Lipstick Round-up

Apparently....

I heard somewhere that the ideal colour lipstick for you is the shade that closest matches the colour of your nipples.

 

Think on...

 

I seem to have bought a rather excessive amount of lipsticks this month. I blame it on all the 3 for 2 offers around. None of them match the colour of my nipples though. Take my word for it.

 

So, I thought I'd do some hugely scientific testing and see how they (and some of the other lipsticks in my stash) deliver - looking at price, application, formula, transference, wear-time and pigmentation.

 

 Nyx - Butter Lipstick in Shade 612 (Lala) rrp £4.00

Colour: A heather-soft brown colour. I wanted a hint of purple tones without it being too 'out there'.

Formula: This is a mineral-based, very creamy, moisturising formula - what I'd think of as a classic 'lipstick'.

Application: Because it's so creamy, I felt that this would probably benefit from using a lip liner too as it did bleed slightly on the right-hand side of my top lip. If not a lip-liner, then maybe brushed on the outer edges with a lip brush to avoid bleeding and smudging and to give more definition.

Pigmentation: This is surprisingly very pigmented. The colour is much stronger than it looks in the tube.

Transfers: Yes - but not so much that it removes the product leaving patchiness and fade.

Longevity: Again, another surprise for such a reasonable (budget) priced lipstick. This wore well for almost five hours (and lasted after some toast and tea) and when it did fade, it faded uniformly.

Rate this range?: Considering the low price I would give this a high-rating of 4/5.

Nyx Butter Lipstick in Shade 628 - Tea Rose
I think I bought this in Seville back in January but it seems to have drifted to the bottom of my lipstick collection. It's a little bit more pink than my usual nude shades. I must remember that I really don't need any more rose shades!!

 

 

 L'Oreal Color Riche Nude Gold Obsession rrp £6.99

This has been my go-to lipstick this summer!

Colour: Nude Gold. As you can see, I had real trouble trying to do a 'kiss swatch' - it was quite pale on the paper (warmer, more golden on lips though) - so I resorted to drawing it on.

Formula: Again, what I'd call a classic lipstick formula - moisturising and soft.

Application: Goes on very easily (you don't need a mirror for topping up) and has good coverage without bleeding, streaking or clumping. I don't feel I need a lip liner with this.

Pigmentation: It's a pale colour, but it has strong pigmentation. The gold shimmer is just right - not too over-powering and just noticeable enough.

Transfers: Yes, unfortunately this leaves quite a sticky transfer, almost like a lip gloss. Despite this, it doesn't seem to affect the fade - it wears off evenly.

Longevity: It's not great, I'm not gonna lie! But with that said, it fades evenly and is easy to re-apply (no mirror needed) so I don't consider that a deal-breaker with this particular range.

Rate this range? It does everything I want it to do and I don't mind the longevity factor, so I'm giving it a high rating of 4.5/5.

 

Some more L'Oreal Color Riche Colours

 

 

Shade 302 - Bois de Rose

 

Shade 630 - Beige a Nu

 

There's a definite theme to my colour choice of lipsticks - I do prefer everyday wearable rose and nude shades. The top is a dusky rose and the bottom has a slight brown tone.

Both of these wear in the same way as the above review - not hugely long-lasting, but easy to reapply so not so much of an issue. However, although there is still some transference with these two, it's not as much or as sticky as the 'Nude Gold Obsession' lipstick.

 

L'Oreal Lip Paint Matte - Shade 211 Babe-in rrp £6.99

 

Colour: Surprise surprise - another nude! To be honest, I picked these up to make use of the 3 for 2 offer at Boots. You can see the other shade of these I picked below is only slightly different. Most of the nude shades were very samey.

Formula: For a matte lipstick this is very wet. Wet but thick at the same time. Dare I say, a little claggy?

Application: This has a fluffy-ish applicator, not quite deer foot in shape. It's pretty claggy to apply and doesn't go on smoothly until you swipe around a bit. Lots of smacking together of the lips to ensure even distribution. Probably would have benefitted from using a lip liner.

Pigmentation: Not quite as strong as you might expect from a matte.

Transfers: Yes, terribly! You can see how much from the kiss blot how much came off. It continues to transfer quite heavily on anything that goes near your mouth. I didn't expect a matte to wipe off so easily.

Longevity: Two hours - absolute maximum length of wear. Because it transfers so easily, it's going to follow that it's not going to last very long. This doesn't dry down.

Rate this range?: Limited colour choice and terrible transference marks this down at a low 3/5.

 

 

L'Oreal Lip Paint Matte - Shade 210 Dead Lips (niiice!)

Another shade from this range - very little difference in colour. 

 

 

L'Oreal Infallible Matte Max Lipstick in Shade 001 Silencio rrp £7.99

This was one of those 'quick-grab-something-quick' purchases when there was a 3 for 2 offer on. When I went to try this I actually thought I'd accidentally picked up the tester as the amount of product (housed in the coloured part in the lid - and not even that whole amount) looked empty and the applicator looked like it had been used lots of times before. So I took it back to the shop, only to find that, no - they all look like this! I've not been reviewing based on packaging - but this is a major let-down packaging wise.

Colour: This would be an absolutely stunning colour (if it was strong enough) - a coral-nude.

Formula: It's hard to tell - the actual product is buried deep in the lid and the applicator picks up a scant amount. It's very 'dusty' - more like a dry stainer.

Application: A bizarre sponge bulbous applicator. Doesn't feel like it picks up enough product and is 'strange' to apply. As I said, it's more like a powdery stain than a lipstick. Very faint application and not really buildable.

Pigmentation: Very weak. This looks like a great colour but you only actually get a hint of it on your lips.

Transfers: There's hardly anything to transfer!

Longevity: It hardly made much of an entrance and didn't say goodbye when it left!

Rate this range? Not in the slightest. All of the above issues make it a total bust for me. I give it 1/5 - purely for the colour.

 

 

 

Bourjois Rouge Velvet - Shade 06 Abrico Dabrail  rrp £8.99

Colour: This was a huge gamble for me choosing this orange-y colour but I wanted to try something other than a nude tone! Swatching in store can also be a gamble - what might look great on the back of your hand is not necessarily going to work on your lips.

For many reasons (colour being only one of them), this was a gamble that didn't pay off!

Formula: This is marketed as a velvety soft matte. Matte lipsticks have come on in leaps and bounds recently, whereas in the past you might have traded that 'drying' feel for a strong matte colour, there are many brands that are now offering soft and even moisturising mattes. This is not one of them! It's old-school drying matte - the first sign of discontent for me was that it felt dry and draggy.

Application: Awful! Like applying mashed up wax crayons! Streaky and patchy - dragged across my lips and clumped. The colour (as I half-guessed) was just a bit stark on me so not only did I try and blend it in with my finger to remove the clumpy patches, I wanted to lessen the boldness somewhat. Nope - once clumps were in place, they weren't shifting. I even tried adding a lip oil on top to see if that would soften both the colour and the texture. This helped somewhat, but those clumps were stubborn little beasts.

Pigmentation: Highly pigmented - but in this instance, that wasn't so great for me!

Transfers: No. As you can see from my kiss swatch - very little came off on the paper. But again, usually transference is a bad thing, but I couldn't even budge this when rubbing my finger on my lips.

Longevity: It lasts - but not uniformly. I had strong orange lines around the outside of my lips and very little in the centre. The very worst sort of fading you don't want to see.

Rate this range? Everything about this was a disaster for me. I'm also mighty pissed off that for the price, I could have bought two of the cheaper budget brand lipsticks. 1/5 - BOOOOO!

 

 

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick - Shade 845 Terra Copper rrp £7.99

Colour: I picked this up in the clearance section of T.K Maxx and it was somewhat of a miracle to find an unopened and un-tested lipstick in T.K Maxx. This was almost a 'blind buy' as the only thing I had to go on was the colour sticker on the bottom of the case, which showed a metallic copper. It turned out to be a good gamble though. It's a nice wearable copper - not as sparkly as I had anticipated, but this isn't a bad thing as it makes it more wearable for me.

Formula: Classic moisturising formula. Apparently it has vitamins in it.

Application: Not a brilliant start. This is quite patchy and I needed a couple of coats to get a good coverage. However, once applied it did level out quite evenly. I didn't feel this would need a lip liner.

Pigmentation: Good strong colour - not as shimmery as I thought it would be.

Transfers: Yes, but not terribly so.

Longevity: I seem to manage about four hours max with most of my lipsticks - during this time I may have a drink and something to eat, but this didn't affect the wear too much. It also fades uniformly and seems to slightly stain the lips.

Rate this range? For the £2 I spent - yes I'd absolutely rate the range. I think this may have been a discontinued range as I checked out this range online at Boots and it was in the current shade range. This range usually retails at £7.99. I'm rating it at 4/5

 

 

Barry M Matte Me Up Metallic in Shade - Prestige rrp £6.99

Colour: Who can resist sparkly and shiny? But can everyone wear sparkly and shiny? It would seem, yes - there's a sparkly and shiny for everyone. I swatched this one week and couldn't stop thinking about it and went back fir it the next week. This colour choice for me was definitely out of my comfort zone, but has become one of my most favourite lipstick shades ever. A deep metallic burnt copper/bronze shade.

Formula: This lip kit comes with a lip liner plus liquid matte lipstick.

Application: The lip liner is a little on the hard side - would have preferred a slightly softer line. The liquid lip is very wet at first but dries down after a single blot (I couldn't even get a swatch after blotting against white paper) - very little comes off, but I feel like a light blot is necessary to set the lipstick. Once applied, the texture and coverage is great. Very slightly drying, but certainly no more so than other matte lipsticks.

Pigmentation: Very strong. Very striking.

Transfers: After the initial blotting - nope, it won't budge.

Longevity: Very long-lasting. Through food and drink, this just stays put. But when it does eventually fade, it goes from the centre of the lips first.

Rate this range? Although I've mentioned a couple of very minor gripes, this kit is pretty much faultless. Very cheap considering you get two items. This is a resounding 5/5. Just wish there were more shades to choose from.

 

 

Make Up Revolution Retro Luxe Lip Kit in Shade Noble rrp £6.00

 

This was the first lip kit I bought last year when everyone was raving about the Kylie lip kits (which I don't own and am not interested in owning). I bought this is Superdrug and there were no testers for any of the kits so I had to go on the colour on the box, which I feel are quite misleading. I don't really mind this colour but it's a darker brown than I thought it would be.

Colour: Brown-terracotta.

Formula: Again, the kit comes with a lip liner. The lip liner is nice and soft but it has a plastic casing with no winding mechanism for the liner to come out when it starts to go blunt. I'm guessing (hoping) I will be able to use a regular sharpener on this even though it's plastic, otherwise that's a terrible design fault. The matte lipstick is rich and thick but ever so slightly chalky.

Application: Lip liner is nice and soft and the lipstick is thick but easy to apply and covers well on first application. However, once applied it doesn't feel great! Despite the moisture, it feels terribly drying and chalky but worse still , it's so sticky. It never dries down.

Pigmentation: Can't fault this - it's nice and bold.

Transfers: How could it not with this level of stickiness? As you can see from the rather bizarre kiss swatch - the liner is obvious in the swatch (luckily less so on the lips) and big thick clumps of it came off on the paper (I almost had to peel my lips off the paper it was so sticky). It transfers on to cups in little lumps - surprised that the coverage on lips is still reasonable.

Longevity: It's pretty good. After about four hours it does start to fade from the middle of the lips, leaving stronger lines around the outside though.

Rate this range? I just can't. The pigmentation is great and it's reasonably long wearing but the stickiness is too bothersome. 2.5/5.

 

 

 

 

Gosh Copenhagen - Velvet Touch Matt Lipstick - Shade 010 Smoothie rrp £7.99

Colour: This is one of the lipsticks I bought in my 'move away from the nudes' haul. Okay, so I didn't move too far away - this is a deeper rose colour. Swatched on the back of the hand it looked like a good everyday colour but when applied on the lips it's actually quite bold (for me).

Formula: I didn't notice at the time but this is a matt lipstick. However, it's quite a nice velvety matte, not as moisturising as a regular lipstick but also not as thick or crayon-y as some mattes.

Application: Nice and smooth application and applies evenly on the first go. I did use a lip-liner with this colour but that's because it's quite bold rather than I felt that it might bleed. It does have that slightly tight and dry feel of a matte lipstick but not clumpy or heavy. Also, this doesn't exaggerate the natural lines in your lips like some matte lipsticks can do.

Pigmentation: Very strong and striking.

Transfers: First and only blotting was for the kiss swatch on the paper - very little transferred. After that, I didn't notice any transference on mugs. Good at staying put.

Longevity: This lasted at least six hours without any real fading. I did re-apply after eating as the lipstick was stronger around the edges than in the centre of my lips. But when it did eventually fade, it did so uniformly.

Rate this range? Absolutely! A nice range of day and night colours, reasonable price and ticks all the boxes above. Rated 4/5.

 

 

Gosh Copenhagen Velvet Touch Lipstick Shade 161 Sweetheart rrp £7.99 

From the same range, but not in the matte formula. To be honest, I do prefer the 'classic' lipstick formula over matte every time. I'm not so concerned about the longevity - as long as they fade uniformly. The regular lipstick from the range isn't as long-lasting as the matte but the pigmentation and application is just as good.

 

 

MUA Matte Lipstick - in shade Totally Nude rrp £1.00

Colour: Okay, so it's another nude. But this is much paler on the lips than it appears in the tube.

Formula: I really, really wanted to be able to champion this and prove that something might be silly cheap (£1 - come on!) and still have some cosmetic worth to it. But this formula is horrible - sticky and chalky at the same time.

Application: Absolutely drags across the lips and manages to be sticky but dry at the same time. Horribly patchy and chalky.

Pigmentation: Reasonably strong

Transfers: Yes. As you can see from the kiss swatch, it comes off in chunks almost.

Longevity: In this case, luckily it doesn't stay on for long.

Rate this range? I wanted this to prove a point, but sadly, the only point it backs up is "you get what you pay for". 1/5. In the bin.

 

 

MUA Matte Lipstick in shade Scarlet Siren rrp £1.00

 

Colour: Maybe I should have started with this one first as it's from the same range as above but scores better on all points. This is your classic vampy red shade.

Formula: Still sticky and chalky but much better than the nude shade above.

Application: Easier than the shade above, although it is still quite sticky and chalky but it doesn't need as much attention as the previous lipstick to get a reasonable coverage.

Pigmentation: A good bold red colour. Much better in this aspect too.

Transfers: Okay - this is where it falls down again. This transfers terribly and smears onto anything that even comes near the mouth. I'm surprised it wasn't all around my mouth with the degree that this smeared off.

Longevity: Much better than the previous shade. Although if you are wearing this for an evening out, make sure you keep checking a mirror. It does last a good couple of hours, but as with many bold colours - when it fades it leaves lines around the outside of the lips which is much more obvious with a bright colour.

Changed the rating? For this colour - yes. I'd up it a bit to 2/5 - so still not a cracking rating.

 

 

 MUA Matte lipstick in shade Wild Berry rrp £1.00

And one more from this range. It's a lovely colour with strong pigmentation but this is another one that I actually binned because of all the problems with transference and longevity I felt that a colour this bold needs to have a better performance. It's too striking to have to be checking if you have it smeared around your mouth every so often. I will be looking out for this colour again, but perhaps one that costs more and stays put.

 



Bagsy  Wow Lips Full Colour Chubby Stick in Shade 03 Ready to Wear rrp £12.00 (Buy HERE) 

Colour: I got this full size lipstick in a beauty subscription box and it's a shade I perhaps wouldn't have chosen but I actually really love it. Of note too is the seriously gorgeous tube it comes in!

Formula: A very moisturising semi-gloss.

Application: The chubby pencil stick makes for a very easy application. Nice strong colour and good formula makes it quick to apply and nicely even on first swipe.

Pigmentation: Really strong.

Transfers: Yes - quite a lot.

Longevity: This only lasted a maximum of two hours and pretty much disappeared after eating. However, it did fade uniformly.

Rate this range? I think for the price I would hope for a longer lasting wear but these would make great gifts as the packaging is so pretty. Love the colour and pigmentation so rated a reasonable 3/5.