collection cream puff lip cream review and swatches

It's another super cute lip cream! Look at all the puffy fluffiness. It smells like fairy cakes and it's named after sweet treats and girly things. It's all soft and cushiony. It's the Collection Creampuff lip cream lineup! Boom. Let's have a look then.

    Honestly, I do like the packaging. It's cute and playful and appeals to my inner my inner girly-girl. I also like the matte black lid, a cheeky clue to the product's finish. This product comes in four shades, all of which are soft and wearable. I have shade 3, Fairy Cake, which is a lovely warm coral pink. I find it brightens my face easily and is the perfect choice for complementing a neutral day look- so I'm now at the stage where I've worn it so often, it's almost used up. Boo!

   It's not just the colour that has made it such a go-to product for me, it's because it's just so fuss free. The doe foot applicator distributes the cream quickly and evenly and one coat is all it takes for full coverage. And, unlike most lip creams/lip velvet type products, the Collection Creampuff truly lives up to it's claim of being 'moisturising'. This means I don't have to apply balm beforehand or worry about it going all crusty and icky, and we all know what a relief it is to find a product that doesn't lead to constant paranoia. That said, my lips aren't prone to excessive dryness, so perhaps those of you who struggle with chapping might well want to slick some balm underneath. 

   It's also really long lasting, and dries to a fairly budge-poof, transfer-proof soft matte finish. Initially, I thought it wouldn't settle and would retain a degree of slip- sort of like a matte lipgloss- and I thought the very soft sheen would remain. I was wrong though: just give it a few minutes and it will dry down to a true matte that doesn't slide about.

Here's how it looks freshly applied. Note the soft sheen.

collection cream puff- fairy cake

 

 And once fully dry...

collection cream puff- fairy cake

The best thing? These are priced at a mere £2.99. Gotta catch 'em all! That's what I'm almost certainly gonna do once mine runs out and I finally have an excuse to buy more ;)

sleek matte me lip cream- review and swatches

   Second post of the night, 'cause I'm on fire! I know I probably shouldn't gush so much for two posts in a row- it just makes me look like an indiscriminate gusher- but this lip cream is so worth gushing about. It's the Sleek Matte me ultra smooth matte lip cream. I don't know why it took me so long to get my hands on it really. I think I was just trying to be a good girl, with that whole 'yes baby, I know it's pretty, but you don't need any more lipsticks do you?' routine. Thankfully, I told that voice where to go and got my maniacal beauty-addict little hands on a rather fabulous product.

It is pretty, isn't it? Funky looking and modern and sassy. I got the shade 'brink pink', and boy is it bright! It's like it's tipped over the brink of a bright shade into an all out neonfest. And I love it! It's so happy and bold and summery, and every time I look in the mirror wearing it, I'm like 'whoa! Look at my lips! So sassy', and do a pouty sassy pose.

   And it's not just the colour that stands out, the formula is pretty cracking too. Fully opaque with smooth, streak-free application and a transfer-proof, second skin finish that lasts hours and hours. In fact, it barely even budged through meals, and survived me stamping big kisses all over my baby cousin's cheeks. This sort of longevity usually comes at a price though- that of a drying effect. I personally didn't notice my lips being particularly parched or uncomfortable, but my lips aren't hugely prone to chapping. If yours are, a bit of balm underneath is the way to go, and it won't interfere with the finish or wear time, providing you don't slather on goopy layers of it, naturally.

sleek matte me lip cream- brink pink

 The Sleek Matte Me lip cream are available in superdrug stores and on the brand site, priced at £4.99, and I think they are brilliant value for money. Heartily recommended. x

nyx soft matte lip cream- a review & swatches

 And so, we move onto lip creams. What's the difference between lip velvets and lip creams? Well, generally speaking, not much. That's why I'm using my next few reviews as continuations from the lip velvet series rather than as a separate category. They tend to be thicker in consistency though, as the name implies, and tend to maintain a bit of slip throughout wear rather than setting to a budgeproof second skin. I say 'tend to', because sometimes, the only real difference is in the name. Enter NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream.

     These babies are cute and playful- if they came in jars I'd want to sit cross legged on the floor to scoop out the insides and eat em. They also come named after cities (I do love my themes), and my shade is Antwerp, which I picked because my best friend's nickname for me is 'Twerp'. Now I can be an twerp, hehehe. It's a gorgeous shade- the love child of a dusty rose and a vivid coral, giving the perfect balance between pretty subtlety and loud-mouthed fun. I really really love it, and find it so flattering to my medium complexion. It might just be in my top ten favourite lipstick shades.

   As mentioned earlier, the finish is typical of velvets, in that it tattoos your lips with long lasting, touch proof colour. It's a real winner of a texture. NYX definitely got the 'soft' part of the name bang on, because this feels so buttery and light to apply, and once it sets, though very matte, manages not to look or feel dry. One layer is all that's needed for full opacity, so there's none of the dreaded patchiness that comes with touching up after the first coat has dried. It doesn't crumble or flake with wear either- it's truly brilliant. How did I only just discover it?

   Have some swatches, though they honestly don't do the shade justice. The woes of a bad camera.

nyx soft matte lip cream- antwerp

 

nyx soft matte lip cream- antwerp

 These cost a mere £5.50 from the NYX uk site (under the gloss section), and if I had loads of spare money, I would buy all the shades and love them and cuddle them forever.

mua luxe velvet lip lacquer: review and swatches

I'm really excited to share this lip velvet post with you guys, because as you may have already guessed from previous posts, I really love the budget makeup brand MUA. Not so long ago, they released a Luxe range, featuring products of a higher quality, greater novelty and posher (is that a word?) appearance- and still positively bargainous price points. Among this range are the MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquers. Let's take a look, shall we? 

 

    Ta da! It looks great, doesn't it? Not cheap at all. And it feels pretty luxe too- heavy and sturdy and durable, complete with a practical and fuss-free doe foot applicator. I've got the shade Funk, which is a somewhat warm toned bright pink- sort of a hot raspberry shade. It's vivid and totally opaque, with a slightly creamy consistency that applies easily without streaks or patchiness, and dries down to a brilliant finish. It ticks every lip velvet box whilst avoiding all the associated pitfalls. Transfer proof. Very long wearing. Waterproof. Doesn't flake. Doesn't feel heavy.

     In fact, while the formula itself is slightly thicker, the finish is almost identical to Lime Crime's Velvetines- except these are £3, making them more than a tenner cheaper in price. Win!

    Another bonus is an impressive shade range, including a bold red (reckless), a vampy purple (kooky), a bright blue-based pink (criminal), as well as less bold shades that veer closer to nude territory (halcyon and tranquility, for example). All that for a three quid drugstore brand is seriously something. 

   Here's how funk looks on the lips:

mua luxe velvet lip lacquer- funk

mua luxe velvet lip lacquer- funk

mua luxe velvet lip lacquer- funk

   So all in all, I don't think you'll be surprised to hear that I thoroughly recommend them. They are bloody fabulous! 

Let me know if you've tried any of the other shades x

Topshop velvet lips in plush- a review and swatches

I've already touched on my love for Topshop makeup- their packaging, quality, shade ranges and price tags thoroughly rock my socks- so you can bet I had high hopes for their Velvet Lips. On spying them instore, I immediately made a beeline for closer inspection. The tube is slightly smaller and thinner than the lip velvets reviewed so far, but I quite liked the slim purse-friendliness. Standard doefoot. An formula laced with very subtle shimmer- interesting. Well, I bagged the shade 'plush', a blue toned purple, and skipped on home for a play.

    On application, I found it to be of a thicker texture than the more runny offerings (ya know, lime crime). Definitely more of a cream than a liquid formula. It applied a little less opaque than the other lip velvets too, and as a result looked slightly patchy. By this point, I was slightly disappointed, but still loved the colour and the fact that it had that wonderful touch-proof, powder-matte finish. 

     Four hours in, I was still pretty chuffed. It had lasted through a mammoth meal with no noticeable fade at all. Ok, it felt very, very dry, even with balm underneath, and made me literally shudder when I licked my lips, but... but... I wanted to like it, ok?

   Then, the crumbling and flakiness set it, and I gave up. I could tolerate it up until that point, but there is a line. To be honest, I was petty bummed. Other reviews had praised the product highly and I'd been hoping for a Lime Crime alternative for a tenner. Perhaps mine was just a bad one? I don't know. The other colours certainly look enticing: Raven (black), Velveteen Ribbon (brilliant red), Blood Orange (coral red), but unless it's with your money, I don't think I'll be repurchasing.  

    It did look quite pretty for a few hours though :( 

topshop velvet lips- plush

topshop velvet lips- plush

topshop velvet lips- plush

Has anyone had similar experiences with these?

review and swatches: bourjois rouge edition velvet- ole flamingo

BOOM! The blogger is back with another bright pink lip velvet thang. This time, it's the intriguing and oh-so-popular high street brand, Bourjois, with the Rouge Edition Velvet liquid lipstick. At £8.99, this baby has availability on its side and a price that won't break the bank, and, being a Bourjois, we trust it to be of luscious quality, right? 

  I know I do. I'm not often disappointed by their makeup, and their posh-lady-meets-spoilt-bitch packaging is right up my alley. The Velvets are modern and funky, in line with their rouge edition lipsticks. I picked Ole Flamingo, one of many vibrant, full bodied shades. It's a true bright pink, leaning slightly cool, but managing to be flattering and wearable. Unless of course, bold shades make you quake in your boots.

   SO how did it fare? Well, it was a dream to apply. The doe foot applicator was easy to use and the formula was lightweight and silky, and simply glided over the lips to leave you with a fully opaque, beautiful pout. Velvet is an apt description of the finish- it's powdery and soft and a comfortable matte, which is far less drying than other lip velvets. There is another difference in finish though- this one isn't transfer proof. It isn't quite as tattoo-ish as the others are. That said, it is still very longwearing indeed, and the transfer is minimal. I find a single gentle blot is all that's needed to fix the problem. After that, it's pretty much stuck. 

bourjois lip velvet- ole flamingo

bourjois lip velvet- ole flamingo (with flash)

   Overall, I'm more than impressed, and think you should definitely give em a look when next lurking round your local Superdrug. Well done Bourjois, you babes.