CARE, MAKEUP and HAIR CARE products from the main tabs. They also have ORGANIC products but my favorite tab would have to be the LOCAL FINDS. I can't help being proud about the fact that Philippine beauty products are making their way through the online market, making it easy for digital damsels to find them. 

The tabs that I've mentioned are sub-categorized into face, body, lips, eyes etc., so, it is quite easy to narrow down your choices. You can also filter your searches according to their prices or brands. But the site is not just limited to skincare and makeup products. I was amazed to find their ACCESSORIES tab where you can browse jewelry, watches, scarves, eyewear and even bags for DSLR camera and laptop!

If you are loyal to a specific brand, you might want to make your search easier by simply clicking the BRANDS tab and that would take you to the brand directory. I automatically searched for Olay products when I was playing around the site. I was a bit sad when I found out that a few of my favorite products are 'sold out'. I didn't know how I could order something that is already SOLD OUT since there are no salesladies I can have a small talk with. That's when the FAQs came in handy. You can check it out at the bottom part of the page in case you have questions about your next step or in case you encounter other common problems/issues.

Make sure that you have created an account through their site if it is your first time to shop at BeautyMNL. Creating an account is a piece of cake! However, to avoid confusion and overlapping of orders, they only allow one account per customer. 

It's easy to shop for your old favorites, right? But if you are adventurous (like me!) and you have this never ending quest for skincare products, you might want to check out the ratings and reviews written below the photos and descriptions of your chosen product/s. Maybe the opinion of people from different ages and skin types would help you decide if you really want to purchase the product or not. You can put them on your wishlist first and then try to look for other similar products from different brands if you think they are too pricey or if you're just undecided at the moment. 

You have to watch out for other ninja shoppers/buyers though. Haha! 

If a product is selling like hotcakes, there's a pretty good chance that someone might beat you to it! If it happens and your chosen product becomes 'sold out', just make sure to click the 'add to WAITLIST' tab. They'll be sending you an email once they have more stocks of that particular product. 

Once you are ready to place your orders, just add them to your cart. You'll be given an option to continue shopping or proceed to checkout. If you are satisfied with your new beauty gem or your old favorites, you can also write a review  about them and earn some credits! 

Here's my first ever skincare haul from their site!

These days, I've been hearing a lot about 'snail extract' having good anti-aging ingredient. Who wouldn't want to look ageless?! Apparently these snail secretions can boost skin elasticity, so, I figured I should give it a try. I've been experimenting with Korean and Chinese face masks for quite sometime now. This is what I normally do when I just want a pick-me-up moment after a stressful day or whenever I want to prep myself for a manic Monday.

The regular price of this Snail Essence Mask  from Esfolio is  Php 54. (I just checked the website again and this mask went on sale!!! They are selling it at Php 27 for the 2-day flash sale! Jjinjjaaaa!)

The second skincare product that I ordered has something to do with snails again! It's called Snail Repair Eye Cream from Mizon. I'm really excited to use this Korean beauty/skincare product since it claims to speed up skin regeneration. Its description says it also prevents inflammation and locks in moisture in order to keep crow's feet at arm's length. I'm really being SO conscious about my eye area these days. I haven't been getting a good sleep (we got FREE WIFI, yo!) and I need something to help me make it a little less obvious. 

The original price of this eye cream is Php 420, but they slashed 30% off!!! Yay! 

The last one is actually something that I found from the LOCAL FINDS tab. This is a Clarifying Face Mist from The Beauty Bakery. You can contact them and buy their products from their Facebook page or through BeautyMNL. Now, this is a new addition to my skincare routine. I really couldn't stand the heat around noon, and sometimes, the humidity is just too much for me to bear! I always end up using wet tissues to freshen up after walking under the sweltering heat. But things might change now. I've only been using this for two days now and maaaan, it's magical! I'm loving the lemon scent of this facial mist. It's a good way to lift my mood and freshen up in an instant. And by the way, this one is totally organic! 

I felt like a little girl waiting for Santa Claus on Christmas eve the moment I checked out, seriously! But I tried my best to just sit back and chill. 

What made me smile the most about shopping from their site is their awesome service. The day after I placed my orders, they actually sent me a text message saying that the courier is on the way to deliver my package. I replied to confirm that I would be able to receive it IF they arrive within the next few hours. I had to go to work by noon. In case I miss the delivery person, I do have an authorized person anyway who would claim my package for me. They even called a couple of hours after I got the message. The person on the other line told me he would do his best to reach my dormitory before 12 noon. And he did! I felt so special when the delivery person said he was supposed to arrive at my doorstep around 2 PM, but since I said I have to go to work soon, he prioritized my order! (Thank you Mr. Peter! I really appreciate it!)

It's just great to actually feel like you are a part of a community and not just a random buyer from a random online shop. I know I just signed up at BeautyMNL, but I already felt like I got somewhere I belong. Why? Because from the site, you also have access to their online magazine called Bloom. If you love to read, you definitely won't be able to stop checking their Beauty 101's and the useful tips from their team of beauty experts. They also have makeup and styling tips featuring mostly Filipina celebrities!

My favorite article so far is the one from a Filipina model with African-American blood, Nikita McElroy. In her post 'How to Look Like a Golden Goddess 24/7', she talks about how lucky and blessed we Filipinas are to have this caramel-like complexion that makes us effortlessly stand out. I also enjoyed reading Danielle Calma's '5 Primers You Should Try Without Makeup'. She listed down different brands that would help us get that 'no makeup' makeup look. I'm seriously learning a lot from their posts. They are definitely worth your time! Don't forget to check them out after reading this post! 

Oh! My order came with freebies from two other brands by the way!!! Tada! 

It's part of their mid-year sale promo! So, if you wanna get some free stuff along with your orders, hurry up! Just sign up at BeautyMNL and shop your heart out! 

Stay pretty!