A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Hello my pretty!

I discovered her hiding under a pile of soaps at my local T.K. Maxx… let me introduce you to “Bubble Pink” as we shall call her from now on.

Seriously, have you ever seen a more outrageously girly lipstick in your life?

I know… that’s almost indecent.  Glitter bomb on a stick.  A pink stick.

This really shouldn’t work for anyone over the age of 7.  And it definitely shouldn’t work for a lady knocking on the door of 30 (by ‘knocking’ I mean ‘ungracefully sprinting in the opposite direction of’).

So does it work?

Ohhhhh yes.

The topmost layer of glitter is an overspray… after the first application it’s a lot more subtle as you can see above.  The pink is a beautiful soft bubblegum pink which is neither too warm, nor too cool.  The shimmer (whilst apparent) doesn’t overpower nor look frosty.  It’s just ‘glitters’.

I was most taken aback by the texture… yes, there’s a teeny bit of gritiness… but nothing compared to what I expected considering how packed full of sparkle it is.  I find it actually quite moisturising and my teeth aren’t set on edge every time I press my lips together.

Whilst wearing this, be sure to kiss lots of people for whom glitter prints would be highly inappropriate.

I want to be buried wearing this lipstick.

And if you think it’s too shimmery for me… I can’t hear you *la la la laalalala*.

Well alright, just budge up a bit – I’m sure I can make room for both of you in my heart…

Helena Rubinstein Wanted Stellars Lipstick is available in 12 shades, whilst the gloss is available in 6.  The website sucks, so I can’t view the others..  RRP on these is €28 for the lippies and €26 for the gloss.

But now I’ve seen, I’m smitten… the red would be fabulous for Christmas, even if I only looked at it and sighed wistfully.  I’d love a true pink with sparkle too *le grand sigh*

So anyway, not only are these Wanted Stellars flippin’ gorgeous but get this info from Premium Beauty News…

The Solev company presents an innovative finishing technology called “sparkling effect” which consists in spreading on the material to decorate, in a dense and perfectly homogeneous way, colored and metallic particles to render a smooth and shiny effect.

This effect is enhanced by applying a transparent covering film, with a high gloss effect to amplify depth and light.

In order to achieve this result, Solev formulates its own special effect varnishes and to apply the particles in a dense and homogeneous way, the company has invented and developed a process (about to be patented).

A new technology implemented on Helena Rubinstein’s latest lipstick, Wanted Stellars.

Yeah, yeah… whatever you had me at “sparkling effect”.

It looks as though my nearest HR counter is in Cherbourg… ok, so as the crow flies that’s not bad… a couple of hours.  Shame about that pesky ENGLISH CHANNEL blocking the way!  Harrumph.

Anything you’re craving at the moment?

I bought 4 more NYX Round Lipsticks to add to my collection…

Tea Rose: Medium/Dark Rosey Pink

Strawberry Milk: As the name suggests, very pale milky pink

Thalia: Medium/Dark Nude

Indian Pink: Medium Pink with Gold flashes

Wear on these aren’t fantastic, they don’t last much after a cup of tea, but they’re so easy to  reapply and very well pigmented for the price.

And finally… Nyx Round Lipgloss in Sorbet. Non-sticky, fairly sheer with a subtle hint of sparkle.

I’m really pleased with the lip products… my favourite is Thalia or Tea Rose.  I adore Indian Pink, it’s so unusual but it’s a little warm toned against my skin.  Strawberry Milk is gorgeous too, but I need to find a way to wear it that doesn’t remind me of Magda from There’s Something About Mary.

What are your favourite NYX Round Lipsticks?

After a few requests, here’s a boring FOTD, but I am wearing my new Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited lippie in shade BG907.

On my lips, this comes out a lovely creamy pale pink nude.

Considering it’s paleness it still manages to look soft, rather than stark.  It’s not statement lip at all like Lingerie Pink or BarryM 101, it’s more subtle than GOSH Darling… I really like it’s neutrality – it’s the Switzerland of lipsticks

It feels nice on my lips and isn’t at all drying despite having a semi-matte appearance.  It’s smooth to apply although no-where near as creamy as the YSL Rouge Voluptes.

Longevity is average.  Lasted easily through a couple of drinks – defeated by a pastry.  The colour isn’t hugely pigmented, I did need to apply a few layers to build up the shade but nothing ridiculous like some balmy products.  Despite a few layers I was really pleased to discover that it doesn’t *feel* like I have lippie on… it’s very light and not at all waxy.

Honestly, I do love it… but (being the skinflint I am) I wouldn’t spend this much money on it (£17.50) if it weren’t the perfect nude shade for my pale complexion.

[starreview tpl=14]

My final Urban Decay review now I’ve had a good while to play with the items I was sent.

I received two shades, and my initial reactions to them couldn’t have been more different.

1. Naked

This is a beautiful soft rose shade, that on many complexions would pass as a pinky-nude.  The (vanilla) scent is lovely, although it may be a little overpowering for some.  Application is smooth with a glossy creamy finish.  It’s supposed to be full coverage but I find it a little sheer.  I would put it on a par with MAC’s Lustre formula in terms of pigmentation.

This isn’t the best swatch… it looks more cool toned here than it is in reality.  But it’s a good example of the lovely glossy finish.  I’ve cropped my lips out of a FOTD image below to show a truer representation of the colour.

Lovely, isn’t it!  As you can see, it’s a little too dark on my complexion for me to consider it a nude.

2. Confession

The second lippie up for review is a far vampier affair!

Confession is a deep, dark claret shade that scared the heck out of me when I twisted the tube up!

I looked at it for many minutes wondering what the hell I was gonna look like with such a statement shade.

I needn’t have worried thanks to the semi-sheer formula:

I was surprised to find this quite flattering and wearable, but being the scaredy-cat that I am, ended up pairing it with a nude gloss anyway and I really like the result!

Confession was a bit more fiddly application-wise than Naked.  I found that it had a tendency to appear a little darker in the creases on my lips and more sheer on the smoother surfaces.  This may be visible in the above image (top lip of 1st photo).  I *think* I may have been applying a little too much wondering if I could amp up the pigmentation… but as it’s something that bothered me at the time, into the review it goes!

I was satisfied with the staying-power of both lipsticks and wear was nice and even on the darker shade (no dark rings here!)

Urban Decay Iconic Lipsticks available from Boots and Debenhams, priced at £12

Before being gifted some of these Color Sensational lippies at the recent Maybelline event, I’d heard about this range from other bloggers on t’internet and had rushed out to purchase #112 Ambre Rose.

My experiences with this “lippie du jour” had been really good. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did (I thought the same about GOSH Darling too). Aside from the simple prettiness of the shade, I found it to be non-drying, easy to apply, nicely pigmented and carrying a gorgeous vanilla scent. Longevity is average for a high-street brand and I’m not ashamed to reapply in public thanks to the pretty case.

Now onto some swatches of just a few of the 26 available shades.

Out of the 7:

#730 (Golden Brown) and #420 (Coral Pop) are not flattering to my cool skintone.

#125 (Shimmer Pink) is beautiful, but a little too shimmery for me.

#148 (Summer Pink) is a little too bright for me to wear comfortably.

which leaves…

#112 (Ambre Rose), #165 (Pink Hurricane) & #240 (Galactic Mauve) as stand out shades for me.  These would really compliment any cool toned ladies out there.

I do wanna say though, #420 (Coral Pop) is a stonking shade for warmer skintones… I’m particularly grumpy about the fact that it doesn’t suit me very well.

Application and formula-wise, they’re consistently good.  If you want a lippie on a budget that you can tote around in your handbag for touch ups on the go, I recommend this line with complete conviction.

I haven’t tried any of the ‘stronger’ shades like #530 (Fatal Red) or #315 (Rich Plum) so I can’t comment on things like bleeding into the lip line, but if these 7 are indicative of the rest of the lineup, I can happily state that wear seems to be nice and even.

I’ll be hunting down a few more shades (especially whilst the 3for2 is still on at Boots) – #108 Pink Pearl (can’t find it and it isn’t even in stock on Boots.com), #132 Sweet Pink, #245 Magic Mauve (possibly) & #605 Precious Beige. 

There’s also a few US only shades that I’m scouring eBay for.

I wasn’t a massive fan of Maybelline’s other new release Pulse Perfection Mascara (although if you are, grab a £1.50 off coupon here) so I’m delighted to be able to enthuse about these!

Available from Boots, Superdrug et al and currently priced at £6.84ea.

Synonymous with the brand (and highly regarded) is Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion, so I was excited to get the chance to test and review some of their latest primers.

Urban Decay Lip Primer Potion is a new release to coincide with their Autumn/Winter collection…

They say:

Prepare your lips for the day ahead. Our invisible primer lays a silky foundation for your favorite lipstick or gloss. Color is truer, applies smoother, lasts longer, and will not fade or feather. The easy-glide formula feels velvety-soft, without the drying feeling often associated with long-lasting lip color.

The formula includes SPF 15 (yay!) and moisturizing Vitamins A, C and E for a primer that protects and perfects. And, our pretty roll-up tube and slanted bullet make for precise, easy application.

It’s a concealer coloured unassuming little product decked out in Urban Decay’s trademark pretty purple packaging.  All very nice, but does it actually do anything?

Let’s put it to the test!

First of all, let me introduce you to my bare lips.  I make no apologies for the total lack of makeup… it’s a Sunday and I couldn’t be bothered.

You’ll notice that I have a very full bottom lip (and not much top lip unfortunately).  This really causes quite a problem for me with lipsticks, especially pale ones.  The inner part of my bottom lip is highly pigmented in comparison to the rest of the lip (see the redder bit?).  Lipsticks simply don’t stick to that part of my lip which isn’t too much of a problem if the shade is dark enough… but if I’m wearing a nude or pale lip, you can spot where the lipstick hasn’t applied properly from a mile away.

I also have dry lips and some deep creases which I put down to a 20-a-day cigarette habit that lasted nearly 15 years.

The only lip primers I’ve ever tried in the past have been those plumping stinging ones, so I was interested to put Urban Decay’s Lip Primer Potion to the ultimate test!

Firstly…

I applied a lip scrub (I keep thinking Dr. Evil when I look at this picture).  I use a minty sugar based scrub from Earthen Glow Minerals.

Then I generously applied the primer all over my lips… Look! The red bit isn’t quite so noticeable! It created a nice even base without giving concealer lips!

Applying Revlon Matte Lipstick in Pink Pout, a lovely shade that I’ve barely worn because of my uneven pigmentation problem.  I found that the primer helped smooth the application of this matte which drags more than most lipsticks.

Finished! Apologies for looking so smug here… not quite sure why that is…

Final thoughts:

I’m very pleased to have discovered this product!  It offers a solution to my uneven pigmentation problem and that is the one thing I really hoped it would solve.  I’m not convinced that my lipstick lasted longer than usual… but it definitely faded evenly instead of leaving a ring around the edge of my lips as per usual.

Unfortunately, I found the actual primer itself quite hard to apply, a little bit draggy.  I also didn’t feel that it was very moisturising on my dry lips which was one of the promises made.  I did try the primer again with a waxy lip balm underneath and that definitely eased the dryness.. but worked against the whole priming effect so obviously not a very good solution!  I shall try a more cream-like lip moisturiser (think Body Shop) and see if that helps at all.

Would I purchase this?  Yes.  I’ve never found anything that evens out my lip pigmentation so EFFECTIVELY without completely drying my lips out or wearing off rapidly (concealer).  For me at least, this is a product that will change how I wear lipstick.  I will have far more confidence in pale lips without reapplying constantly and trying to grind the colour into a uniform application.  That’s a HUGE breakthrough for me!

Now… Urban Decay, listen up… please could you squeeze a little more moisturiser into it for old scabby-lipped ladies like me?

Available from the usual Urban Decay stockists and priced at £10

I treated myself to these 2 much talked about lippies a couple of days ago. 

Nude Attitude is quite warm and tan, I can imagine that it would look awesome on medium/olive skin.  However, it does absolutely nothing for my cool toned complexion unfortunately.

Pink Pout on the other hand is quite a nice choice for me… It’s a very cool toned pink with a hint of lavender.  Both shades are matte (as you would expect from the name of the line!)  They’re quite easy to apply considering their texture… but aren’t particularly forgiving if your lips are at all dry.  I would definitely pair this up with a good coat of lip balm underneath.

Pink Pout is looking a little warmer in the swatch above than it does in person,  the shot was taken early evening as the sun was going down.  Ha! shows how ridiculously pale and ‘blue’ my skintone must be if this is warm!

I shall include Pink Pout in my next FOTD in the hope it gives a truer impression.  As for Nude Attitude, I’m not keeping it.  £5 inc. postage (within UK) if anyone wants it?

Are you loving the Mattes range?  What are your favourite shades?

I’m loving the quality of these NYX lipsticks, and I shall definitely be hauling some more shades soon…

Ceto:

Chaos:

Darling:

Rea:

Hmm… after seeing these, I think I’m prefering the subtlety of Ceto over my original fav Darling.  Share your favourite NYX shades so I can develop some more lemmings!