2018 empties post and long overdue check-in.

She offers a tentative 'hello'.

She offers ten thousand excuses.

(Skip to the first image of scattered empty lipstick packaging if you want the reviews and not the tedious preamble).

Hello everyone. It's me, the are-you-even-a-blogger-anymore blogger, coming at ya with a 2018 lipstick empties post. In motherfunkin JUNE 2019.

Honestly, I don't know if I am into this beauty blogging thing anymore. The change in the Instagram algorithm really put me off the whole scene. What I liked was the sense of a community and connectedness. The feeling of harping on about silly lipstick-related things to fellow enthusiasts. You know. Engaging. 

With my engagement having dropped drastically and fewer and fewer people even seeing my posts, it started to feel like I was spewing thoughts and swatches into an ever-irrelevant void. There's also the fact that I have become increasingly busy with cat rescue on what is now essentially a full-time basis (my insta account for my cat shenanigans is @help.meowt.bro) and so a lot of my brain-space and money is too taken up by that to leave much room for lipstick.

I've also been tied up with lots of grown-up life things. I got married, honeymooned, and am newly moved out and moved in. My dad has been in hospital several times, my cat died, I've been sofa-surfing a lot, my anxiety has at times been debilitating. In short, a bit of a whirwind. It's also been a bit of a bummer being broke. My feed is always flooded with exciting new releases that I know I won't be able to afford, at least not until they go on sale several months down the line. And who wants to read reviews that are too late to the party to be worth anything? Everything has already been said.

Meh. So I've been toying with throwing the towel in and bidding farewell to the, like, three people who still follow me. But then I find myself missing the old, safe ritual of swatching and reviewing. So I've decided that for now, I'm just gonna play it by ear. Post as and when I want to, however late, however irrelevant. Don't if I don't want to. Today, I want to. So without further ado:

THE GLORIOUS EMPTIES!

Nine used up in 2018! Not bad going at all, especially considering one of them was an entire palette. Now, forming an orderly queue....

1) Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lip lacquer in 'charm offensive'.

Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lip lacquer- 'charm offensive'

Mmm. Look how slick she looks! I don't often bother with glossy products because I hate stickiness and can find them messy, but this lacquer by Soap & Glory got into my good books. I wore it mostly because it was a very flattering shade on me, but the formula was also pretty good. It was surprisingly opaque. It lasted a while because while it did transfer, it was pigmented enought to still leave a lot of color behind, and just blotted down through wear to a more satin finish. It did feel 'thick', but didn't feel sticky. The wide paddle-shaped applicator made for an easy, streak-free finish. Inoffensive vanilla scent. Balmy and moisturising, and the wet-look glossiness made for a juicy looking pout. Top marks all round. It's £7 and well worth it in my opinion.

2) Baviphat Urban Dollkiss I Love Tint in 'cherry'.

Baviphat Urban Dollkiss I Love Tint- 'cherry'

I actually reviewed this in full way back here, where you can see the adorable apple shaped packaging in all its glory. I had to depot it into a little pot though because the wand was too short to reach the product beyond the halfway point. I've layered it up for this swatch. It's pretty sassy, no? I continued to like it, but I do have a few cons to add: the formula has a chemically taste. And a chemically smell. Other than that, it was cheap and cheerful and cute and you can't go far wrong with picking it up for a few quid on Ebay.

3) Yaby Cosmetics Lip Colour Refill in 'disagree'.

Yaby Cosmetics Lip Colour Refill- Disagree

Oh snap, it's another one I've previously reviewed. Here is the post. Oddly, this was a very difficult shade to photograph well, but I assure you it looks punchy and even in person. This was an easy product to use up because 1) I love the colour and the comfy formula, and 2) there wasn't very much of it. Such a tiny lil pan. I transferred the product into the rounded pot in the pic so I could throw it in my bag rather than having to pop it into a palette where it would be out of place and forgotten about. These refills cost £3.95.

4) Sleek Makeup Wonderlast lipstick and gloss duo in 'berry blush'.

Sleek Makeup Wonderlast lipstick and gloss duo- 'berry blush'

I love Sleek Makeup, but they were absolutely right to discontinue this product because it was a binfire of bad. The colour was lovely, but it was very streaky and dried to a crusty, flaking, bumpy clumpy mess that the gloss did nothing to gloss over. It only looks semi-tolerable in this pic because the lipstick was pretty much used up and I could only get enough on the brush to use as a stain. I tried. I tried again and again to make it work because I did like the colour. But yeah, I'm glad it's a goner. I will depot the clear gloss though, because there's nowt wrong with that end of the stick. Silver linings.

5) Anna Sui lipstick palette.

Anna Sui lipstick palette 

I reviewed this palette back over here too! I really put it through its paces and it has seen me through many a wedding. I've also found it very handy for when I needed a specific shade to match a specific thing- just mix up the colour you want, boo. I don't know if this is still available, but I got it a while ago when it was on sale for a tenner (marked down from the £30 RRP) from BeautyBay. I'm definitely gonna make use of the empty lipstick pans and make up my own custom palette. I'm quite looking forward to that actually!

6) Makeup Revolution Amazing Care lipstick in 'electric love'.

Makeup Revolution Amazing Care #happylips lipstick- 'electric love'

This Revolution offering was one of those lippies that have a coloured core surrounded by a balmy outer ring. This does make colour distribution uneven, but it's nothing a bit of lip smacking and smooshing won't sort out. The overall effect is one of a tinted balm: a light wash of colour and and some gel-like moisture. I had it in my bag so got a lot of use out of it, especially because I favour a stick-type balm to the sort you have to dip your finger in. This lippy is now discontinued, but I bet you can get it from Ebay.

7) Topshop Velvet Lips in 'Velveteen Ribbon'.

Topshop Velvet Lips- Velveteen Ribbon

This was pure shite. I only got through it because I kept trying to make it work (loads of lip balm underneath, lip primer, gloss on top, lip liner) until it just dried up in the tube. SO dry and uneven. You basically have to drag it across your lips, and once on, it just crumbles and flakes all over the place. Topshop can be quite hit and miss with their lipsticks. This one was definitely a miss, and they have now thankfully discontinued it and replaced it with a better liquid matte offering.

8) Primark 'liquid asset' liquid lipstick.

Primark 'liquid asset' liquid lipstick

This twist-up lip lacquer is way back from when Primark first started doing makeup. I love the cute pout-printed packaging, the total opacity, the almost latex-like finish, and the fun, girly colour. Needless to say, it has long been discontinued- though there are similar products you can get from most Primark stores.

9) Primark PS Metal Matte liquid lipstick in 'queen'.

Primark PS Metal Matteliquid lipstick- 'queen'

And last but not least, another Primark lippy! In the swatch above, I'm wearing over some darker lip liner. The formula of this metalic matte lipstick is water based, much like the Lime Crime Diamond Crushers. This means it's transfer proof for the most part, but water- rather than oil- removes it. It's very much a true metal finish rather than being shimmery or glittery, and makes for a nice highlighting shade. The only cons are that it does feel quite tight and does emphasise texture- but then I find that's true of metallic lipsticks in general. It's only £1.50, so worth giving a whirl if metallic lips are your jam.

And that's all folks! Who knows? I might even post again before 2000 and never.

Kisses

X

Makeup revolution lipstick review

I'm poor. So when there's afforable lipstick up for grabs, I get very grabby. In consequence, I have quite a few products from Makeup Revolution. I thought I'd share my thoughts on a few of them here so other skint kids can get clued up.

Let's start with the Salvation Velvet Lip Lacquers, Makeup Revolution's answer to the liquid matte lipstick hype. These are £3 and come in a funky shade range and are housed in a fairly standard tube which I won't bother showing here because 1) it's not exciting, and 2) it's been bashed about so much that the writing has smudged off.

Makeup revolution salvation velvet lip lacquer- black heart

BAM. In your face. This almost-black purple is called 'black heart' and is a dupe of the ABH Liquid Lips shade 'potion'. So if you love that vampy shade but are on a budget, rejoice.

I own three shades of these liquid lipsticks and I've found the formula to be a little inconsistent. None of theme feel lightweight, but a shocking bright pink one I tried felt like actual cement and crumbled all over the place. Another shade was a little less cement-like but was streaky. 'Black heart' definitely performs the best of the ones I've tried. Considering it's such a dark shade, it's not too difficult to get an even finish with. It looks good for a couple of hours before it starts to break down and crumble, at which point it's best to just remove with oil and reapply than to attempt any kind of touch up.

It's definitely not a comfortable or foolproof formula, but for the price, it's not too bad.

Moving on.

The Ultra Amplification lipsticks are a fairly new addition to the MUR lipstick family. They're £3 a pop and promise comfort and and intense colour. I quite like the gunmetal effect of the tube. Not bad for a cheap product. I have the shade 'activate'.

Makeup revolution ultra amplification lipstick- activate

Yeah, it looks nothing like the bullet! It's definitely a muted plum shade on first impression (and going by the website swatch), but upon 'breaking' the surface, it turns out to be a mauve-ey pink. You can kind of see the difference in colour where I've touched the bullet on the first picture. The swatch above shows it to be a tad more pink than it is in real life, but that's my camera being shitty. It leans more mauve in person. Well, it's a pretty colour! Just not what I was expecting.

As for formula, I agree with the 'comfortable' claim. It does feel good on the lips and you won't need lip balm underneath. I don't agree that it's 'intensely' pigmented though. It's a little more sheer than I expected, though it is buildable to something near-opaque.

It's a nice lippy. Work friendly and not too fussy. Just don't expect any POW and Google for swatches in case you end up with a colour other than what you anticipated.

I'll post a few more Makeup Revolution lippies here as and when I get around to roadtesting them, so what this space.

Xox

makeup revolution iconic pro lipstick- review and swatches

Of the Makeup Revolution lipstick haul I got, I saved the best till last. Meet the Iconic Pro lipstick.

For a budget brand, the packaging is hella sweet. Look at the rose gold detailing! Love it. This is the shade 'liberty matte'. There's an impressive shade range with these, and some of the colours (as with this one) come in two finishes. I opted for the matte rather than glossy finish, because if I'm gonna wear a purple, I want it to last and to not be streaky.

I was so impressed with it! The lipstick glided on smoothly and with great pigmentation. In the above swatch I'd applied it over lip balm, so it looks a little glossier than it ordinarily would. On bare lips though, it looks more semi-matte. It's super comfortable and hydrating, but I was worried the ultra creamy formula would fare poorly in the longevity stakes. Actually, it wasn't too bad. I had a cup of tea with (delicious) ginger biscuits and though there was transfer, my lips were very much purple by the end of it. The fact that it stains also contributes to the flattering fade, as it means you don't have to worry about nasty bare-lip patches. Oh, and it doesn't bleed at all, so no lip liner needed!

And hell, obviously the colour is gorgeous. I LOVE my purples, and this one is so funky and ugh. For £2.25, this is a must have. Like, you must have it. Go. Get it. 

xx

Makeup Revolution Lip Hug lipstick review and swatches

Today's review is on the Makeup Revolution Lip Hug lipstick, and boy are my lips glad that about that. The cold weather has made them so sore and dry, so a moisturising lipstick is just what the doctor ordered. These are a cheap and cheerful £2.50, and currently £1.25 on the site!

The packaging is pretty sleek for a budget brand, and not the least bit flimsy. The only potential problem is the shape of the bullet- it's flat and wide so you might struggle to get neat edges, especially if you have a defined cupid's bow. Personally, I can make the bullet work ok, but I prefer to use a lip brush just for the extra precision.

So anyway. I can see why it's called a lip hug. It hugs your lips like a dream- smooth, moist colour that makes your lips feel hydrated and plump, and with surprisingly great co,lour payoff. I was expecting it to be sheer, but it's actually pretty opaque. The finish has a soft sheen and the overall effect is pretty and comfortable, though unsurprisingly it isn't long lasting.

makeup revolutin lip hug- saviour will come

I got the shade 'saviour will come', and I'd desribe it as a blushed nutmeg. Super pretty and wearable. In the above swatch I've applied it with a light hand, but you can definitely build up the colour.

All in all, I'd say this is a really great product and it's well worth picking up a shade or two, especially if your lips need a hydrating pick me up.

Peace out xx

Makeup revolution I heart makeup lip lava- review and swatches

Sooooo. The next lippie up for review from my Makeup Revolution haul us the Lip Lava, a creamy liquid lipstick kind of thing that is a product dupe of Too Faced Melted liquified lipsticks, but a hell of a lot cheaper.  It's priced at a mere £2.99 and comes in a small shade range, of which I picked 'tremor'. Apparently, this is an exact dupe of Melted Peony.

Lip lava- tremor 

I was a little unsure about the squeeze tube packaging, thinking it would be messy and that the sponge tip wouldn't be able to define edges. Actually, it was fine. I managed to get the 'lava' on in a good clean coating. I don't know what I really expected the product to be like- maybe a creamy lacquer-ish gloss? This ain't that. It goes on creamy for sure, but it dries down to give the effect of a satin lipstick, with super opaque coverage that was fairly long lasting. 

Which was great! And you know what else was great? The colour itself. A super cute medium pink. The kind of pink the little girl in me squeals for. 

**UDATE. okay, maybe not so great. Once the formula fully dries, it can look crackly and crumbly and feels quite drying. It doesn't look noticeable with this shade because it's fairly natural, but be warned when it comes to the bolder shades. 

Are you squealing, or would you give it a pass? Lemme know what you think! Xx

makeup revolution I heart makeup the wow stick- review and swatches

A long while ago, I bough a whole bunch of Makeup Revolution goodies (obviously including some lippies) in a spontaneous online haul. But since they arrived, I just kind of left them in a 'to review' pile and forgot all about them. Yesterday, I did a very rare thing- I cleaned my shithole of a room. Well, I found the pile again and thought it was high time I got around to checking them out. So, without further ado...

So those are the lip products I got. The first two (lip lava and super wow stick) are from the sub brand I Heart Makeup, whereas the second two (iconic lipstick and lip hug) are from Makeup revolution. Today, I wore the Wow stick.

So first impressions: I like that it's twist-up, and that the shiny black plastic won't get too obviously smudgy and grubby looking. I loved the look of the colour. It was nice and slim so could fit easily into a clutch or pocket without taking up too much space.

Upon trying it on, I was instantly shocked. Purely because it was a crayon, I'd expected it to be sheer and glossy. NOPE. It was pigmented as hell, and completely matte. 'Wow' for real- the colour was so incredibly intense and delicious. Yes, it had some drag because of how matte it was, but the finish was flawless and incredibly long lasting. It was waterproof and even touch proof, with no transfer at all. In fact, the final effect was similar to what I'd expect of a liquid matte lipstick, and it was even hard to take off. I wore it for hours and hours, including meals and a cup of tea, and it was stick stuck fast to my lips. What a surprise!

I heart makeup the wow stick- Maria

Annnd that's what she looks like on. This shade is called Maria, and is a super dark vampy red. It's actually even darker than it looks in the picture, and is in fact a perfect dupe of Colourpop Ultra Matte lip in 'lax'. And at only £2.99 (currently a mere £1) it is pure theft.

So all in all, I am beyond in love with this. It blew my expectations out of the water and I am so glad I got it. However, if you're after a glossy sweep-it-on-in-a-hurry dewy crayon, this isn't for you, son.

xx

makeup revolution I heart makeup I heart my lips lipstick. review and swatches.

Bloody hell. That's the most hearts I've ever had put into a title. I Heart Makeup is a sub brand of Makeup Revolution, and they have two lipstick collections: The Lip Geek lipsticks and the I Heart My Lips lipsticks. It's a shade from the latter I'll be reviewing today.



The packaging is lightweight and a bit teenage, but that's the brand's target audience and at £2.49, if does the job, I ain't complaining. The bullet, as you can see, is heart shaped. It has an inner core with subtle shimmer and a matte outer. I'm not quite sure why, other than for the novelty factor- it looks completely matte on the lips.

Matte, but completely comfortable and not drying at all. And with rich, streak free colour payoff. That lasts. For ages. SERIOUSLY PEOPLE. I was expecting it to be okayish for a budget brand, but the formula blew my preconceptions to smithereens. You need to buy at least one of these. Have a look at that swatch!

makeup revolution I heart my lips- racing heart lipstick

Deep plummy gorgeousness. I'm in love. Tell me I'm not alone?