LOOK: Summer cult favorites you should try out

MANILA, Philippines – It’s hot and it’s humid and really, the last thing anyone wants during the intolerable dry months of the Philippines is having cosmetics that are simply unable to cope.

Beauty Bar recently introduced to media and beauty bloggers several curated brands that’ll survive the hulas-inducing Philippine heat.

A good sunblock with enough SPF is essential year-round but more so during summer. Sun Bum comes in two variants – a spray (P1,195) and a lotion (P880) –with SPF 50 and 70 options. The Florida-based brand produces its products in Australia because “they are way ahead of the US in regards to developing purely natural protection sunscreens.”

Most of its products are cruelty-free, gluten-free, and vegan. Aside from the spray and lotion, lip balms with SPF 30 are also available at Beauty Bar.

The pawpaw fruit – the cosmetic products created from it – have recently taken the Philippines by storm. Dr Pawpaw, a British brand, provides just enough moisture to prevent parched lips and skin. Its tinted versions add just the right touch of color to lips and even cheeks.

Its “It Does It All” balm, meanwhile, does it all for your hair – it even protects from heat damage and prevents frizz and split ends.

Other, more specific hair issues are addressed through the Not Your Mother’s line. For beginners who might not yet know art of hair care and styling, this line makes it pretty idiot proof – colors indicate which specific needs and hair types a product caters to.

We tried their Knotty to Nice detangler and it has so far delivered – keeping our kinks unkinky without weighing our tresses down.

Even in the sweltering heat, #kilaygoals are obviously a must. Among Beauty Bar’s newest additions is Full Brow, an Australia-based company that creates products for, well, the brow.

During a recent event in Manila, no less than brand owner Marie Noelle Dragutin flew over to talk about her line of brow products.

There’s the brow wax, brow powder, and brow pencils. But what really piqued our interests was the brighten-up eye cream, which can serve as both eye make-up base and primer.

It’s anti-inflammatory, brightening, and a breeze to apply – think silicone primer. But what made this particular product stand out was the fact that you could apply it on top of make-up, to refresh the eye throughout the day.

Admittedly, we were a bit skeptical about this claim but after a few days of trying it out, we’re convinced.

And what’s a summer beauty list without a pop of color? Cargo Cosmetics has the Havana Nights palette, which has a good mix of neutral and warm basics (good as transition shades), as well as a pop of pink and blue.

The swatches could have been better, however, but that should be something a good primer (like Full Brows, wink) can easily fix.

Does delivery work?

Aside from highlighting the brands, Beauty Bar also introduced its online site, where you can bag their curated brands and then some. How was its service?

We tested it out by ordering a tube of the Full Brow eye cream. It took a few days for our order to process – paid with a credit card plus a voucher from Beauty Bar – and we almost thought it didn’t quite get through.

It took almost a week for the product to arrive. Delivery itself was a breeze – the processing time, not so much. But it’s a start, particularly if you’re too busy to drop by a physical Beauty Bar store.

What products do you consider your summer essential? Which products do you run away from? – Rappler.com