Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

With a number of these crayon style balms currently on the market it has taken me quite a while to work through my selection. However, I was so impressed with Revlon's offering in their Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain I made sure to set aside an afternoon to show you a selection of shades and how they look on the lips!

So let's see how these balms/ stains measure up!

 

On the skin you can see that they are glossy and deliver a good amount of pigment in just a few strokes. I love the ease of application with these and as the swatch shows you can get a pretty precise line as they are not too soft.

So what about the lips?

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

I was really impressed with the buildability of these balms. The swatches above show a fairly full application, but as you can see they are still super glossy. I love a versatile lip product and the fact that these can be worn as just a sheer tint, or full on colour, makes them a handbag essential.

The Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains are available for £7.99 here. Which is your favourite shade?

YSL Glossy Stain

Glossy Stains from Yves Saint Laurent are designed to provide intense colour and shine, while being extremely long wearing. They look like a gloss, last like a stain and have the deep pigment of a lipstick. I love a bold lip colour so I was really excited to try these to see if they really deliver in all these categories!

I was kindly sent the Glossy Stain in shade 1 - an extremely deep and vampy purple.

On the skin this shade definitely has a plummy undertone with a high gloss finish. When first applied it has a smooth gel texture and can be sheered out a little or built up for greater impact. It fades down to a matte dark pink, which actually lasted on my hand all day!

My lips are quite pigmented so they counteracted the blue/ purple tint and gave the overall colour more of a red undertone. The application did require a steady hand, but the pointed tip of the applicator made it easy to get a defined edge without the aid if lipliner.

As you can see with just one slick of gloss the colour is extremely intense, however I did find that it looked darker on the inside of my lips in some areas. I'm not sure if this is just because my lips were dry that day so the tint clung to these areas more... I definitely need to play around with this shade a little more as I am determined to make it work for me in the future!

I am also keen to try out some of the lighter colours to see how intense they will look and play around with adding the Glossy Stain over a lipstick.

The YSL Glossy Stain retails at £22.50 and can be purchased online here.

Have you tried any of YSL's lip stains? What are your favourite shades? xxx

Dr Lipp Balm

Dr.Lipp balm is 100% natural, tasteless and odourless, which makes it extremely versatile. It can be used to moisturise any dry areas, soothe rashes, calluses, eczema, scars, sunburn and especially dry lips! 

Dr. Lipp’s original balm was historically used by nursing mothers to soothe their sensitive nipples, hence the rather alternative name -nipple balm for lips!

 So what is this miracle balm made of? The answer lies in sheep!

The oils and waxes sheep naturally produce to protect their fleece are scientifically known to be the most similar to oils also produced by human skin. Dr.Lipp’s formula is made from these same natural oils and waxes processed and purified to a Medical Grade standard of purity and cleanliness, removing all environmental polutants. The formula is so pure it is termed Medical Grade Lanolin, which makes it suitable for pharmaceutical use.

The balm itself has quite a thick consistency, but quickly softens on contact. It strongly reminds me of Elizabeth Arden's 8 hour cream, but without any distinctive scent. Once applied it is colourless, but leaves a gorgeous shine, so it can be used as a light, moisturising gloss over your favourite lip colour!

For more information on this amazing balm you can visit the Dr Lipp website here. You can also purchase the balm for £11 on the Zuneta website here.

Have you tried Dr Lipp balm? What are your favourite moisturising products? xxx

Joliebox

Starting from December the wonderful Boudoir Privé has joined hands with JolieBox! JolieBox is the leading beauty box subscription service in France, having worked with a range of luxurious, high-end brands such as Benefit, By Terry, Caudalie, Kiehls, Essie and Lancôme.

Both services embrace Parisian sophistication; mixing an eye for high quality samples while seeking out niche products. By joining with JolieBox Boudoir Privé aims to continue to provide new and exciting brands to sample, alongside a wider range of established brands at the height of luxury.

Each box still has the same chic French flavour, contains 5 deluxe samples and the price and payments have remained the same. So without further ado let's take a look at December's box!

 

The December Joliebox contained 5 samples, as well as 2 bonus items!

1. OPI Gold Shatter Nail Lacquer (full size)
2. Mitchell and Peach shower wash (mini) 
3. New CID Cosmetics i-gloss (full size)
4. Jane Iredale 24-Karat Gold Dust (full size)
5. YON-KA Vital Defense Anti-aging prevention cream (mini)

Bonus

• Kusmi Detox Tea (20g)
• Joliebox concealer brush

This is definitely one of my favourite beauty boxes of 2011. It contains a great range of products from a variety of brands. My favourite product in the box was the i-gloss in Baby Doll (£19 here)- a gorgeous creamy shade in fun and practical packaging. 

 With it's light up wand and mirror it makes it perfect for application on the go!

The gloss is a gorgeous peachy pink shade with subtle blue and gold reflects. It is pigmented, without looking too opaque on the lips and gives a beautiful glossy finish to the lips, without being sticky.

You can subscribe to JolieBox for £10 per month plus p&p to receive 5/6 deluxe sized samples.

Have you tried the new JolieBox? What did you think of December's box? Do you subscribe to any beauty boxes? What are your favourites? xxx

Wonderlast

Despite being a perfectionist, when I leave the house and am ready for the day touching up is the last thing I worry about. Once my makeup is done I very rarely do anything else to it, unless I am going somewhere special for the evening.

To tell you the truth I am not a fan of long-lasting lipsticks or glosses as the ones I have tried (mainly Maybelline and MAC) have been so drying. Since my lips get chapped very easily, I would rather just wear lip balm all day, or re-apply lippie, than walk around with flakey lips.. yuck!

Therefore, I was very pleasantly surprised by Sleek's new Wonderlast lipglosses as after 3 days of continuous wear my lips did not feel dry or sensitive. I would not say it is moisturising, or nourishing for the lips, but it certainly was not as harsh as other long-lasting lipsticks I have used! I chose the shade Purity - a nude milky rose pink that would be a flattering colour on most skin tones.
This is what the wonderlast step 1 colour side looks like when applied with the sponge doe foot applicator provided.
It is a matte finish lipstick and is well pigmented. One thin coat managed to considerably tone down my naturally very red lips. Before applying step 2, the gloss, it is recommended you should wait 45 seconds for the lipstick to dry, but I had to wait a little longer as after a minute it was still a little tacky.

This is how the finished product looks with the clear gloss applied on top. This side has a brush similar to MAC's lustreglass/ dazzleglass, which I prefer as I feel it gives you more control. The gloss smells really yummy, like coconut, and has a wonderful smooth finish with zero stickiness!
After 2-3 hours of wear, including a meal and a drink, the colour held up well, though it is definitely less glossy.Overall I was honestly impressed with Wonderlast, and even more impressed by the price being £3.91 in Superdrug. There are 8 shades available and I shall definitely be going to check out more! I think they are even doing a deal now where you can buy two for £6.99.

Do you guys like long-lasting glosses? Do you have any favourites?