Essence Velvet/Gloss sticks - First Impressions

A fellow beauty blogger recently posted an image of her Essence cosmetics haul and in this cute bundle lay the new Essence Velvet sticks. I immediately became curious about this product as I’d never seen it on the shelf before so alas, I hit my local drug store (Dis-Chem) and was fortunate enough to find these on the stand. A first impressions post had to be written so here it is!

Ok so let me start off with the basic’s here. In this range of Velvet / Gloss lip colour sticks there are a total of ten shades, five velvet and five gloss. It’s sort of self-explanatory that the velvet sticks have a ‘Matte’ finish to them and that the gloss sticks have a… well gloss finish to them. The shades include:

Velvet:                                                Gloss:

01 Nude Hero                                   01 Radiant Rose

02 Peony Star                                  02 Clear Nude

03 Mega Melon                                03 Luminous Rosewood

04 Cherry Crush                              04 Poshi Pink

05 Plum Perfect                               05 Brilliant Burgundy

I picked up one of each, 05 ‘Plum Perfect’ & 02 ‘Clear Nude’

Clear Nude

When I first applied them I noticed that both are highly pigmented and feel a lot like a lip balm. They aren’t very moisturising but neither dried out my lips either which was a pleasant surprise especially coming from a ‘Matte’ lip product which usually does just that for me. They have a long wearing period and seem to fade evenly when you eat or drink. #LookingGood

When I first opened up the packaging I looked at it and thought that it looked just like a jumbo lip pencil. Don’t think that I’m very far off with that one. I find that because of the shape it’s pretty easy to achieve the perfect lip edge using this product, the formula is pretty hard so you won’t have to worry about smudging either.

Perfect Plum

The only thing that I was a bit “Huh” about with regards to this product is that when you look at it appears to be a “twist up” but in fact it is not. You will need to sharpen these lip colour sticks, which I guess isn’t much of a down fall since a little goes a long way with these…

 All in all I’m definitely not disappointed with these lip colour sticks although I cannot say just yet that I love them as I haven’t quite had them long enough , I’ll have to keep you posted in that regard. If you have these in your vanity are they one of your favourites or will you be purchasing yours the next time you’re able to?

S

Xoxo

( Side Note: Since I've been wearing this product quite a lot lately I have just tried to sharpen it - the results aren't so great as it does so unevenly and the actual lip colour softens as well #BitOfAMess, Anyone else experience this or is it just me? )

I think I speak for a lot of makeup artists when I say we have an excess of lip products and I am no different in this respect. I love collecting lip products, be if for the use of my clients or just for personal use. I’m going to share with you my top 5 lip products at the moment (mostly drugstore products)

Beauty Treats: Sugar Lip Scrub

I had previously never used a lip scrub but was really quite curious about them, so when I came across this particular one which, might I add is quite affordable I thought I’d give it a shot. This gentle scrub is made of natural sugars to exfoliate your lips, leaving them feeling soft and smooth. They come in an array of about 4-5 flavours of which I got the ‘Raspberry’ one, I really cannot say that I am disappointed as it was very gentle on my lips and did the job quite well so an all-round “Thumbs Up” for this product especially with the dry winter months headed our way here in South Africa.

Labello: Lip Butter

If someone had to ask me what I would take with me if I was to be stranded on an Island somewhere, my answer would almost certainly be lip balm. I cannot live without it and if I don’t have one at hand all the time my poor boyfriend always has to fork his out for me. In turn I have quite obviously tried almost every lip balm under the sun but the ‘Labello – Lip Butter’ is the product I have always gone back to. My favourite is the ‘Raspberry Rose’ flavour (Apparently I like Raspberry) It keeps my lips moisturized for a long period of time and even leaves a light pink tint to my lips (2 birds, 1 stone). The packaging is convenient, its small and in a tin so you can stick it in your pocket and go – like I often do, One tin usually lasts me a fair amount of time and it’s affordable as well so it’s a big BONUS for me since I go through the stuff at a rate of knot. Item in shopping basket – Tick!

Essence – Lip Gloss

I’m really not much of a lip gloss lover, purely because I cannot fathom the sticky mess that becomes of my lips after I’ve applied them BUT my loves, this product is a welcomed surprise. For starters, it’s not a hot sticky mess (thank goodness), it applies easily and doesn’t make you feel like you need to wipe it off almost instantly. I feel comfortable wearing this product on my lips all day long and it’s got a great scent. They come in an array of shades for various skin tones which I think is great, I purchased the shade “Beauty Secret” in a nude like pink, it’s so wearable and great for everyday use.

M.A.C- Crème Cup

OK so maybe this product is a little bit more on the high end side but I dig it nonetheless. This lipstick was my first ever M.A.C. lipstick and I bought it because it’s such an effortless everyday colour that I could wear with any outfit and to this day has remained one of my favourites. I find that most of the M.A.C. lipstick’s are pretty moisturizing however I always put a bit of lip ice under it, they are long wearing and I’ve never been disappointed by their products. As I said before they are a bit more expensive but you are paying for quality so if not, why not right?!

Essence – Sparkling Miracle

I really like Essence products, I know. This last lip product is one that I carry in my handbag everyday as it’s another very versatile item. For starters the names given to these lipsticks are utterly adorable and the packaging is easy on the eye as well. This product is of a deeper pink with a hue of purple in it and a touch of sparkle as well, it’s moisturizes your lips and picks up any look #MustHave

 Only now at the end of my article have I noticed that every product on my list has some sort of pink touch to it, apparently I like pink <3 I hope that this post was useful to at least some of you and that it will help you in making your next purchase. I’d love to hear what you all think, so drop me a comment

S

Xoxo