I first heard rumbles about a really good AND cheap makeup brush brand available in Shopee months ago, but didn’t act on it until recently. It was more because I’ve been using pretty much the same makeup brushes in the last two years and just wanted a change! Also I’m always on the lookout for a good deal, for diamonds in the rough. And so here we are.

OVW Makeup Brushes are China-made tools that are shockingly cheap. Would you believe that I spent P790 for 17 full-sized brushes, and that’s including shipping already?

As a beauty lover, there’s a lot of emphasis on carefully curating your beauty collection by investing in high-quality makeup and finding the best formulas. And while you might already have products that work like a charm, using them with just the right tools can take the experience to greater heights. Trust me. These five brushes are total game-changers!

My favorite skincare step has to be cleansing because I like how it makes my skin feel instantly refreshed. In the morning, I use my fave low pH cleanser, and double cleanse to remove makeup and dirt at night. I’ve experimented a bit with facial washes and oil cleansers but I’ve never tried using any cleansing tools.

As PV’s resident acid addict, I honestly never thought I’d get into physical exfoliation again. But after getting recurrent forehead pimples in the past few months, I finally realized that my facial wash wasn’t enough to fully remove my sunscreen. I started incorporating an oil remover into my daily routine even on no-makeup days in an effort to remove the sunscreen better. Though I had been washing my face correctly, I was a little bit shocked to learn that there were impurities that even my most trusted cleansing products couldn’t remove.

As PV’s resident beauty gadgets girl, I have a mini collection of beauty devices that have helped my super oily skin keep clear of acne. To be honest, I’d probably purchase more, if not for the prohibitive price tags on these electronics. I’ve always stuck with established high-end brands like Foreo and Clarisonic so I had to wonder: would cheaper ones work as well as my favorites? 

When YouTube star Anna Cay messaged me about sending over her new sponges, I was pretty excited. I got to work with her on a project before and really appreciated how detail-intensive she can be! I also gathered that she really cares about her subscribers and customers, so I knew that she wouldn’t release a sub-par product just to have something to sell. True enough, the All Covered by Anna Cay Air Blender Sponge (P288) did not disappoint and has become my go-to sponge pretty much ever since I got it.

Once a beauty trend reaches Instagram and becomes a popular hashtag, it’s difficult to resist trying it out for ourselves! That’s certainly how I felt when I started seeing all those #jaderoller posts all over my feed, so I got curious and bought one to try. Do they actually have skincare benefits or are they just overpriced facial massage tools? Read on to find out if it’s worth the splurge!

Having extremely oily skin that is prone to blemishes, I first went to see a dermatologist when I was a high school freshman because every inch of my face was then covered in pus-filled acne. I had my first chemical peel around that time as well, and facial treatments have been part of my life ever since. Since my skin requires a lot of maintenance to stay clear, it was a natural step for me to venture into beauty gadgets in the hopes of lessening my need for clinic-based procedures. Today, even with influx of effective yet affordable skincare product options, I enjoy the help I get from owning a few beauty gadgets.

I've tried many brush soaps before but honestly, I always end up using Joy dishwashing fluid when I run out of the soap. Sometimes not even then! Joy isn't sexy nor professional-sounding when it comes to cleaning makeup brushes, but it does the job efficiently and cheaply. Other alternatives are Dove soap and baby shampoo but I always have Joy so I never bother to stock the other two.

The beauty industry is fast-paced and constantly evolving with new trends, techniques, and tools popping up seemingly overnight. Some of them, like these skincare “innovations” we reviewed, are fun but ultimately passing fads that soon go the way of butterfly clips and elephant pants.

While some trends are destined to delight then disappear, there have been a few survivors that have made the jump from beauty gimmick to beauty staple. While the fate of “washing machine” brush cleaners, jade face rollers, and pizza-cutter eyeliner are still up in the air, these tools have weathered disbelief, dissing, and dupes, and look like they’re here to stay!

I was a young teen when I purchased my very first makeup brushes: a cheap travel set I'd spotted in the department store. The handles were thin and flimsy, and the bristles scratched my face and left a patchy application. I wasn't ecstatic about my purchase but I remember feeling proud of myself for getting them. To me, they signaled that I was serious about makeup and learning how to properly apply it to my face.