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

topshop chameleon glow in shuffle the cards- review and swatches.

Hello. Remember me? I've been a terrible blogger and have neglected my little Internet space. Forgive me my children. But fear not, I've collected a mountain of lippies lately and will share them with you soon. Today though, I want to share a different product. It's the Topshop 'chameleon glow'. 

Topshop chameleon glow in shuffle the cards 

Holy beauty. Just look at that. It's a duochrome shimmery thing (more like fine glitter actually) which shifts from lime-gold to a pink-peach, and it's multi use so can be used as an eyeshadow or as a magical highlighter. In the swatch below, I'm wearing it alone over my eyelid with no primer. 

Topshop chameleon glow in shuffle the cards 

It looks much more vivid in person and as usual, my shitty camera can't capture the true shimmeriness. But even still, it looks beautiful, right? It's also a lovely layering shade- pat it over a purple or a red for a swoonworthy eye look.

As far as application goes, it's as expected. Blendable but with a little fallout. It's a little steep for one little pan, but it's so unique and beautiful, and considering it's multi use, I'd say it's definitely worth it.

Stay tuned for those lippie posts, babeface xx

topshop lip cream- review and swatches

  

I'm back with another blindingly bright lip cream. I know, it's winter, and I'm technically supposed to lay off the neons... but what can I say? I just love me some colour. Today, I've been wearing Topshop's lip cream in the shade 'pout'. Take a look!

   Aww, look at those pretty polkadots. And look at that colour! Pout is an orange. Not a coral. A proper, in yer face, super opaque, mega vivid ORANGE, baby. Even I was a bit intimidated by it, and kept wiping off the excess product from the doefoot in a bid to tone it down. It didn't do much. It goes on perfectly true to colour and makes no apologies about it.

    Now, this is a lip cream that applies and wears as the word 'cream' would suggest. Slightly thick, moistening, plenty of slip. It doesn't bleed or feather despite it's formula and pigmentation, though it does transfer, as it remains a 'cream' consistency and doesn't set to the touchproof, matte finish of similar products. Nope, it's very much a satin finish that stays sort of 'wet' if you know what I mean. 

  Initially, I was cautious about the finish as I suspected the high transfer would equate to rubbish wear time, but I'm pleased to report it doesn't affect longevity at all. I reckon it's because the lip cream is SO BLOODY PIGMENTED, that you could stamp your orange pout all over the place and there'd still be a punch of colour left on it. Also, the slip allows you to rub your lips together to easily redistribute the colour without needing to reapply all over.

   Oh, and it smells like yummy vanilla.

topshop lip cream- pout

topshop lip cream- pout

topshop lip cream- pout

topshop lip cream- pout

Have you tried any of these? I'm quite interesting in the nude shade, 'dust'. Share your thoughts with me, lovelies xox

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?

topshop gloss ink relentless: review and swatches

It's another shade of red in gloss stain series! First up, we had a wine  red with the YSL glossy stain. Then it was an apple red with the Baviphat Urban Dollkiss. Now, we have jewel toned, ruby-esque, blue toned, brilliant red brought to us by Topshop, in their Gloss Ink stained gloss, in the shade 'relentless'. I'll tell you a secret. I thought I was buying an orange shade! Never mind though, because I'm finding this shade beautiful indeed. Let's take a closer look, shall we?

   Topshop's beauty line manages to combine 'minimalism' with 'cute' and 'cool'. Think spots and stripes. The gloss inks are no exception- with matte, rubber look packaging with shiney black detailing, it's classic Topshop goodness. Ok, it might be prone to catching dust, but it's no biggie. It comes with a standard doefoot which I found easy to use, and the formula is of a super glossy richly pigmented gloss which stains the lips. It does, and does so very well. Longevity, like the previous gloss stains reviewed, was impressive. 

    But. There is a but. The reason I can't completely gush about this product is because it has two flaws that the other products don't have. One, it's sticky. Not  pva glue-lipgloss-nightmare sticky, but there is a slight tackiness which just ain't as lovely as the sliky, creamy feel of its contenders. And, secondly, it feathers, Again, it's not a huge amount- in fact it's only noticeable up close, but it's strange for me as lip products very rarely feather on me. 

    I don't want to be too negative here because I do love the shade, and can in fact see my self finishing up the tube. But I would bear in mind that the formula isn't foolproof. That said, it's only £8, so beats the YSL and Baviphat in terms of affordability and availability. 

   Finally, some swatches. It looked way more vivid in real life. *shakes fist at camera*

what do you reckon? Will you be giving it a whirl?

x