I've stumbled upon a perfectly light basic summer face that uses only five (sometimes four) products. It's focused on skincare and gives a dewy, lively finish that looks just like skin. Best of all, it takes all of five minutes to put on!

1. The Body Shop Seaweed Pore Perfector - This is marketed as a spot treatment skincare product that "helps minimize the appearance of pores." (Hmmmm sounds like a primer to me.) This serves as my primer/moisturizer. I can easily skip this but I put it on because the menthol-y smell relaxes me and makes my skin feel cooler haha.
2. VMV Armada Face Cover 30 - Can't forgo sunblock, what with UV rays shining down with all their might. I prefer this on the face than the heavier SPF 45 version. Amazingly, it makes a GREAT base for mineral makeup. I apply it in two thin coats and notice that it actually evens out my skin tone somewhat. I would wear it alone if my combination oily skin wasn't so whack -- dry patches everywhere with an extremely oily T zone.
3. Ellana Loose Powder Mineral Foundation - Which is where mineral makeup comes in! I sweep this on very lightly to tone down my ruddy cheeks, then apply more on my T zone to minimize the shine. On top of the moisturizing VMV Armada, it looks just like skin.
4. bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie lipgloss in Maverick - I have a few balmy lipsticks in rotation but this is getting the most love these days. This is from a rather generous Sephora GWP last holiday. It's a rosewood shimmer that is super shiny, so I usually just apply it to the center of my lips (Korean gradient style), or blot it if I've applied it all over my puckers.
5. Etude House Drawing Eyebrow in Deep Brown - My latest eyebrow purchase. I love this one-step pencil, which contains a spoolie on the other end. More on this soon. ;)

Then I curl my lashes and I'm done! I've recently been skipping the mascara if I'm just going out during the day.


Here I was stepping out at dusk so I applied a bit of eyeshadow from the palette I'm currently testing out, it Cosmetics Naturally Pretty Eye Palette. Otherwise though it's pretty much bare eyes for me! You can see the redness of my cheeks peeking through, along with some hyperpigmentation and dark undereyes, but overall skin looks pretty healthy. No-makeup makeup ba kamo?