Revlon - Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey & Rendezvous

The blogging world has been full of chat about these since they launched in the US and now they are available here too, currently on offer at £5.99 in Superdrug (normally £7.99) or on 3 for 2 in Boots which works out cheaper if you will definitely use three shades, in hindsight I should probably have waited and gone to Boots to buy three but I was too excited when I saw them and had to grab a couple to try.

I chose Rendezvous, a bright coral orange, and Honey, a nudey pink: 

Since I've only had these in my grubby paws for just over an hour I can't give you an extensively tested view just yet but so far the colour pay off seems good.  I'm not sure how much of a stain they leave but there is a good strong colour on the lips when they're applied and Rendezvous is bright!

One thing I found slightly off putting was the smell, it's minty which I was hoping would be a nice change from all the flowery sweet scents that have been in lip products recently, unfortunately this mint smells very much like it's still growing in the ground rather than being a clean medicinal mint scent.  It's not horribly over powering but it's also not as nice as I was hoping it would be.  I assume they contain some sort of menthol as there is definitely a slight tingle when these are applied.

Here are some on the arm swatches of my two:

I found both of the colours I have to be a similar opacity to Revlon Lip Butters, so not as full as a regular lipstick but pretty highly pigmented for something called a balm.  Overall I'm please, these are a nice looking, quality feeling product and don't require a sharpener which is a bonus.  As a poor man (or lady)'s Chubby Stick they are a great alternative and definitely worthy of a spot in my make up bag, whether I'll like them enough to go back for other shades remains to be seen.

No7 Poppy King Lip Crayon - Raindrops Collection (Smiling & Skipping)

As suspected, the lure of a 3 for 2 and the No7 £5 off voucher was too much, I had to go back for the other 2 Crayons in the Raindrops collection.  You can see my first post on them here.

This time I picked up Smiling and Skipping; a bright, blue based red and a very sheer berry colour. Skipping is definitely the least pigmented from the collection and leaves just a hint of subtle colour on the lips whereas Smiling is as punchy and bright as the previous 3 I've tried.

Not much more to say on these other than to echo what I said in my last post about them.  I really like the texture and wear of the Crayons and after having tried them out some more over the weekend I am really pleased with them, they're very wearable colours, look great on the lips and last surprisingly well for this sort of product.

Finally, here are a couple of swatches of my two newest editions:

Revlon Lip Butters VS L'Oreal Rouge Caresse Lipsticks - The Comparison Post.

My ever growing collection of Lip Butters & Rouge Caresse Lipsticks.

I've blogged fairly extensively about both these products of late, they are definitely my most recent obsession.  I really like both products but I think that they are both suitable for different times and looks, they're not quite as similar as their descriptions might lead you to believe so I thought I would do a round up and comparison post now that I have bought pretty much all of the colours I want to try, for now.
First off, here are all the individual posts in case you want to have a look at them in detail, there are swatches and product pictures on each post.

Revlon Lip Butters: Part 1 & Part 2
L'Oreal Rouge Caresse: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 & Part 4

Revlon Lip Butter in Candy Apple & L'Oreal Rouge Caresse in Rebel Red

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The Lip Butters are generally a good deal more opaque in their coverage and a slightly more dry, less glossy consistancy.  I would definitely put them at the lipstick end of the spectrum rather than the balm or gloss end although they are lighter feeling and less opaque than a regular lipstick.

I think they're ideal for trying out darker or bolder colours which you might not be brave enough to try in a full blown lipstick, the sheerer coverage of the Lip Butters means that although they give a relatively strong pop of colour in most shades they don't give you that full on I AM WEARING BRIGHT LIPSTICK look that can be a bit intimidating, at least for me.

One slight issue I have found with them is that due to slightly drier texture they can tend to higlight dry lips a little (if that's an issue for you) and don't apply nicely if your lips are very dry or chapped, tending to clog up in the dry patches.  Also they can wear off in a slightly uneven way and and leave a line around your lips which isn't the best look.

The Rouge Caresse lipsticks are definitely NOT lipsticks, they are definitely more towards the balm or gloss end of the scale.  Compared to the Lip Butters they are glossier and feel a bit more more moisturising to wear, they also have a lighter feel on lips and tend to wear off in a more even way without leaving a line, although this could be due to the fact the colours are not as strong as the Lip Butters.  I also feel as if they wear off faster than the Lip Butters although, again, that may be due to pigmentation.

The range of Rouge Caresse colours, although larger than the Lip Butters, is not so bold or bright.  Although there are some colours which seem quite bright and vivid in the tubes they are not really as bright or opaque as their Lip Butter equivilents.  They are however a bit better on slightly dry lips, they don't tend to cling to the dry areas quite so much and they feel a bit more moisturising.

Neither product lasts particularly long and they do need to be re-applied fairly regularly.  One way I love to wear them is over one of my many lip stains, they add an extra pop of colour and / or gloss over the top of the lip stain and stop them from feeling so drying with the added benefit of the lip stain making the colour seem more opaque and long lasting.
Scent wise the Rouge Caresse have an almost fruity hint to them and a bit of vanilla, the Lip Butters are more vanilla and smell slightly more like I would expect a lipstick to, a sort of cosmetic, waxy kind of hint.  Neither are offensive but I prefer the Rouge Caresse personally.

Revlon Lip Butter in Candy Apple & L'Oreal Rouge Caresse in Rebel Red

Direct Colour Comparisons

There are similar colours in each range but very few direct dupes, especially due to texture, shine and opaquness.  Here are a list of the colours I have with what I consider to be their closest comparison colour / almost dupes.

Candy Apple Lip Butter - Rebel Red or Aphrodite Scarlet Rouge Caresse
Candy Apple is much more opaque / darker (see comparison photos)

Tutti Fruit Lip Butter - Dating Coral Rouge Caresse
Similar colours but the Rouge Caresse is very sheer and peachy toned whereas the Lip Butter definitely leans orange and is much more opaque.

Raspberry Pie Lip Butter - Sweet Berry Rouge Caresse
Considering these both have berry in the name they are very diffirent, Sweet Berry is what I would call a mum shade, it's pretty but very neutral, a berry shade that leans towards the browny end of the solur spectrum.  Raspberry Pie is a very dark, bold berry shade and probably the most opaque of all the Lip Butters.

Lollipop Lip Butter - Impulsive Fuschia Rouge Caresse
Similar in colour, both bright pinks with a blue hint / shimmer to them, again the Rouge Caresse is much more sheer.

Sweet Tart Lip Butter - ? Rouge Caresse
Sweet Tart is a gorgeous bright, Barbie pink, none of the Rouge Caresse shades I have are a good match.

Strawberry Shortcake Lip Butter - Lovely Rose Rouge Caresse
These are similar in that they are both light, frosty pinks, Lovely Rose is the lighter of the two and slightly more sheer.

Creme Brulee Lip Butter - Nude Ingenue Rouge Caresse
Very similar colour-wise, the main difference again is opaquness and coverage, the Lip Butter is far more opaque.

? Lip Butter - Tempting Lilac Rouge Caresse
I don't have anything similar to Tempting Lilac, it's a blue leaning lilacy pink, pretty and quite different from all my Lip Butters.

Revlon Lip Butter in Candy Apple & L'Oreal Rouge Caresse in Rebel Red

The Winners?

Overall, I really like both products, for me the Lip Butters allow me to wear bright, bold lip colours without fully comitting to an proper lipstick, I love them for nights out and days when I want it to be obvious I have colour on my lips or fancy a stronger look.

The Rouge Caresse I prefer for everyday looks, they're a little more subtle and more like a wash of colour and they also have the benefit of feeling nicely moisturising while they're on. They're ideal for chucking on with a simple make up look when I want to feel more done up but don't want to spend time applying lots of lip products.

I tink it very much depends on what you are looking for from the product, for me I really like having both in my make up bag for different occasions but if I had to choose I would probably lean a little towards the L'Oreal Rouge Caresse just because they feel a little better on the lips and are more wearable every day.

L'Oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick - Lovely Rose

As well documented, here here and here, I have developed a bit of an obsession with the Rouge Caresse lipsticks of late.  While I was in Superdrug the other day making the most of their 3 for 2 offer I decided to pick up one final colour to complete my collection.  That colour was Lovely Rose.

Lovely Rose is a soft shimmery pink shade, it's slightly lighter when applied than I had hoped for but still a very pretty colour.

As with all the lipsticks in this range the product applies beautifully and feels very light and soft on the lips.



I think my purchase of Lovely Rose has completed my collection of Rouge Caresse shades and although I am not as in love with the colour as some of the others in the range it's still very wearable and will be nice for lighter spring make up looks.

Mia Secret Nail Tints

I first became aware of these Mia Secret nail tints when a photograph of them being worn popped up on Google, which led me to this blog - Another bottle of polish!?

After seeing the effects created with them I decided I had to try and hunt them down. I eventually found them for sale on City Nails Supplies so I decided to order one of each to try them out. My order arrived pretty quickly considering it was coming from America and was really well wrapped, so I will definitely be using hem again for some US polish purchases.

The nail tints are made to be worn either alone to leave a light tint on your nail or can be used over polish to give your original polish colour different tints, that's how I am planning on using them, they look particularly good over silver glitter from what I can tell from online photos. Here are some quick bottle shots:

And a couple of swatches on my nails, over a pale gold shade:

I definitely think these will come into their own over patterned nails and different colours of varnish, as seen in the pictures on the blog I linked to above, alone they don't look very impressive but I am looking forward to trying them out as they obviously have a lot of potential.