What is my deal with Revlon lipstick?

Clockwise from L to R: Lip Butter in Pink Truffle and Cherry Tart; Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey and Adore; Just Bitten Lip Stain in Beloved (x3), Twilight, and Gothic; ColorStay Ultimate Liquid Lipstick in Miracle Mauve. Would you believe this photo is missing another Beloved and two Twilights that I keep at the office just in case? 

It all started with the lip stain...

I love lip stain because I hate fussing with lipstick. I was initially wary of Just Bitten's marker-style lip stain because my previous experiences with a similar product from Cover Girl were highly disappointing. I also had to roll my eyes at Revlon's transparent attempt to capitalize on Twilight. As a woman in my (very) late 30s, I felt like a dork buying makeup named in homage to a young adult novel.

But as you can see from the photo, I overcame my initial misgivings and am now in danger of suffocating under a pile of lip stain tubes.

This stuff is great. It lasts forever, and it's a little drying but that's nothing your favorite lip balm (or the little bullet of lip balm that comes loaded into the ass end of the lip stain itself) can't fix. Just Bitten Beloved is the best "MLBB"* shade of any lipstick anywhere ever, and every time Walgreens puts them on buy-one-get-one sale, I buy one and get one. Twilight is deep berry color but still in the realm of natural, and perfect for when I'm feeling a little dramatic. Gothic is a great red.

Red lipstick pro tip: Two coats of Gothic lip stain, then two coats of Cherry Tart, blotting in between.  Lasts until happy hour.

I got hip to Revlon Lip Butter thanks to Lady Bethezda over at Bethezda's Preoccupations describing them as having a texture like Burt's Bees lip balm. I love red lipstick but 95% of them turn a funky fuchsia on me within an hour. Not so Cherry Tart. Pink Truffle is another MLBB color that's nice, even though it's no Beloved.

With winter coming and bringing The Dry Times, I was very enthusiastic about the introduction of Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain. (Who the hell named this, by the way? Just Bitten was bad enough, but Balm Stain sounds like something that you accidentally did in your pants because of food poisoning.) The texture is nice and adequately moisturizing, but I'm not sure what's so stain-ish about it. All in all, it suffers from a little bit of the "shampoo plus conditioner" syndrome: it tries to do two things at once and does not fully succeed at either.

I bought Adore after a nostalgic conversation with my IFP-N! pals about 90s brown lipstick. Honey is yet another MLBB, although this one changes color on me to something that is neither ML nor B. I still like it, though, and was using it as my #1 purse lipstick until I whipped it out at the opera (a felony in 48 states), prompting my companion to exclaim, "What is that? It looks like a dog's dick!" He was not wrong:

Sounds like food poisoning, looks like a dog's dong, but it's really good lipstick!

Long-wearing lipsticks don't do much for me, but I fell prey to the marketing behind ColorStay Liquid Lipstick and since Revlon owns my lips now, I bought this one in yet another MLBB color, Miracle Mauve. I don't have much to say about it other than it's longevity is undermined by my need to frequently reapply lip balm (but not Balm Stain), but if you like this kind of thing, I won't say you shouldn't buy it.

Until I run out of Beloved and forget how much I love it, and as long as Revlon keeps coming up with clever new lipstick reimaginings, I imagine they will keep dominating my makeup box.

*"My Lips But Better." Because your actual lips are never good enough.

--Carl Agatha

Review: Esteé Lauder DoubleWear Foundation

When I was nineteen years old, my best friend Pam and I both read Esteé Lauder’s autobiography—hoping, somehow, some of that cosmetic ingenuity would rub off on the two of us for our own lofty makeup empire dreams. At the time, Pam and I had recently spent the entirety of a Huey Lewis and the News concert conceiving a makeup line that was half mad science, half Crayola rip off. Needless to say, the makeup line never took off of course (save for the scary lip gloss experiment conducted in my parent’s kitchen)—but I distinctly recall sticking to Pam’s leather passenger seat as she wheeled around downtown Greeley, Colorado in the searing August heat, Esteé’s candy-red hardcover book clasped in my sweaty hand.

I read passages aloud to my friend as we drove around during our lunch break, mouth agog at Esteé’s seemingly strange beauty regimens (gloves on during sleep? What?). Her entire persona brought to mind Faye Dunaway’s intense Joan Crawford in Mommie Dearest—I was certain Esteé was the type who'd prepared a perfume-infused ice bath for her face every morning and wrapped her head in carefully arranged bandages as to halt the signs of aging.

Perhaps it was because of this that I came to think of Esteé Lauder products as being just a tad too mature for someone as ridiculous as myself. My mother used Esteé Lauder products. They were gold capped and perfumed. The few times in my life I’d breezed past the Esteé Lauder counter, their color selections were modest and sensible. I’ve always been a MAC girl when it comes to such things—give me bright trailer trash pink and eye-searing red, please.

I’ve never been loyal to a brand for very long throughout my adult life. I went through a pretty devout Chanel phase, but I think my bank account suffered considerably for it and I never quite was satisfied. I possess a ghostly pallor that very few makeup brands seem to accommodate in their foundation selection. Most times, I end up with slightly orange-cast face (ack: oxidation!).

For years, I used a Tarte foundation that had nice coverage, some kind of anti-aging ingredients that now escape my memory, and came pretty close to matching my skin tone. Then, two months ago—what the hell—discontinued! At the time, I was livid. I thought I’d found my holy grail foundation. I have gone through the disappointment of discontinuation more than once in my cosmetics career. After the Tarte debacle, I had a revelation: I needed to switch to something that had been around for years. Decades, even!

I immediately thought of Esteé Lauder. It’s been around for yonks! I turned to the Internet for reviews and user comments on EL foundations. Based on what I read, it seemed they were highly revered and recommended highly. As soon as I could, I scooted on out to the nearest Esteé Lauder counter. I walked away with DoubleWear foundation in shell, a cool-toned ivory.

Application: One downside is that DoubleWear comes in a glass bottle with just a screw-top lid and no pump. Protip: apparently one can purchase a pump from the MAC counter that fits this bottle. However, I wasn’t aware of that little tip right after purchasing my own bottle, so I was stuck with it as it came purchased. I poured a dime-sized amount on the back of my hand and used a stippling brush my first time applying. A little went a long way, and despite the reviews I read online, I found it went on very easily and covered evenly.

Coverage: Medium to full, depending on how crazy you want to go. A few times I went a little overboard and it did feel a little mask-like. The less the better for this formulation, I think.

Result: Matte, completely even-toned, and it even covers blemishes. This isn’t for the faint of makeup heart. If you want some of your “natural beauty” to shine through, use something else. This is for those of us who want a nice blank canvas before we begin our artistry. No setting powder needed—even for a grease ball like me (seriously, I am such an oily bastard, the fact that this makeup stays matte without powder is a miracle).

Overall rating: 4/4. This is reasonably priced ($35 for 1 oz. bottle), has incredible staying power, doesn't go greasy, doesn't sink in pores, has a seamless finish, and is all around just great.

- Mandee

NOTD - Shellac Edition

CND's Shellac manicure system is slowly starting to win me over. One of the things I've always loved about nail polish is being able to play around with colors and styles as often as I want - I like changing it up. On the other hand, I'm sort of a perfectionist and sloppy/chipped nails can me drive nuts so despite missing being able to change colors on a whim, I have to say that I LOVE the longevity and durability of a Shellac manicure.

(the red is CND shellac in “Decadence” and the grey is “Asphalt”)

I had the above done last night in anticipation of a fall weekend getaway and I really like it. However, a big part of me feels totally over the whole accent nail/nail art fad. Maybe I just hopped on that whole fancy nail bandwagon kind of early but it's starting to seem tired and I've found myself drawn to simple and classic colors/shapes lately. I'm prone to changing my mind quickly about these things though so I’ll probably be singing a different tune and sporting pumpkins on my pinkies by next week. Stay tuned.



~ Erica

Tried and True: Eye Makeup Products

I think all of us have a couple products that we come back to time and time again. I realized recently that this is especially true for me of eye makeup and that, perhaps even more interestingly, the two products that really stand out for me are both less than $10 and available at any neighborhood drugstore. Bonus!

I was not blessed with thick or long eyelashes. To be honest mine are pretty pale and anemic looking. As such, I wear mascara nearly every single day unless I’m ill and not leaving the house so it’s a very important product (VIP) as far as I’m concerned. Over the years I’ve tried many different types from high end department store only brands to drugstore cheapies and there’s definitely one I return to time and time again.

Voluminous by L’Oreal is my Holy Grail mascara. This mascara, which usually retails for around $6.00, is the only one that has never let me down. I find that for my lashes it lengthens and thickens better than any other I’ve tried. I do put on a fair number of coats but I love the effect it leaves me with. My lashes look soft, full and defined all at once. I prefer the waterproof version in black.

About ten years ago some magazine I was reading at the time recommended COVERGIRL Eye Enhancers 1 Kit Shadow in Tapestry Taupe as the best and most wearable neutral eye color around. Since then I’ve probably gone through at least 20 of the little single pans. A little bit beige, a little bit gold, this neutral metallic shade accents my hazel green eyes perfectly and can be worn day or evening depending on how heavy a hand is used.

No matter how many great high-end colors and palettes of eye shadow I own I’d say I reach for Tapestry Taupe about 70% of the time. It’s easy to wear and I know it always looks great making it a no brainer in my book. A quick internet search just now tells me it’s a dupe for MAC’s Satin Taupe and at around $4 a pop that’s a savvy purchase in my opinion.

So, do you have any tried and true eye make-up products? If so, tell us about them!

~ Erica