This spooky season, Filipinta Beauty has some Filipino mythology-inspired magical tools that allow you to explore your darker sides
As Halloween looms, makeup enthusiasts are ready to pull out their kits, show off their prowess, and unleash their creativity with their best Halloween products. But what better way to transform into a pop icon, a gothic vampire, or a mythological creature than with Halloween-inspired makeup, too? Bringing the bewitching and beguiling to life, Filipinta Beauty gives you some tools to help you lay the drama on thick this Halloween.
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For Hana Acabado, Creative Director and Founder of Filipinta Beauty, beauty became a gateway to the world of Filipino mythology. Kabilugan ng Buwan, or Full Moon, will do the trick (and treat) to zshuzsh-ing up any look, made to match your Halloween-party-ready costume. Acabado dove deep into the lore and myths of the Philippines and created beauty picks that aren’t just themed, but genuinely evoke the spirit of the bewitching season. Filipinta turned to the Philippines’ rich treasure trove of folklore: the Santelmo Lip Potion, Aswang Lip Potion, Kapre Lip Potion, Manananggal Lip Potion, Duwende Lip Balm, Bruha Lip and Cheek Tint, Multo Liquid Highlighter and Eyeshadow, and Bakunawa Mini Mirror.
In fusing Philippine mythology with makeup for Halloween, Acabado tells MEGAStyle, “I’ve always been fascinated with the macabre and the horror of it all, especially Filipino folklore. My mom is from Mindanao and my dad is Tagalog, so I grew up hearing a lot of ‘true’ stories that always amused me (and frightened me). There were also several Filipino horror movies and TV shows at the time that really captured the essence of Filipino superstitions, and I wanted to incorporate that in the new collection.”
The Kabilugan ng Buwan collection isn’t just about spooks and specters, it’s also about crafting a Halloween experience reminiscent of the television playing Mga Kwento ni Lola Basyang, Magandang Gabi Bayan Halloween Special, or paranormal researcher Ed Caluag’s episodes on Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho every October. The spine-tingling otherworld of ours include these creatures featured on the collection—Filipinta Beauty gives you both a history lesson (from the famous, “Tabi-tabi po,” saying to the superstition of needing to be inside the house before sundown to avoid the manananggal) and new beauty staples that elicit a pleasant fright. The products, she shared, already had a set formula from previous releases, but were tweaked to make them more pigmented: “I incorporated shades that relate to the particular creature.”
The design and packaging also gives you a visual as to what these Philippine monsters look like, transporting you to a world of spooky fun and ensuring that the product inside lives up to the thrill promised outside. Acabado herself needed to learn how to use a 3D software to sculpt and handcraft these gargoyles sitting atop the tube to add a mystical touch to the lip balm, cheek tint, and whatnot: “In design school we had three major 3D classes and I almost failed all of them,” she laughed. “I decided I will never touch 3D software again so I abandoned it right after college, but here we are! I designed the characters in my notebook and then translated them into 3D, which took a long time since I was still actively learning as I went.”
Before the Halloween drop, Filipinta Beauty was a way for Acabado to stay in touch with her roots as she left for New York at 25. Together with co-founder Jasel Donato, Acabado looked to Filipino culture-inspired makeup to cope. “I’m a designer who specializes in packaging design and I wanted to spice up my portfolio, but instead of just mockups I decided to create the products as well,” she shared with MEGAStyle. “I tapped my childhood best friends Jasel and Anna to help with the launch and finalization of concepts, created the website and social media accounts, and posted it. Little did we know that they would go viral!”
The brand turns to Filipino cultural symbols that elicit excitement and nostalgia, taking us back to the halcyon days of childhood: Flat Tops, Ube Cakes, Lumpia, Patis, Jollibee, and Sorbetes. These products, from the design to the packaging to the shades, are so quintessentially Filipino—and Acabado says it’s intentional: “The longer I stayed in the US the more I missed my homeland, so I always go back to my memory vault and pull out the things that meant a lot to me or trigger a certain memory,” she explains. “The products I put out are always connected to an experience I had in the Philippines. I just continually write in my notebook and Notes app everything I remember from my time and give it a second life through Filipinta.”
Every product is infused with the Filipino story: “Our culture, art and everything about us is worth sharing to the world and we can always sprinkle a little bit (or a lot) of ourselves in our chosen medium.” For Acabado, it’s through makeup.
Check out the Kabilugan ng Buwan collection here. Worldwide shipping is available—just in time for Halloween.
Photos and Featured Image: FILIPINTA BEAUTY (via Instagram and website)
