Beauty and skincare experts and enthusiasts gathered last Sunday, 11th February 2018, for the Beauty Confidential, a beauty bootcamp organized by Belle de Jour Power Planner (BDJ) and Project Vanity. The Glorietta Activity Center was jam-packed with excited participants from all different ages. It was a modern-day self-care camp, mixing fun and research-based learnings.
The beauty fair featured a Glam Gallery full of various skincare and make up brand booths offering great deals, exclusive discounts, fun games, freebies, and free glam up. To heighten the thrill and add to our beauty loots, hourly prizes were also given. But of course, the heart of the boot camp was the full line-up of six workshops focusing on beauty and wellness.
The Beauty Confidential workshop ticket was sold for PhP1,250 for two workshops. This ticket also includes Beauty Fair access to the Glam Gallery, and a beauty loot box with PhP3,000-worth of skincare and beauty products! The Beauty Fair Pass, on the other hand, was only PhP200, which gives you full access to the Glam Gallery.
Because I was able to avail the early bird rate, I got a 20% discount for two tickets to access four different workshops. And since I got two tickets, it also meant that I get to have two loot boxes!!! Woohooo! It was really a much needed self-care event for me. I just celebrated my birthday early this year, and the fear of aging just really hit me hard. So now, I am trying to be healthier and take skin care more seriously. I am also preparing for a big event so I am learning more about makeup. I figured it would be more practical and economical to learn how to do my own make up, instead of paying someone else to do it every time I need to attend an event. So the Beauty Confidential was really timely and super sulit with all the perks, fun, and of course the learnings!
What’s in the Loot Boxes?
The pretty loot box definitely made the bootcamp extra special. Since I got two lootboxes from my two tickets, I was able to see and compare some of the variations of products in my boxes. Both boxes actually have the same number of products. The first box just looks like it has more products because I unboxed and spread out the: Bioderma Micerall Water samplers, the Revlon Mascara, and the Ellana foundation samplers.
Each box is full of 11 skincare and beauty products from different brands. Huge Shampoo or Conditioner from Zenutrients was also given along with the loot box, but they’re just too big to fit inside the cute box. For my first loot box, I got a one liter shampoo, while I got a 500 ml conditioner for my second box. Overall, the product variations were generally minor, except for one.
The main difference for my loot is—for the first box, I got a Max Factor brown Kohl Pencil eyeliner; while in my second box, I got a CoverGirl Trublend Mineral Powder. Both are perfect haul for me though! And luckily, the shade of the CoverGirl powder perfectly matches my skin tone!
The photo shows the other minor differences in the products. The 1st and 2nd from Colourette and Revlon are just different in terms of color, while the 3rd from Carmex only has a flavor variation. The 4th on the other hand, are different kinds of lip products from Pink Sugar—a Creamy Matte Lipstick and a Sugar Tint Lip and Cheek Tint. The 5th are different variations of Mascara from Revlon—Ultimate All-In-One Mascara and Ultra Volume Mascara.
Workshop Highlights
I had information overload with the four workshops that I attended. My first workshop was Derma Secrets for a Great Skin, presented by Dr. Irene Gaile Robredo-Vitas of Bioderma. She discussed the different skin-types and explained that each skin type has different needs and different kinds of pampering. She then tackled basic skincare tips and stressed the need for protecting our skin by using sunscreen. So forget everything else, but never your sunscreen!
My next workshop was Picture-Perfect Beauty with Mineral Makeup by Theresa Carbonel, founder and owner of Ellana and a professional make-up artist trained in Singapore and Hollywood. I learned the proper techniques of contouring from her. She also showed a lot of facial points to remember to properly highlight your facial features without overdoing it. She also gave tips on choosing the right make-up tones.
The third workshop that I attended was Self-Care Skin Regimen from AM to PM by Denise Bengzon and Liz Lanuzo of Project Vanity. I completely agreed when they emphasized in the beginning of the session that make-up is not something that we put on our face to mask our insecurities. Indeed, putting on make-up is something that I thoroughly enjoyed, but sometimes used by others to shame us for being “silly”. But as the two speakers said, it’s really part of “actualizing what you think you are, and what you feel you are”. They then discussed the different skin care regimen for day time and night time and highlighted that no matter what your skin care regimen is, it is utmost important to read the label and know the ingredients. They also seconded Dr. Robredo-Vitas’ sunscreen tip.
The last workshop that I attended was How to Look Like You Got 8 Hours of Sleep by Colleen De Guzman, Education Manager of Max Factor, Nuxe, and Covergirl. She gave loads of tips on how to prepare the skin for make-up and how to cover dark under-eye circles for busy and sleep-deprived people like me. Although she gave different tricks on how to properly use make-up in creating a fresh-faced look, she still pointed out that it is still so much better and more beneficial in the long run to take care of our skin.
All the workshops were loaded with useful tips and information on how take care of myself through skin-care, and how to express myself more through make up. My beauty haul also got bigger when I won a L’Oreal Micellar Water after asking a question during the Self-Care Skin Regimen from AM to PM workshop. An additional lootbag was also given during the How to Look Like You Got 8 Hours of Sleep workshop.
My Glam Gallery Booth Favorites
After all my workshops, it was time to lounge and enjoy the Glam Gallery! There are a total of 22 booths in the Glam Gallery. There were a lot of different brands offering fun games and perks. My top favorite was of course the BDJ and Project Vanity Booth. It was a Photo Glam booth where you can get your picture taken and they will print it for free.
My next favorite was the COSRX booth, simply because COSRX is one of my trusted skincare brands. So I was really thrilled when the Skincare Curator, official PH partner of COSRX, announced that they will be part of the Beauty Confidential Beauty Fair! So I saved up weeks before the event to make sure that I can get my COSRX supplies. I also got a few samplers of their products.
My third favorite was the Ellana booth. I have never tried Ellana mineral makeup and have only discovered them through the event. I got curious with their Loose Foundation and Concealer, a 2-in-1 concealer and foundation that gives medium to full coverage. I was convinced when Ms. Carbonel tried it on a model during the Picture-Perfect Beauty with Mineral Makeup workshop, so I really made sure to drop by their booth and check their products. Sadly, the Foundation and Concealer for my skintone was already out of stock, so I just asked them for the list of where I could find their products. I also joined their Game Roulette where I was challenged to remove my make up and get a full Ellana Makeup, and then dip my face in a basin of water to check how it reacts to water. The challenge not only gave me a chance to get an Ellana makeover from their makeup artist, but also to see how water-resistant their makeup line is. I must say that I’m impressed! I also got a discount coupon for joining their game. It’s a win-win challenge, really!
After going around the Glam Gallery, I was really tired but I felt so fulfilled and my heart was full! The Beauty Confidential bootcamp was indeed fun, educational, and sulit! And I’m glad that although it’s just a one-day event, all the things that I learned will be useful for me forever. It was just the perfect modern-day self-care event that I needed!
Hi! I’m Gale, a Crocheter, Crafter, Wanderer, and Researcher/ Ethnographer from the Philippines.
Let me share with you my crochet and craft projects, work side-trips, local recipes and food picks, and language and cultural tidbids– basically my struggle to find sparkle of joy in this world.
