Nars - Lip Lacquer in Hot Wired

One of those products where the name says it all! This is a gorgeous, bright pink colour with a hint of iridescent shimmer.  If you're looking for a way to stand out at holiday parties, other than your classic red lip, here you go. 

I think it's great over a bright pink lip liner if you want it to last all night, or on its own. Even alone, it wears well - partly because of the texture. It's got a stickier consistency, which is great for making it last, but if you're like me, the feel of it might not work for you.

I've tried a couple of Nars lip lacquers, and one of their glosses, and I'm not a huge fan. While the consistency bugs me, it's actually the smell that really gets me. I don't know how to describe it except to say that it smells a little like those intense hand creams that don't have perfume, but do have lanolin. I have no idea why Nars lip glosses and lacquers smell this way, and it could be my over-sensitivity to smells, but I find it off-putting enough that I rarely reach for them. Sorry, Nars!

Shame, cos this colour is to die for!

Ratings:
Packaging: 5/5

Product quality: 3/5 (-1 each for consistency and scent)
Worth the price? Not for me.
Would I purchase again? No.

Cruelty-Free? Not sure.

Where to find it: Nars online, Sephora in store and online.

Sleek - Glossed Lip Glosses

L-R: Clarity, Packs A Punch, Bitten, Pump It Up, Pixie

I am in love. But before I tell you all about my newest makeup crush, let me give a bit of background about the brand for those of you outside the UK who haven't heard of it!

I discovered Sleek after seeing their eyeshadow palettes used and reviewed by the Pixiwoo ladies. It's a British drugstore brand (yet another reason I wish I lived in the UK) that is known for excellent quality for an affordable pricetag.

I started with their Pout Polish, which turned out to be quite similar to MAC's Tinted Lip Conditioners - only coconut- instead of vanilla-scented. Intrigued, I moved on to their eyeshadow palettes and lipsticks, which did not disappoint.So a few months later, here I am, a Sleek convert in Canada. You can imagine my excitement upon hearing that they're set to launch new lip products. Of course I started searching online right away to get my eager little hands on some!

The first line are called Pout Paint. I've got these covered in another blog post here. But the ones I want to talk about today are the new line of lip glosses, called, predictably enough, "Glossed." I picked up a couple of these when purchasing some other British products - mainly because they were dirt cheap and looked pretty in the picture. Fast forward a couple of weeks - by which time I had pretty much forgotten about them - and they arrived in the mail. The colours looked really pretty in the tube, so when I needed a gloss to layer over my Bobbi Brown lipstick (Cosmic Raspberry, in case you're wondering), I reached for this gloss in Pixie.

Now we all know the problems with glosses. My personal pet peeve is a gloss that is goopy and sticky and leaves a residue on the lips. Like MAC Lipglasses. (Sorry, MAC.) They do their job, but they feel horrible. Not so with this gloss. It has a lovely coconut scent and glides on more smoothly than pretty much any other lip product I've ever used. It's sheer enough to layer over a lipstick, but provides just the right hint of colour to wear alone. It's everything I could ask for in a gloss - and at drugstore prices, too!

Of course, I jumped back on my computer and stocked up on some more colours. Here they are:

L-R: Whisper, Rumour, Blase

The final verdict? New all-time favourite. Do yourself a favour and get yourself some of these RIGHT NOW!

Ratings:
Packaging: 5/5
Product quality: 5/5
Worth the price? Definitely!
Would I purchase again? Already got a couple of backups!

Cruelty-Free? Not sure.
Where to find it: If you're in the UK, you can get it at drugstores. Anywhere else, check out Sleek online.

MAC - Chromeglass

L-R: Chromaliving, Metalberry, Technobeet, Hot Chrome!, Already Fab!, Prize Shine

I absolutely love this formula. I have been experimenting with a brighter lip lately, and Absolutely Fab! Chromeglass is now my favourite lip product, hands down. I love that this is not at all sticky, the chrome finish means you don't need a lot for a shimmery finish, and as it fades you are left with a lovely stain - and it fades evenly.

 L-R: Chromaliving, Metalberry, Technobeet, Hot Chrome!, Already Fab!, Prize Shine

I've read a lot of complaints about the applicator, and it definitely does pick up a LOT of product. However, I've found that if you just place several dots along the lips and then rub it in with your finger, it doesn't really matter. You can also layer it to whatever brightness/darkness you want in this manner. Because you need so little of it, it will last a really long time. I wish they would re-release it! Overall I LOVE this stuff!

Ratings:
Packaging: 4.5/5
Product quality: 5/5
Worth the price? Yep.
Would I purchase again? I wish! Sadly, it's discontinued.

Cruelty-Free? Yes - appears on PETA's Cruelty-Free list.

Where to find it: If you find it, let me know where!

Tarte - Treasure Chest Palette

Products included:
16 Frost Eyeshadows
16 Matte Eyeshadows
16 Lipglosses
1 Bronzer
1 Luminizer
4 Blushes

This palette was the first time I tried any Tarte products. The eyeshadows are gorgeous, but honestly after trying them a few times, this palette ended up in the back of my cupboard and rarely gets pulled out.


The main reason for this is the packaging. It's cute, and I guess it would appeal to younger girls, but for me I just find it to be a pain. The top layer of frost shadows opens outwards in such a way that it's awkward to get to the outside layer of the top rows of matte shadows underneath. The lip glosses slide out in a drawer form underneath the matte eyeshadows, and the layer with bronzer, blushes and luminizer slide out in turn from inside the gloss drawer. This means that to get to the bottom layer you have to slide out double layers. I've got very limited counterspace in the bathroom, so getting to the drawers or opening out the top to get to the matte shadows is awkward and risks knocking over the entire thing.

Also the top has a flap that folds down around the front where the drawers slide out of, but the magnet that holds it in place isn't very strong and nothing holds the sliding top layer in place. It's really easy to lose your grip on it and have the side sections pull out or the drawers slide forward, sometimes at the same time, making accidents inevitable. Which is precisely what happened to the bronzer in mine - the drawers slid out suddenly, causing me to lose my grip on the entire thing, and not only that, but the bottom drawer then fell out of the palette completely and the bronzer smashed on the floor. That wasn't fun to clean up! Because of the beads stitched onto the top it's also impossible to stack properly for storage purposes.

All of this combined overshadows (no pun intended) the products for me and I just got so frustrated that I shoved it into the back of the cupboard rarely to be touched. If you have enough counterspace to store this one on a countertop and open it fully to use it, these issues probably won't be an issue - just be careful with the drawers and pull-out sides when you're moving it!

I do like that the palette has both frost and matte finish eyeshadows in equal quantities, whereas a lot of palettes only have one or the other. The matte shadows are very smooth to apply and blend well. Some of the frost shadows are a bit too glittery for my taste and harder to work with, but it also has a fair number that are highly pigmented, rich colours. Overall if you have suitable storage options, it's a great deal.

Ratings:
Packaging: 2/5
Product quality: 4/5
Worth the price? Yes.
Would I purchase again? No.