Battle of the red tinted lip balms

Hi girls!
Remember my blog post on 'battle of the eyeliners'? If you haven't seen it yet, give it a reed here :) Well, since I've bought a gazillion tinted lip balms the past couple of months, I thought I'd do a comparison of all the red tinted lip balms I have.

I have 7 contestants who are ready to take on each other. Are y'all ready? GO!
Here's the overview of the lip balms. They're swatched according to the separate reviews down below. Just in case, here's the list with all the brand names:

On the left you'll see the original swatches and on the right they were all put to the test whether they'll last after swiping it away with saliva.

 

 

 

 

* NYC

* HEMA

* Korres

* Bourjois

* Maybelline

* Essence

* Canmake

 

 

 



 

Let's see how they perform: 

I didn't pay a lot for this lip balm, but I can tell you that you're definitely getting your money's worth. The color pay off is quite stunning and has a very sweet scent to it. The packaging is okay, it's clear that this is meant for teenage girls who like cute stuff. When it was it put up to the saliva test this was actually the only lip balm that didn't even smear a little bit. Next to the packaging and the pigmentation, it doesn't dry out the lips after wearing off. Yes, it wears off, after a 4 hours and after having a meal. Nonetheless, for a drugstore lip balm, this is not bad at all. 7,5/10


NYC Applelicious: Big Apple Red

HEMA is a Dutch drugstore and I've seen this lying on the shelves. I thought it was interesting in how the drugstore's version would work. This is a the crayon type of lip balm and I really like these types. It makes the application just that tad more fun. These are not as hydrating as I want them to be, but they'll be okay if you apply a clear lip balm underneath. They do have a some what vanilla scent to them. Unfortunately they do wear off after an hour or so, so don't expect to last for the entire night. Very affordable but worthy a 5/10

HEMA: red

Yes, I already admitted I'm a lip junkie. And no lip balm collection would be complete without ONE high end one. I splurged on a Korres lip balm because I heard such good things on it.
I used to love those little pots where you had to dig in with your finger to get product out. Until I learned about hygiene in the beauty department and I switched to stick forms very quickly. But that doesn't take away my love for those little pots. If the product is good, I'll try it. And man oh man, am I glad I purchased this. This is hydrating, lasts long and gives a great color pay off. They have a slight scent to them, but nothing too much. If only these came out in a stick form. You're probably going to say: Lily, you're not kept up to date well? They do exist. I know! BUT, they don't have the same formula :( They're simply not as good as the pot versions. If this would have some UV protection, this would have been my HG. A well deserved 9/10

Korres lip butter: Pomegranate

You know I love me some drugstore goodies. When the crayons by Bourjois came out, I had no clue how they performed. I got myself one and ended up buying 2 more. That says it all, right? I love the color pay off, they're very well pigmented but they're not lipstick va va voom. They have SPF, wear long on me, has a subtle sweet scent and are surprisingly very hydrating. You see in the saliva test that the Bourjois lip balm actually stained the back of my hand a little bit more than the others. Hands down, my favorite product by Bourjois this year. 9,5/10

 

Bourjois Color Boost: Red Sunrise

For all those Baby Lips fans out there, I got your back! They finally came to Europe and we've waited a long time for them! I do own some Asian Baby Lips as well, but they don't carry the pigmented versions...boo! Luckily Belgium got the opportunity to dispatch them as well and I'm sure a lot of European lips are smiling their teeth off :) These Baby Lips are worth the hype: hydrating, longwearing, good color pay off and are strongly sweet scented. The only thing I wish I could check off as well is a UV-protection. They're very affordable and I have these lying around my bed just in case my lips decide to chap. Good stuff! 9/10

Maybelline Baby Lips: Cherry Me

One of the most affordable lip balms I own are the ones by Essence. But don't judge a book by its cover! This lip balm makes sure your lips stay hydrated with the desired color on them.  No SPF and slightly sweet scented, but worth a 8,5/10

Essence Glow Tinted Lip Balm: 01 Light Up!

And last but not least, the Stay On Balm Rouge by Canmake. This moisturizing lip balm gives your lips the most natural red you have seen. I love color, but I still prefer natural looks over over-the-top looks. This lip balm has a great color pigmentation. As longevity, this actually stayed on my lips after eating. It wasn't until I wiped my lips that the color came off. And another plus? This actually has an SPF protection. So no worries, Canmake to the rescue! 9,5/10

Canmake Stay-On Balm Rouge

Drugstore or not, they're all quite good. For those who want to step out of their clear box but are afraid of bold lipsticks, try the tinted lip balms. I like how you can build up the color by applying a light coat or you can go over it 3 to 4 times to make it pop.

Top 3:

3. Korres lip butter
2. Bourjois Color Boost
1. Canmake Stay On Balm Rouge

And Canmake has won the battle! I know I gave both Canmake and Bourjois the same points, but the winner beat at the packaging department. This Korean brand is known for its cute packaging. Bourjois is stepping up their game with their latest beauty goodies, so hopefully they'll keep up the good work. And Korres can join the top 3. This lip butter goes on smoothly, but for hygienic reasons it didn't take the crown.

Hope you all enjoyed this article! But do tell me, what's your favorite tinted lip balm? :)

Review Canmake Stay-On Balm Rouge

I'm sure you've all heard of the Revlon lip butters :) Apparently the Koreans have found a dupe for these. I'm talking about Canmake Stay On Balm Rouge.

Canmake Stay On Balm Rouge

Before I get into the product, let's just enjoy the moment and look at the cute little tube of lip balm. Canmake is known for its cute packaging and I have to say that they didn't fail on that department this time. The simple flower background is a subtle way to make it look more appealing to customers. Sneaky marketeers, those Asians!

As the product itself, I have to say that I freak-ing love this lip balm!
Not only has it a good color pay off, but it moisturizes my lips as well. And I have to say that the color stays on for about 4 hours, which isn't bad at all! I had a meal with this lip balm and it didn't come off until I wipes my lips with a tissue. You don't feel like you have anything on, hence the lip balm, but this one is there to stay.

Another thing worth mentioning: SPF protection. This has a UV shield. It doesn't say how much, but just knowing it has one, makes it more easy for me to reach for this one than for a lip balm that doesn't have SPF protection at all.

The little tube is handy to throw in your purse for touch ups during the day. And frankly, it's one of mine cutest lip balms ever.

Here's a swatch of the balm:

I've swatched this twice on my hand so you could see that the color is actually buildable.
On the top I've swatched it only once, but on the bottom you'll see a deeper color because I went over it for about 4 times.
I don't have the balls to wear a bold lip, but these tinted lip balms are a great try out. They're not translucent but the color isn't as in-your-face as lipsticks.
You can easily wear it sheer during daytime, but when the lights go out...BAM, that's when you and your Canmake Stay On come in and make every head turn your way, haha!

I think it's a great lip balm. I've used the Revlon lip butter before, but you have to admit:
Asians rock at packaging. That little effort convinced me on sticking with Canmake lip balms.

What do you prefer: Revlon or Canmake?

FeelUnique haul

Hello there beauties!

About a month ago FeelUnique had their summer sale on, so I went a little bit crazy on the website :)

First off, I ordered everything over a month ago, but it took over 5 weeks to arrive in Belgium. The sites claims it takes about 5 - 10 days to ship within Europe. After waiting for 2 whole weeks I mailed customer service and they kindly asked me to wait 28 days before taking contact with them again. I waited, waited and waited... 4 weeks later I contacted them again to ask why my package hasn't arrived yet. Since it took so long, they said it was considered lost in the postal system. I reordered everything without any costs and one week later ... BAM, I got my package in the mail. It took a long time to get the package to me, but happy ending anyway.
I will continue ordering at FeelUnique, because I think they have good products for reasonable prices. Anyway, this intro has been long enough. Let's have a look at what I bought:

FeelUnique haul

Most part of what I bought isn't available in Belgian stores. Or the ones that are available in Belgium were significantly cheaper online. I worked with what I could find. Let's get started, shall we?

I have quite the oily scalp. It can actually look greasy the next day, and that's the main reason why I'm digging those dry shampoos, my savior! I've tried a lot of shampoo that should fight against oily scalps, but next to Head&Shoulders there's no other shampoo I really like. I've been on the hunt for another shampoo so I could switch my shampoos so that my scalp wouldn't get used to 1 shampoo. After doing some research I decided to get me this one:

Redken Scalp Relief Oil Detox shampoo

If you've been following me for a while, you'd know I like taking my Clarisonic to pamper my skin from time to time. I've had my brush head for quite a while now, so I ordered another brush head. Only this time I got the Deep Pore Cleansing one. In the beginning of my Clarisonic time, I was scared the brush would be too harsh for my sensitive skin, but apparently my skin has been loving the little tool. I truly hope my skin reacts just as well to this head brush :)

Clarisonic Replacement Brush Head: Deep Pore Cleansing

Since I'm still on the hunt for my HG moisturiser I bumped into the following product:

Murad Oil Control Mattifier

Supposedly this should mattify the face like nobodies business AND it contains SPF. It should control the oils on the face, so I'll give this a go and hope for the best.

We have Rimmel in our drugstores, but for some reason they don't carry the Scandaleyes waterproof eye liners. They have the non-waterproof ones, but my watery eyes will turn it into smudge town in seconds. I've heard a lot of good things about these eye liners, so I'm hoping my sensitive eyes will bare with these and make me fall in love with them :)

Rimmal Scandaleyes Waterproof Khol Kajal Eye Liners: black and purple

Being a lip balm hoarder I just had to get me some lip balms.
I got the Burt's Bees tinted lip balm in Hibiscus. I heard so much about this product, I just had to give this goodie a try. It's a lovely tinted old spiced rosy color that's very moisturizing on the lips.

Burt' Bees Tinted Lip Balm: Hibiscus

My second lip balm (because I just can't get enough of those tinted lip balms) is another one by Korres. I already own the lip butter in pomegranate, but since I'm in love with that one, I decided to get myself a second one. This is the mango scented one and looks a little bit orange. I lovely texture that goes on smoothly on the lips.

Korres Lip Butter: mango

If you're into lip stuff, I'm sure you've heard of the Rimmel Apocalips Lip Laquers before. They've been raved about in the beauty community for months and they've caught my attention as well. Unfortunately the price got my fully attention as well, since they're about 5€ cheaper on the website than in the Belgian drugstores.

Rimmel Apocalips Lips Lacquer: Celestial

As for my last item, it's not quite a beauty item. I bought an insect repellent pump spray since I'm on holiday. I saw this popping up when I was about to check out and thought it would be handy to order as well so I wouldn't have to go out and buy it. Pure laziness, I know!

Mosi-guard Natural Insect Reellent Pump Spray

Anyway, that was my haul from FeelUnique. Should you want me to do a review on any of the products, let me know in the comment bar below and I'll get back to you asap :)

YesStyle haul

Since I didn't do a lot of summer sale shopping, I justified it by shopping online (don't act like you don't do it!)

I didn't buy a lot of YesStyle, just a few things, but thought I wanted to share it with you anyway.
If you haven't heard of YesStyle, basically it's an Asian online shop where you can buy make up, clothing, health stuff, and so on from a wide variety of brands. I like it that they're all Korean, Japanese or Chinese findings, so the chance of having my European fellow habitants wearing the same thing will be a lot slimmer. Who doesn't like to feel unique? :)

Their shipping to Europe may take an eternity, but I like their website. It makes it all worth while :) Mostly it takes about a month time to ship a package without any costs.

But enough chit chat, let's jump right into it!

I only got 4 items, because I have another beauty haul coming up soon :)
Let's get started with the clothing:



YesStyle

If anyone would describe my clothing style, it would definitely be casual. I'm the kind of girl who likes to put on a white T, some shorts, sneakers and off I am. But, it's not because I like simple tees that they the image on it can't be special. This is a short sleeved white T-shirt with a cute little man on it who's wearing headphones. It's simple, but cute :)


My second clothing item is a playsuit (or a short jumpsuit). It's cobalt blue with a drawstring to synch in the waist to give it that feminine look to it. I think this look sophisticated, yet it'll be comfy enough to do whatever you want.





Then on to make up!

YesStyle

Whenever I'm buying online at an Asian store I have to look whether they carry my favorite eyeliner pencil. If you haven't seen my review/swatch on it, click here. This is by the brand Jealousness and is aaaaah-mazing!
I thought I'd buy a back up of this eyeliner so I'm sure I wouldn't run without it whenever I'm in the mood for a sultry look.


Last but not least, I've heard good stuff about the Canmake's stay on lip balms. And as a lip balm junkie, I just had to get this and give it a go. I really like it so far, but I don't want to give too many information since I'm planning to do a review on it. So keep your eyes peeled for it!


That was my haul from YesStyle! It was a very short one, but thought I would want to share it with you all, so ... hope you enjoyed it and stay tuned for more! :)

Favorite products of the month: September 2013

Another end of a month means another listing of my favorite products of the month!
Maybe you've noticed that I haven't been doing these king of post every month, that's because I usually use the same products for quite some while.

The products that do make it to the 'favorite products of the month-post' are or awesome products I use on a regularly basis or I've discovered them recently and I just want to share them with you.

Anyway, enough chit chat for now, let's jump right into it :)

My face has been very bad to me the last couple of weeks. I've been using my Benzac which contains 5% benzoylperoxide to treat the blemishes, I've been using my Clarisonic more often and I've rediscovered a scrub to get rid of the dead skin cells. You've probably heard of this scrub before, it's the St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot scrub. This scrub is the Allure readers' choice award winner and yes, it is quite good actually. It comes out as a pinkish white cream with orange beeds in it to exfoliate the skin. As the name gives it away it has a pleasant apricot scent which isn't too overwhelming. After using this scrub my skin feels very soft. A good alternative to my Nivea Visage Pure Effect Peel Soft which is more a mattifying scrub than it is an exfoliating scrub.

For facial make up products, the waterproof Jealousness gel eyeliner has been taking care of my smoky eye looks. These eyepencils go on very smoothly, no tucking, no going over the same place more than one time to darken it up, good pigmentation, ... By far, one of my favorite eye pencils! I got this pencil from an online Asian beauty shop, if you want to try it out as well, click here :)

Jealousness: waterproof gel eyeliner: black

I've been digging the Bourjois cream blushes. They're a cream to powder blush and the old spices color Sweet Cherry is a wonderful color for my complexion.

Although summer is coming to an end, the oils on my face haven't decided to call it a day. They've been excited to come out since summer has started. To solve this problem, mattifying papers have been my best friend. I've been using several ones, because I keep a certain brand in my purse and some in my make up bag. Catrice, Sasa, Clean and Clear, ... they all get the job done, so I don't really care what brand they're from.

I have been loving lip stuff lately, well actually always, but I've discovered some great lip goodies the last couple of months. Not just the regular lipbalms, but the tinted versions.
One of Korres' best selling products is the lip butter. These are little pots with a scented and tinted lip balm in it, but dang...they're good!

Korres lip butter: Pomegranate

I've done a blog post on the Bourjois Color Boost glossy lipsticks before. If you'd like to give it a read, click here. They have a good pigmentation, are quite cheap and they're cute looking. If you haven't seen them before, they're basically like a big fat crayon to color in your lips.

Bourjois Color Boost glossy finish lipsticks

These have been my fav's of the month. I'm still trying out a bunch of new products, time will tell whether they will make it to my next favorite products of the month! Until then, see you soon!

Review Essence Glow tinted lip balms

Hi there!

Yes, you can expect another review on some tinted lip balms. And yes, I really am a lip junkie. I bought myself 2 tinted lip balms by the drugstore brand Essence.

When I swatched these, I was quite surprised by the pigmentation. If you know me, you know I like natural looks and even though I choose pigmented lip balms I still prefer them to be quite natural looking and no too overpowering.

Let's have a look at them:

Essence Glow tinted lip balms

The packaging is simple, but I like the simplicity of it. They're small, so very convenient to throw on your purse and the twist lip balm is great for hygienic reasons. The color of the packaging show what color it is, which is good for those lazy people like me :)

The first thing that I noticed when I opened it was the scent. It has a sweet candy scent to it, which doesn't bother me because I have a sweet tooth (not that I'll be eating it, but at least I don't mind it).

As you can see I own 2 shades:

Essence Glow tinted lip balm: 01 Light Up!

Essence Glow tinted lip balm: 02 Glam Up!

They're both more hydrating than I thought they would be and the color pigmentation is greater than I expected. The creamy texture to it makes is easy to glide on the lips.

As for longevity, they last about 3 to 4 hours. It will come off when you drank or ate something. So don't expect any magic to happen.

Here below you'll find some swatches to check out the color:

left: 01 Light Up! - right: 02 Glam Up!

Light Up! is a red tinted lip balm, although you shouldn't expect a deep red from it. remember they're lip balms and apply sheer on the lips.

Glam Up! is a coral lip balm which is a very subtle pretty color on the lips. It gives you the natural look.



If you look closely you'll notice a subtle difference, but from a distant Light Up! looks almost the same as Glam Up!





Whenever buying drugstore products, I try to withhold my excitement until I get to swatch them. I have to say that some of the drugstore brands really have stepped up their game.

I've always seen Catrice and Essence together. Both brands have significantly grown packaging and quality wise. Although you only pay a few euros as a matter of speaking, some products are actually very good. It's quite obvious if you look at the price ranging: you just can't expect the best of the best from a drugstore brand.
I think Catrice and Essence are great brands for those who just got into make up and are looking for very affordable make up items.

I can only say: experiment, experiment, experiment. There are times when I even think that some drugstore brands can beat higher end products. Don't judge a book by its cover. You may be finding your HG in the drugstore section :)

Clinique's chubby sticks

Interested in this post? Then you're just a lip balm freak as I am :)

I bought one a couple of months ago and fell in love with the concept.
Basically a chubby stick is a like a lip balm that looks like a big crayon that you can twist up without having it to sharpen it...EVER!

Clinique Chubby sticks

These lip balms kind of remind me of Maybelline's baby lips.

They're a little moisturizing, they're tinted and are balms that should be twisted up for usage.







I'm sure that this lip balm concept sounds familiar to the most of you:

• Revlon's Just Bitten lip balm stain
• Tarte's Lipsurgence
• HEMA lip sticks
• NARS Velvet Gloss Pencils
• and plenty of others brands

Mega Melon - Woppin' Watermelon - Curvy Candy

I have noticed that Chubby Sticks are those with the most sheer shades and are the least glossy balms, yet they're moisturizing enough to keep me going for a few hours.

Swatches Chubby Sticks

Top down:
Woppin' Watermelon : a sheer cool toned pink. Can be a dark pink if it's built up.
Mega Melon: a corally, old spiced pink
Curvy Candy: a sheer rosy pink

Do I like them? Yes.
Do I love them? No.

I'm still on the hunt for a good tinted lip balm, but these will do the trick for now :)
And by the way, how can you not smile just be reading the name?