Collection: UK Makeup Invades Manila

Heavy rain and traffic did not deter Manila's hip and trendy crowd from making their way to the Rockwell Tent to witness the unveiling of another British brand to hit the market.  

The invitation said to come in sweet, colorful or edgy attire so upon arriving at the venue, the same vibe was seen and felt by guests -- from the design of the tent entrance, to the interior of the tent which was transformed into a colorful London high street.

This latest British invasion is Collection, one of the biggest makeup brands in the United Kingdom and is set to conquer the hearts of fashionistas with its beauty must-haves: the season's fanciest and quirkiest trends in makeup. The product displays were a big hit among the guests who tried out hues to determine which will suit their style.  They have a wide array of makeup for the face, the eyes and lips that is surprisingly affordable.

Collection product display

Collection makeup for the face...

...and colour palettes for the eyes and lips

A hip and edgy makeup brand, Collection celebrates individuality and encourages everyone to flaunt their personality in a variety of makeup colors.  These attributes and more were echoed by LF Asia's  SVP for Marketing, Licensed Brands, and Distribution Mr. Mario Salvatori, and Collection Regional Brand Manager Ms. Donna Dewhurst as they welcomed the guests and introduced the Collection brand in the Philippines.

(l-r) Mr. Mario Salvatori and Ms. Donna Dewhurst

For the launch, three styles/personalities were highlighted and by the Collection brand ambassadors: 

Collection brand ambassadors

pastel clad fashion blogger Camille Co for the sweet and elegant SOFTLY NATURAL look, whose favorite is the Lasting Colour Lipstick Sweet Tart; 

Camille Co

techno aztec inspired fashion blogger Laureen Uy for the hip and colorful POPPING PASTEL look, who raved about the Bedazzled Eye Palette; 

Laureen Uy

and rocker styled model/actress Solenn Heusaff for the the sultry and edgy ROCK CHICK look, who loved the Lasting Colour Gel Eyeliner in Black.

Collection is available in fashion and beauty boutiques in Manila. Check out their website www.collectioncosmetics.com.ph for the list of stores, product descriptions and tutorials on how to achieve the Softly Natural, Rock Chick and Popping Pastels looks. Like them on Facebook at facebook.com/CollectionCosmeticsPH and follow them on Twitter at twitter.com/CollectionPH to be updated with the latest Collection products and news.

SWAP: the New Kid on the Fashion Watch Block

In my lifetime, two of the most memorable affordable fashion watches to me are Alba (early 80s) and Swatch (late 80s) and I remember gawking at them on some friends’ wrists back in school. Both brands produced funky and colorful timepieces that are fun to wear.  My parents did not get me an Alba back in grade school but they gifted me with my very first Swatch in high school.  I think this is where my love and addiction for watches started and up to today, I haven’t stopped collecting them. 

To date, I own 24 timepieces, not counting those that I handed down to my mom because in reality, I couldn’t use them all. And even though I have moved on to buying branded/pricier ones, I still got excited when I learned about the new kid on the fashion watch block called SWAP.  

My eyes lit up as I gazed at the colorful array of interchangeable watch faces and straps of SWAP at its launch last month at the Glorietta Activity Center.  The stage and showcases were dressed up with the colorful theme of the watches and guest celebrities joined in the fun.  Rainbow and neutral colored straps were all over the place, not to mention the equally colorful watch faces from its plain/classic variant to the graphic collection.

The SWAP launch event stage in Glorietta

Displays at the SWAP launch

SWAP watches currently has 30 colors of straps and 22 watches faces (9 plain and 13 graphic) you can choose from and wear depending on your mood and fashion statement for the day.  All SWAP watches have stainless steel case back, are 3atm water resistant, hypoallergenic silicone strap and come with a one year warranty on its Japan made mechanism.

SWAP Classic and Solid watch faces

SWAP Graphic watch faces and colored silicone straps

A SWAP watch face costs P500 each while the silicone strap costs P350 but they have a Starter Kit that comes with 2 silicone straps and a watch face of your choice for only P1,000.

SWAP Starter Kit

At the launch, SWAP announced that every month, a new theme of exciting graphic watch face designs such as sports, movies, characters, superheroes, places and even fashion patterns and trends will be made available.  For the straps, a new batch of colors will be introduced quarterly.

SWAP campaign hashtag

All SWAP watches are now available in Tomato Stores and SWAP exhibits in various malls in Metro Manila.  You may also order through the Tomato Online Store at www.tomato.ph, which by the way has a Customer Service Live Chat Application that you can use to inquire or complain about their products.  I’ve tried this when I discovered at home that the watch face I got from the event has a scratch on it and their customer service representative was friendly and efficient that I was able to have the replacement the following day from one of their stores.

My SWAP purple strap plus Mirror and Instagram watch faces

Finally, if you wish to decide on which colored strap and watch face to buy before going to their store or exhibits, visit their online visualizer at http://www.tomato.ph/SwapMeBaby. Mag #SWAPkana!