By Janness Koh

Even though Singapore is basically summer all year round, the temperature is definitely higher as we creep into the actual summer months.  And everytime I step out into the sun, I can’t stop sweating.  This girl here has an oily T-Zone and lids so makeup always seems to be eaten away by midday and I look a shiny mess. I have a few personal favourites when it comes to products I use if I need them to stay longer outside and not smudge on me.

Primer and Foundation

I like using a primer that helps in mattifying and covers the pores. I haven’t tried a whole lot of primers but two that I have used: Benefit’s Porefessional and Make Up For Ever’s Smoothing Primer act as a nice base, do not feel heavy, and works as they should.

Foundation wise, both Milani’s Conceal + Perfect and L’Oréal’s Infallible Pro-Matte are long wearing foundation with good coverage and stay pretty matte throughout the day. These are foundations I go to if I know I’m going to be out and about the whole day. Tarte’s Rainforest of the Sea foundation is the opposite at being very lightweight, water based and oil free. This is good for day to day use and if you hate the feel of makeup on your face, this is the one you should try. However, this range is not available in Singapore and you will need to buy direct from Tarte’s website.
Setting Powder and Blushers

I usually prefer to keep my makeup matte so it won’t look half as bad when the shine comes through. Some of my favourite powders are Rimmel’s Stay Matte which is very affordable and comes in a few shades, RCMA’s No Colour Powder which is very affordable as well and it can last so long at a 3oz bottle, also good for baking (face baking!), and last of all Laura Mercier’s Translucent Powder, the brand’s cult product.

Blush wise, I really recommend Tarte’s Amazonian Clay 12-hour blush as they have amazing shades and majority are matte. Also as their name says it all, it really is pretty long lasting, at least I still see some flush of colour at the end of they day which is always good. Their blush never seems to finish as I’ve had this holiday palette for two years now and none have hit pan yet and you still see the embossed design. M.A.C’s blushers are some of my favourites as well and again, spoiled for choice colours wise. My favourite is Pinch O Peach which is the only colour I buy from them now and I have already gone through at least four of them now.

Eye Products

Eye products are the most important for me as I cannot stand having smudged eye makeup compared to no makeup left on the rest of my face. I also have pretty oily lids that is only made worse by hot humid weather. For a very long time, I was on a quest to find the best smudge proof mascara on me and have tried countless products and finally, I found THE ONE. It is by a Japanese brand Kiss Me’s Heroine Make line and you can safely buy any mascara from them, it stays put against tears and sebum, verified by yours truly. I recently tried their eyeliner and put it to the test for a day and likewise it stayed put so two thumbs up!

I like using Anastasia’s brow pomade for my eyebrows and I have no issues so far with it disappearing on me throughout the day, not unless you rub on it anyway. Again, not available in Singapore but you can get it easily from online sites like Beauty Bay.

Bronzer and Highlighter

I only have one product for each category. Benefit’s Hoola bronzer needs no further introduction. It is matte and the perfect shade to bronze or contour with. I switched between this and Too Faced’s Milk Chocolate Bronzer but Benefit is my go to.