Revlon's Colorburst Lip Butters - They're Here!

Revlon's Lip Butters have been talked about and reviewed on the 'net since late last year and I was amazed to actually see them on our shores this quickly! Imagine my surprise as I was at Watson's Pavilion to get some vitamins and stumbled upon a small collection of these lip butters at the Revlon display. I was actually looking at the new Age Defying Foundation when these Lip Butters caught my eye!

There were only about 8 shades to pick from although I know that there are 20 shades in total that the US drugstores carry. Out of these limited shades, I picked out 4 and they are Brown Sugar, Sugar Plum, Fig Jam and Macaroon. Such delicious sounding names!

The packaging has quilted imprint on the side that is quite translucent. The casing also does not open at the halfway mark like most lipsticks do. I find it easier to open the 'traditional' lipstick casings as you can firmly grip the bottom half and then open the cap to reveal your lipstick. As for this product, the top casing encompasses two thirds of the lipstick. I do have some difficulty gripping just the edges of the bottom to release the top part. Having said that, I do like the packaging as the cover reflects the shade of lip butter that is in the tube and when your lipstick drawer becomes a tad messy....you can still find the shade you need!

I just eyeballed the colors that I thought would most suit me or that I could work with because as with all testers - the one's at Watsons were pretty much decimated! Do you notice this as well? Its as if someone hands all the testers to a bunch of chimpanzees prior to putting them on the shelf for us to try! I have seen ladies walk in to put on their makeup using all the samples and then take off...possibly heading out to meet their dates! Shameful!! The most I would do is test them on the back of my hand and have a tissue handy to wipe them off.

These are how they swatched on the inside of my hand. The colors are sheer although I swatched it several times. I also noticed that these swatched very creamily on my hand. As these are not straight up lipsticks, be aware that they will not have the same intensity. Hence imagine a creamy lip balm that is tinted. I imagine that if you use a lip liner and smudge a thin layer all over your lips and then apply the Lip Butter, it would look lovely and have that lipstick effect you are looking for with the added advantage of a glossy sheen as well. Also, if you are the sort who likes a sheer wash of color, one swipe of this on your lips would keep your lips moisturised as well as add some color. There are times that I only want some moisture on my lips with a small amount of color to brighten up my face and I forsee this being perfect for such a time as that.

I will have pictures of these on my lips and a review of how the product holds up soon so do watch out for that.These retail for RM25 each which is such a small price to pay for a quick pick me up!!

Idea! Storing De-Potted Lipstick

I certainly had a very productive weekend! I spent some time de-potting what seemed like a million lipsticks into a cheap container that not only saved me a ton of space for more purchases (big smile) but also gave forgotten purchases a new lease of life.

The container I used to organize my lippies is a pillbox which I nicked from my dad! He loves organizing things and this is how he organizes his medication - I guess I got the organizing gene from him! I asked dad for one of these pillboxes because he has quite a few - "just in case I need an extra" he says.

I realized that there were many lippies that were lying at the back of the drawer and I thought that this would bring most of it together in one palette and allow me to pull it out and have a look at what takes my fancy for the day. I know the box does not look posh and fancy - it is quite basic - but this is my personal collection and it works for me, so thats why I think it is a great idea. If you can get your hands on a box that is clear without the days of the week printed on them in English as well as Braille then all the better.

I used a long pen knife to de-pot the lipstick right from the bottom (because I hate wastage) and then carefully dropped the lip color into the different compartments. I then popped the row out and labelled each color with the brand and color. As you can see, each row of lipstick pops out of the main tray and I quite like the idea that I could pop out a tray and take it away whilst travelling too.

In order to use these lippies, you will need a good lip brush - just open the compartments and have a go! It is easier to mix colors to create a unique color this way too.

Most importantly, do get a container that has compartments which snap shut firmly to avoid any nasty accidents. As for the labels at the back, I used labels which I bought in a pack (these are sold cheaply at stationery stores). I use these labels for all my spices, baking ingredients as well as for the hundred little things that the children have so I always have these about the house. I am a bit anal when it comes to labelling because I also have a huge battery operated Dymo (labelling tool) that I use when I organize stuff! Remember, all pictures are clickable if you want to see them a little more clearly!

Review: Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick

I was pleasantly surprised a couple of weekends ago, dear readers when I came across these lippies from Revlon ColorBurst collection. I purchased these in two shades - Plum and Mauve for a decent price of RM 32.88 and got a free item to boot!

Plum

Mauve

Since the Revlon counter was hogged by a loud lady looking for a nail polish color that she purchased way back in the day and did not remember the name of it, I could not really get a close look at all the colors properly! I took a look at Fuchsia and True Red and decided that those were not the colors for me. I then moved on to Plum and Mauve and knew that I would be able to rock those colors for sure!

I got home and immediately tore into the packaging - unfortunately, in Malaysia such items come with a security bar tag stuck on to the product which makes it impossible to remove! Once I opened the lipstick, I was happy to note that there was no smell which I really like. Strong smelling products sometimes put me off. The packaging is sleek looking with a crosshatch design.

As you can see from the pictures above, the cover of the lipstick tells you the color of the product very accurately. Great for identifying quickly in a drawer full of lippies, I tell you! More so when you have multiples of the same brand/type of lipstick.

I was delighted when I tried these on - they were really creamy and applied very well. The color pay off was great as it was intense and a true reflection of the color of the lipstick itself. After several hours, the lipstick wore off but did not leave my lips dry and flaky. Nice!

Here are the swatches:- Plum and Mauve

Plum

Mauve

As you can see, Plum is really deep and I have worn these on days when my eye make up is simple. Mauve on the other hand is a shade that I can carry off well when my eye make up is strong. These colors were applied only once and I had my lips primed and concealed with some concealer to even out the color (my top lip is darker than my bottom lip) before I applied it on, so the color payoff is awesome!

And remember the free item I got with this purchase? Well it is a lipstick pouch with a little mirror! The design of the pouch is similar to the ColorBurst lipstick casing as well. There is enough space in here to store miniatures of your make up items for a quick touch up at the office, so its really useful for me.

I am quite excited to see the whole range of colors and see if there are other shades that will suit me.

SilkyGirl Lipstick in Illusion

I love some of my lipsticks so much that wearing anything else is such a bother. My hands are conditioned to reach for a certain type of lipstick and I do this without thinking every morning. Yes dear readers, I have been in an illicit long term relationship with Revlon's ColorStay Mineral Lipglaze's because of it's amazing moistness and staying power!

Yet, this morning I reached for a SilkyGirl. Her name is Illusion.

This is an orangey brown color that is creamy. It goes on semi sheer and in order for me to carry it off reasonably well, I have to line my lips with a slightly darker lip liner as you can see below.

I put this on at 7.30 this morning and by 9.30am after a cup of coffee, a healthy swig of water and breakfast.....it was all gone and my lips felt dry and naked! I reached for my trusty tube of Revlon at 10.30am.

Dark Lip Colors Will Not Do You Justice

If you saw my recent purchase of the super cheap Uptown Visions products, you would have seen two really dark lip colors in there. I picked those out because I did not have much of a choice and the store was running a BOGOF (buy one, get on free).

The two colors I chose were Raisin and Eggplant and from the name you would guess that Raisin is reddish and Eggplant is purplish in hue. Not really colors that I like these days.

The colors that I love now are mid to darker pinks and mild reds because I find them most flattering (see picture below on one of the pinky reds I am currently rockin' ). When I was younger, I did love dark reds and when you are young, you are able to carry that off well.

The thing with dark colors is that they tend to make the lips look smaller and it ages you somewhat. Try it in front of the mirror (like I did) and you will be able to see the difference.

I found it really hard to come off my dark lipcolor obsession as I transitioned into my thirties - just goes to show how you fall into a makeup rut and hold fast to the stuff you are used to!

I, for one, never thought that what I deemed as 'light' colors would do my face any justice. I was wrong and in a perfect world, you will get a lip color straight out of the tube that really, really looks good on you. In reality, to achieve a near perfect color that is just right for your skintone requires the mixing of at least two colors and also a complimentary lipliner that 'holds' your color in.

This could just be me as I am really picky about lip colors because many colors leave me looking washed out. I have tried practically the whole range of Bobbi Brown lipsticks at a workshop and did not find one that suited me! Granted their colors are more of the natural to nude tones. 

So, of the two colors, I like Raisin but I have not used it on its own yet. I added a lighter pink layer on my lower lip to tone down the intensity of it. It would work better for an evening out.

As for the Eggplant....thats a tough one to work with as it looks almost black on my kissers! I may use it but not without layers of lighter colors on top and I did consider using it as a liner. That remains to be tried.

As for the quality of these lipsticks....

• 
  
  strong oily smell
• 
  
  felt a little thick but went on super smoothly
• 
  
  rather strong pigment that stained my lips after using it for a few minutes

Not a product I would reach for neither will it be one that is on my list of favourites.

Gino McCray Lip and Gloss

I purchased a tube of this lipstick from a cute little shop called Beauty Buffet at MBK Centre. The tagline states that it is the "most delicious beauty shop in town"! I loved the name and the concept - all the products are laid out like a buffet and you pick what you want and put it into a basket.

One of the lines that they carry is called Gino McCray and I picked out a lipstick/gloss.

This tube is slim and long and the color I chose is Cocoa.

Here is a swatch of the color which is a warm brownish pink. It offers good coverage as a lipstick and has a glossy sheen that gives the lip a fuller look. It can be used on its own as a lipstick or over a lip color as a gloss. I usually use it on its own as it is not sheer and the coverage is more like that of a lipstick rather than gloss. It retails for about RM20 only.

My only gripe with it is the doe foot applicator which does not reach all the way to the end of the product. I will have to devise a way to get to the bottom of it!

So dear reader, have you had a look at the goodies on offer at the Beauty Buffet?