Ah, 2018—an eventful year of weddings, babies, celebrity milestones, Filipino pride, and everything in between! On the beauty front, there surely was no shortage of breakthrough products that we got to know throughout the past 12 months, all worth talking about and getting a second shoutout!

READ: These Beauty Moments Ruled 2018 (And Will Still Make Waves This Year!)

We narrowed our list of notable products down to 35, but in reality, there's just way too many to mention.  With this list, we hope you can take a quick look at what might tickle your fancy for the brand new year. While they were launched in 2018, the good news is they're all still available in the market, so you can ready your beauty shopping list the next time you're in the mood for a vanity refill! Scroll further to check out what we loved in 2018, and will continue to use in 2019!

 

EYES

2018 was not for the faint of heart when it came to eye makeup trends. There were full-on splashes of bright color on the eyelids, glitter eyeliner and eyeshadow, statement-making graphic eyeliner executions, and who could ever forget the first time we laid eyes on #glossylids? Designers like Oscar dela Renta, Christian Siriano, Kate Spade, and Anna Sui embraced these traffic-stopping eye trends for their shows, and we surely sat up and took notice. These products from Benefit, BYS, Pat McGrath, and Tom Ford surely were a big help in achieving a lot of these stare-worthy trends!

Clockwise: Tom Ford Eye Quad, Rustan's and Adora; Benefit Brow Contour Pro, Greenbelt 5; Pat McGrath Labs MTHRSHIP Subliminal Subliminal Dark Star Eyeshadow Palette, patmcgrathlabs.com; Benefit Roller Liner Eyeliner, SM Megamall; BYS Peach 2 Eyeshadow Palette, Watsons

 

READ: Metro Beauty Awards: Best In Eye Products

 

SKINCARE

If there was one trend that had even the men talking, it was that of skincare. Our self-care and self-love movement branched out into our beauty routines, having us pay more attention to what we put (or weren't putting) on our faces to help achieve our best skin yet.

READ: On Our Radar: Clinical Skincare

While there were still talks of the famed 11-step Korean beauty regimen, some of us preferred to taper down the number of products and choose the ones that our skin actually needed. For us, the introduction of skin-loving makeup c/o Clinique's "CliniqueFit" line was a breakthrough, because who doesn't want to look good while working out? We could never get tired of sheet masks, so learning about Lululun was a treat. Sleep is a crucial part of skincare, and Dermalogica joined in on the need to remind people to sleep better by way of their new Sound Sleep Cocoon gel cream. Check out our other skin-loving finds below!

Clockwise: Dermalogica Sound Sleep Cocoon, Rustan's; Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water, Beauty Bar; LuLuLun face masks, beautymnl.com; CliniqueFit Line, Power Plant Mall; Nuxe Aquabella Line, Beauty Bar; Kiehl's Ginger Leaf & Hibiscus Firming Mask, Power Plant Mall

 

READ: It May Be Raining, But You Still Need Your SPF!

 

BASE & BLUSH

One trend that will never go out of style is a glowing face. Whether it's a bridal glow, a flushed cheek, or the trendy glass skin look, prepping the base of your face is surely an important step in makeup. 2018 was the year we saw more highlighters, hardworking primers, lightweight, full-coverage foundation, whipped blush, and more. We need to send a special shoutout to NARS for making a full range of products out of their cult blush shade "Orgasm", wherein the universally flattering hue got a reboot via blush, lip gloss, "The Multiple", and an illuminator. Happy shopping!

Clockwise: Covergirl Trublend Base Business Skin Primer, beautymnl.com; mark. Hi Light Strobing Duo, avon.ph; Club Clio Kill Cover Cushion Compact, Trinoma; NARS Orgasm Collection, Greenbelt 5; Benefit Hello Happy Foundation, Greenbelt 5; Revlon ColorStay Full Cover Foundation, SM Beauty; Shiseido Minimalist WhippedPowder Blush, Power Plant Mall

READ: Metro Beauty Awards: Best In Blush, Bronzer, and Highlight

 

LIPS

If there's one thing that kept coming back into our lives, it was lipstick. The classic bullet made its way back into our hearts after the deluge of the ultra matte liquid lipsticks (hello, Colourpop and Kylie Cosmetics of 2017). We started finding beauty in luscious, creamy lips again, and yes—glossy, full-on colored puckers were a thing. While we started seeing this balance in the business of lips again, we can't fully say we got over the undeniable power of a matte lip that stuck despite a full day's worth of busyness. Here are our unforgettables for 2018:

Clockwise: K-Palette 1 Day Tattoo Lasting Lip Tint Stick, Beauty Bar; Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Paint-On Liquid LipColor, Rustan's; Jane Iredale Triple Luxe Long Lasting Naturally Moist Lipstick, Rustan's; L'Oreal Infallible Pro Matte Liquid Lipstick, SM Beauty; Maybelline SuperStay Matte Ink Liquid Lipstick, Watsons; Max Factor Lipfinity Lip Palette, Zalora

 

READ: This Is The Long-Lasting Lipstick Heart Evangelista Swears By!

 

GADGETS

It is 2019 after all. By now, we would have found the courage to include a few techie tools into our beauty arsenal because, you know, it actually makes our lives waaaay easier. Requiring a few more bucks of investment, these high-tech gadgets promised a world of ease and results that really tempted us to spend way more than we could afford (all in the name of beauty!) Cleansing was made a lot more efficient via NuSkin's Lumispa wand, Dyson introduced its newest breakthrough for hair: the Airwrap, an all-in-one styler (curl, straighten, dry, volumize—you name it!). Filipinas finally got their hands on the cult-status Foreo available on sephora.ph, a sonic face brush that upgrades your cleansing routine up a few more notches compared to just using your own hands. You know what to do this year: invest! 

Clockwise: NuSkin ageLOC LumiSpa, call +6328687546; Dyson Airwrap, Dyson Demo stores at Greenbelt 5, SM Aura Premier, and The Podium; Foreo Luna Mini 2 Facial Spa Massager and Cleanser in One, sephora.ph 

 

READ: Metro Gift Guide: Top Beauty Gadgets For Your Techie Girlfriends

 

LOCAL BRANDS

2018 was a remarkable year for the Philippine beauty scene. Not only were we blessed with another Miss Universe beauty queen, we also saw the birth of world-class beauty brands like Sunnies Face and blk cosmetics. Other longtime favorites like EB Advance, Happy Skin, and Human Heart Nature had their fair share of must-have product launches last year, which surely guarantees a spot on our beauty refill list for 2019. This 2019, be sure to love local and grab a piece or two from these picks:

Happy Skin All Eyes On Hue Eyeshadow Palette, Power Plant Mall; blk Cosmetics Long-Lasting Liquid Lipstick, SM Beauty; Sunnies Face Glowboss, Glorietta 1; Human Heart Nature Pollution Defense Face Mask, Beauty Bar; Sunnies Face Fluffmatte Lipstick, sunniesface.com; EB Advance Glow Out Highlighter, Watsons; Teviant Eyeshadow Palette in Amore, teviant.com; Generation Happy Skin My Lips But Better Ultra Matte Lippie, Greenbelt 5

 

 

Artwork by Kate Paras-Santiago.