Review and swatch mix. Lippies!

If you've read my blog before, you'll know I live in Holland. Living in Holland has it's cons and pros. One of those cons, as a beauty-addict, is that our drugstores are pretty slow in catching up with the American and British ones, product-wise. And some brands are very hard to get or just not available at all. So when I heard that my friend Sheila was going to the States for her honeymoon, I very kindly asked her if she would bring me home some products. Beauty products are generally also cheaper in the States, and since she is AMAZING she said yes! Thank you so much!

I had made her a list of things, since she's not as much "in to" makeup as I am, trying to explain how everything looked and listing colours. Of the things I had asked her to get, she could find these three, which were the ones I was the most excited about! The others were two NYX blushes and a NYX Lipgloss.

The three beautiful products she brought me was a Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in the colour 020 Lovesick and two Maybelline ColorSensational Vivids, in the colours: 870 Shocking Coral and 875 Vivid Rose. Revlon as a brand is very hard to get in Holland AND the Balm Stains are not available here yet, maybe next year. The Vivids line from Maybelline is not available in Holland either, but I did see a sale on Maybelline lipsticks last time I was at the drugstore so they might be introducing them.

Let's kick off this post with the product I was lusting after the most... The Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain. These have been raved about on beautyblogs and in beautyvideos on Youtube for a long time now, and I was so sad when I learned they wouldn't be coming to Holland (at least in 2013). So when I heard Sheila was going to the US, I put this baby on the top of my list!

The Balm Stain comes in a packaging we've been seeing a lot lately. It's sort of a twist-up jumbo pencil, which makes for very easy application and no waste of product on sharpening the pencil. The Balm Stains are loved for their pigmentation and their longevity on the lips, is there truth to the tales? 

L-R: Built up coverage and a single layer.

When I first applied the Balm Stain it was very sheer, but you can build up coverage very easy with this. It has a very minty smell and feel on the lips. It tingles a little, but not a bad or scary way. When first applied it feels very moisturizing and is shiny as you see in the photo above. After about an hour or so, the shine goes away and you are just left with the stain on your lips. The stain lasts for hours without re-application and feels comfortable throughout the entire day. I wore this to a BBQ and it survived drinking, eating fairly fatty foods and a lot of chatting. Many stains can feel drying once they settle in to the lips and can bleed into fine lines as well, but not the Balm Stain! This is a very comfortable wear and it even moisturizes as well!

Here I am wearing the Balm Stain, combined with the Urban Decay Naked (1) palette. The colour Lovesick is a beautiful fucshia and goes very well with most skintones, from very pale to very dark! If you can get your hands on these, (they come in an array of colours) get one! They are great for work or special occasions! It was $9.99 at Walgreens, but I know for a fact that they are cheaper in other American stores and that there are often coupons or offers on these.

The first of the Maybelline Vivids I'll show you, is Vivid Rose. The Maybelline Vivids have gained a very good reputation, in a very short amount of time. They are bright, pigmented, comfortable to wear and makeup addicts all over the globe are loving these. Do they live up to their reputation? 

Both of the Vivids lipsticks were VERY hard to photograph, thanks to their bright colour. Vivid Rose is a deep, vibrant fuschia. The colour is just summer in a tube, it's so beautiful! The depth of the colour makes it look very chique, without being too serious. I really love it! The formula is very creamy, needs two thin layers for full opacity and wears extremely comfortably. As it is a creme finish, it does not last SUPER long. It will survive a light meal and maybe a drink, but that is it. 

The creme formula is shiny when applied and dries into a sort of satin finish. It feels like a lightweight lipbalm, it is even a little moisturizing as well!

Me, looking slightly derpy, wearing Vivid Rose combined with the Sleek Storm palette.

  

The Maybelline Vivid in Shocking Coral is the exact same formula and finish as Vivid Rose, so I won't go into detail about that. Let's just focus on the gorgeousness that is the colour!

It does not translate very well from the tube. Obviously it's called Shocking Coral and in the tube it does look a LITTLE coral, but mostly pink. It's very bright which is what makes it so hard to photograph.

This swatch is probably the photo that is the most true to the actual colour. It's BEAUTIFUL and goes very well with my pale skin. I wouldn't call it a straight up coral, but more of a warm pink.

Me wearing Shocking Coral, combined with neutrals from the Sleek Storm palette. 

The Maybelline Vivids were also $9.99 a piece, but again, I know for a fact that you can get them from $6.00 at other stores than Walgreens.

My naked lips! Excuse the disaster on my lower lip, these pictures were taken shortly after my trip to Paris and the smog there completely effed up my skin. So excuse the horrible skin!

Close up of the Revlon Kissable Balm Stain in 020 Lovesick. This is about as opaque as it gets.

Closeup of the Maybelline Vivid in Vivid Rose. Here you can properly see the depth of the colour!

 And lastly Shocking Coral. This is a pretty true-to-colour picture. It's a warm pink, more than a coral (To me at least!).


As you might have guessed, I LOVE ME SOME BRIGHT LIPS! Do you wear bright lipsticks? If not, howcome? Have you tried any of these colours(formulas? Let me know down below!


Thank you for reading and until next time!

XXX