July Favourites

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hello everybody!

Halfway through the year and before we know it ... IT'S CHRISTMAS! How time flies by so quickly! This is my first time showing what I've been using mostly throughout July especially with the heat.

1. Bare Minerals sample - shade light
This little sample has proven to be handy this summer and for me to know it's the ideal shade without buying the full size. The size is suitable for cosmetic bags on the go.

2. Paco Rabanne - Black XS
 The floral scent is perfect for the summer and probably one of my favourite fragrance out of my collection.

3. Soap & Glory Heel Genius
 I tend to wear gladiator shoes during the summer and it's never nice to go out with cracked heels so this does the trick for me. I only apply it the night before so I have soft heels for the next day, avoiding the slippery feeling right before wearing the shoes.

4. Benefit's Cha Cha Tint (sample size)
I've never used orange before but after dabbing a few dots along my cheekbone and on my lips it definitely adds a nice flush of colour instead of the usual pink/red tone.
(whats with me and samples...hehe)

5. LUSH Bubblegum lip scrub
My lips can be drying so I use this lip scrub at least once a week if not twice. I like my lipsticks so the last thing I want is the obvious dry chapped lips which isn't attractive. Tempting to lick off but...yeah I'm sure you know where I'm going with this 
┐(´•_•`)┌

6. NYC felt liner
I smile and laugh too much the problem I face is the wonderful panda eyes straight away. For me I personally find that this liner does smudge a bit (probably because of my oily eyelids) but other than that it's fine... except for the smell

7. Superdrug Vitamin E night cream
Can't say much about this product to be fair. It is likeable but after using face wash every day and night I could feel and see my dry skin afterwards so the night cream is within arms length before I hit the bed.

8. NYC Applelicious Glossy Lip Balm in Big Apple Red

This has been with me since the start of the summer. Ever since purchasing this from Superdrug I have been in love with the apple scent and the colour it gives on my lips. It's very moisturising and buildable. However if your lips aren't smooth enough cracks and loose layers will show up. So exfoliating is 
IMPORTANT

That's all of my favourite products from last month, looking forward to seeing others! :D

Mucho love,


Tofu x


Disclaimer: All products mentioned above have been bought with my own money and in no way have been given to me to provide a boost in the brand. :D
(I need to improve on disclaimers part hehe)

Lip stain swatches #1

There are different kind of lip staining products out there so I thought I'd swatch what I can at my local Superdrug. This post is solely for the purpose of comparing the brands and the consistency for each one plus the colours.

Rimmel Lip Stain collection (4):

For this product you would use the stain first before using the balm to seal the colour and moisture in. The colours are very dense and they don't rub away that easily so you can imagine how they maintain the "stained lips" effect :)

This is probably one of the brands that can get away with "loud" colours but that's my opinion. For me personally I'm not keen on the balm at the end of the stick as it reminds me of glue stick or glue gun sticks. The packaging does match with the tints as intended so that's a positive thing, however...it took me three days to have the denser colours completely off my hand (bath, soap you name it). For £5.99 it's not a budget brand for a student like myself.


Miss Sporty Dr Balms (5):

Left - right swatches: 02 Glam Kiss, 03 Gossip Kiss, 04 Heartbreaker Kiss, 05 Honey Moon Kiss and 01 Sweet Kiss

The swatches for the Miss Sporty range is clearly different from Rimmel but the consistency is almost clear. I bought Glam Kiss (02) and it is moisterising for my lips but doesn't show much of the colour however for £1.99 you can't go wrong. Also they smell nice, fruity and sweet! The product itself looks like a normal lip balm you would buy for rescuing your dry lips.


NYC Smooch Proof 16H Lip Stains (3):

Very soft to the skin but sadly as they were 'TESTER's the consistency was difficult to show for 498 Berry Long Time (middle)

The colours are lighter and softer than the packaging so it wouldn't be too harsh of a tone against your skin. I bought 490 Persistent Pink as my lips are quite pigmented as it is so I opted for the lighter shade. These were sold at £3.99 as the felt tip applicator would be perfect for precision. The colour of the packaging remind me of raspberry jelly but different tones but NYC are known for their vibrant colours throughout their makeup range.

Collection 2000 Colour Pout Lipstain (6):

Left - right swatches: Heartbreaker, Kiss, Flirt, Tease, Pout and Pucker. A range of colours shown here and each match accordingly to the swatches on my hand (except for the 4th and 5th).

The applicator is again a felt tip but at the same time the consistency is very runny so the swatches, particularly the red and pink, bled a lot on my hand. £4.99 each, six different colours but with pigmented lips I may have to use nude lipstick/gloss beforehand but the runny consistency doesn't entice me sadly. It's interesting how only the cap and the bottom tip are showing the colours reminding me of felt tip pens I use to have when I was a child in school, probably not the best design I could pick out of my makeup bag.


GOSH Long Lasting Lip Marker (4):

Vibrant colours!!! Swatches from top left - bottom left: 003 Berry, 001 Red, 005 Soft Rose and 002 Pink. There was a 004 Chocolate but that was dried out to the point where nothing can be swatch from that.

Unlike the Collection 2000 range the consistency is similar to Miss Sporty range but much better and at the price of £6.99 I think this would be worth it. The packaging is similar to a felt pen with the chunkiness but distinctive to the GOSH range with the black, sophisticated look.


MUA Kiss Proof Lip Stains (3):

Very light against my skin complexion as you can see with the swatches. Left - right: Fruitillicious, Kissalicious and Fabulicious.

   
MUA is renowned for their affordable range at Superdrug starting at £1 but recently expanding to MUA Professional. These products would be perfect for that soft stain effect and that's £3 for this lip stain. The packaging itself looks lightweight with the shiny text reflecting back at you but at the same difficult to see without the store lights waving over your shoulders.

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Now comparing these six brands I have to say that all achieve similar results but some lack in consistency others lack in packaging. However I personally feel some of them are very drying on my hand, making them impossible to rub off until a few days later. 

Questions: why are there so many of these lip stains to choose from I don't even understand the importance of this product for starters. Isn't a lipstick enough to give your lips a flush of colour or is it the fact that lipsticks wear off so easily it's a hassle to be retouching throughout the day? When did these lip stains become popular? Why are there so many complaints of the product drying out the lips and people wasting money, trial and errors are happening in the world of beauty, etc.

Why I numbered this as '#1' is because there are other brands out there that I haven't been able to swatch or they lack samples so I will pop into my local Boots for this opportunity.

My poor hand ~ sacrificing my skin for the sake of these swatches. If you personally have a favourite lip staining product please feel free to mention below in the comments or you want to give your opinion as to why these products are so popular, I need to know why as a fellow beauty lover. :)



Mucho love,


Tofu x