I’m a bold lip person. I love a neutral defined eye and an outfit-matching lip; I’ve even been known to plan my clothes around what lipstick I feel like wearing. I read other lip-product posts on blogs and I have probably a tenth of the products, but what I do have I tend to use and love. The past year I’ve completely fallen in love with lip crayons, but do I think you should splurge or save your pennies on these? Read and find out!
Sorry about the pretty stereotypical blogger photos – I couldn’t have flowers in my room (thanks to my lovely boyfriend!) and not include them! Also apologies about the obviously fading light as you go through these. I clearly took longer setting up than I anticipated!
On the cheap-as-chips front we have the Power Pouts by MUA. I’m in two minds about these – sometimes I love them, sometimes I am not so keen! I find the shade range is a bit odd, and they can also go a bit melty in your bag (though strangely stay put on the lips). Sometimes they also really dry my lips out and make them peel; I think these kind-of react to office air conditioning as I enjoy them a lot more at home! I have three shades; the darker purple I haven’t touched yet as I’ve been storing it up for Autumn since a 3-for-2; I loved the pink for summer but the brown, always overlooked shade is my favorite. It actually comes off a coral-toned pink on me, livening up my face and being the perfect subtle color. At £3 they certainly aren’t a waste of your money and I’d definitely recommend them!
Next up are the blog-famous Revlon Matte Balms. These are my favourites, apart from the Elusive shade. All the others are smooth, pigmented and moisturising; lasting for ages without any dodgy fading. Elusive not so much. It’s too bright and barbie pink on me (so many bloggers say its a neutral-toned pink – I don’t get it?!), it feels drying, and it fades away in patches. With the right outfit and a silly amount of lip-prep I can get away with it, but that much effort means I rarely wear this. Sultry on the other hand is something I’m thinking of getting a handbag backup of. The perfect anyday lip, this really, really compliments my skin tone. I lusted after the shade for so long (I can’t buy a non-sealed lip product) and I wore it pretty much everyday for a fortnight when I finally got hold of it. Striking is my other shade of choice, and this bold, dark red is stunning all year round. I have a similar tone to Jenny Purr, and she loves both these shades – I’m just trying to ignore her love for certain Nars products now!
Another famous product next, but one with a slightly higher price tag! You guessed it, the
Clinique Chubby Sticks. I was so, so excited with Glamour announced these as magazine freebies. I, quite literally, scoured the country for them as their release coincided with my Devon holiday. No luck. I resigned myself to the fact that I’d never own these. Then I moved to Surrey, grabbed some stuff in Waitrose, and the two shades were sitting on the magazine rack by the till. I grabbed them, proudly instagrammed them, and now have them thrown into a satchel each. They are pretty similar to the MUA offerings, perhaps a little more pigmented, more moisturising, and a little more reliable. These definitely don’t melt over my satchel! I’m not a huge fan of Woppin’ Watermelon, again a little too barbie pink, but Super Strawberry is my end-of-the day throw on. You never know who you might bump into on the way home from the office! Some of the other shades look gorgeous, but at £17 I’d sooner stick to MUA. I could
almost buy a Power Pout and a MAC lipstick (my other love) for that!
As an addition, I also have the CID Lip & Cheek tint, free in Cosmopolitan the same month as Glamour offered the clinique products. Yep, I did see this as a bit of a booby prize! I have to say I love the color – its more orange-toned and a little fresher than my Revlon red. However the glossy finish means it does slip down off your lips. Blotting solves this, making it more matte, which I actually prefer, but its something to bear in mind. I would say these are no higher quality than the MUA offerings though, I certainly wouldn’t part with £15!
So, would I recommend you splurge or save on lip crayons? My best bet is to go with Revlon; a mid-price point, quite often on offer, and the best quality out of all the lip crayons I’ve tried. Having said that, if I need to break into a note, I’d happily go pick up a Power Pout!
What lip products do you recommend?
