Oh, O-Gloss!

It was a rare impulse purchase for me. I was at the online checkout at Sephora and there was a box on the page featuring Smashbox O-Gloss lip gloss for the bargain price of $10 (it’s normally $22). I love to wear a simple lip gloss that just kisses my mouth with color on weekend days, so I thought why not? Into my cart it went.

The minute the box was dropped at my doorstep I swooped down, picked it up and brought my prizes inside. The O-Gloss was the first thing I grabbed because I was dying to try it. You see, O-Gloss is intuitive lip gloss. It knows exactly the right color for you (in spite of the fact that it’s never met you). I wanted to see what color was right for me. I swiped the at-first clear gloss on and suddenly it turned pink. Way-too-bright-for-my-taste pink.

Crap.

Sephora allows you to return slightly used products, but honestly, the reason I buy online is that I don’t have time to trot to the mall often. And I usually get “lost” in Sephora whenever I go anyway, so my wallet stood to lose more than the $10 I paid for the gloss. Plus, even though the color didn’t rock my socks, I loved the feel of the stuff.

Call it busy-ness, laziness or some combination of the two, but I decided I was going to make this stuff work. I wiped it off and tried apply a much smaller amount.

Ah ha.

There’s the trick (at least for me): Use it sparingly. It’s highly emollient and feels amazing on. Applied with a light hand, the color is just what I wanted from a gloss. It’s become my go-to on the weekend.

So, would I recommend O-Gloss? I would certainly recommend you try it. It’s good stuff. Would I buy it again at the full price of $22? Probably not. It will last me a long time, but there are other glosses that make me just as happy for a lot less cash.

Smashbox O-Gloss is available at Sephora, Drugstore.com/Beauty.com , Amazon.com  and other retailers that sell Smashbox products.

Friday Flop: A Nivea Kiss of Death

I am a lip balm/lipstick freak. If my lips aren’t covered in something (Oh, Sean Connery, I don’t mean you!) then they feel dry and in need of a cool drink of something. Nivea’s A Kiss of Moisture Hydrating Lip Care with SPF 4 is not that drink of something. Whenever I’m at the grocery or drug store, I’m constantly looking around for something new to put on my smackers. Yeah, yeah, there’s Chapstick but that’s so 1980. I always want the newest and greatest whatever! Unfortunately, Nivea’s A Kiss of Moisture Hydrating Lip Care didn’t do anything for me. Surprisingly, when I glance at the Amazon customer reviews for this product, I see a lot of “Fantastic!” “Best Lip Balm Ever!” “Helpful Lipcare!” and I’m wondering What are these people using because it’s not the stuff I’ve got in my purse!

First of all, this is not the traditional waxy stick we’re all used to. That type of lip protection floats above your lips and simply protects. The Nivea Kiss of Moisture Lip Care, on the other hand, is more oily. Greasy. That’s the first thing you need to get over. Secondly, fast absorption of this product doesn’t necessarily mean that your lips are going to instantly be impervious to all drying forever and ever. When I used this, I found I used it more often and that my lips actually became drier. People, I don’t need another addiction. I’ve got chocolate, Mythbusters, and J. Crew already fueling my addictive personality and I certainly don’t need to add a lip balm to that list. I would go so far as to say that Nivea’s Kiss of Moisture Lip Care is the lip balm equivalent to Afrin.

My final issue with this product is the SPF rating. SPF 4. Wow, really? SPF 4? My facial moisturizer carries an SPF rating of 25, so why shouldn’t my lips be just as protected as the rest of my face? SPF 4 might be OK on cloudy day but if I were skiing or sunning on a beach, then Nivea’s Kiss of Moisture would provide me bupkis for sun protection.

Advice to you, dear readers, is to spend your money on an extra tube of your favorite lipstick or buy stock in cherry Chapstick because Nivea’s Kiss of Moisture Hydrating Lip Care with SPF 4 is a total flop.

Nivea’s Kiss of Moisture Hydrating Lip Care with SPF 4 is available at your local grocery store or pharmacy. You can also buy it online as part of a six-pack at Amazon. But, why in the world would you do that?

Featured image by Tania Saiz

The Perfect Shade of Red

I have been hunting for red lipstick since I attended a Halloween party last year and realized I did not have any lipstick to wear with my Like A Virgin Era Madonna costume.   I never fantasized about wearing red lipstick every day, but it seemed to me that every fashionable woman should have a tube of red lipstick in her arsenal for emergencies.

Emergencies that may or may not include fingerless gloves.

I saw a picture of Drew Barrymore on the cover of a magazine once in a perfect shade of red and I became obsessed with finding what she was wearing.  Drew and I have similar coloring and her red lipstick looked grown-up but not trampy.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t discover the shade or even brand used in her cover photo, but I did make a mental note that the shade seemed to be a bluish red.

Flash forward to a few weeks ago and an ironically timed visit to the MAC cosmetic counter in the mall.  I was about 4 weeks into a self imposed shopping ban and nothing behind this counter was on my “must-have-to-survive list”.  But I had a few minutes to spare and an evening networking event to attend, so I figured I’d touch up my makeup for free.

I started playing with the different shades of red lipstick, and after several minutes I found myself digging into my discretionary spending fund envelope, officially breaking my no-shopping streak.  $14 later and I was the proud owner of one little black tube of Russian Red A40 by MAC.

MAC Russian Red lipstick in matte may just be the world’s most perfect shade of red.  The MAC website describes the color as “intense bluish-red”.  It’s bad ass and bold but doesn’t bring out the pink tones in my face or make me look goth or dead.  I also like that it’s remarkably versatile for red lipstick.  I’ve found that I prefer it with a dark lip liner underneath that deepens the shade a bit.

In addition to the color, the lipstick itself is fantastic.  It goes on smooth and lasts for hours without flaking or drying out my lips.  I know this because I was absolutely paranoid about the color fading or flaking or getting on my teeth, so I carried the little black tube of perfect with me all day and looked in the mirror constantly.

Here I am about 5 hours after my initial application:

I reapplied after lunch, but I’d be a little nervous about something that stayed on my skin through a full meal.

If you’ve ever considered a walk on the bold side or have yet to check “learn how to wear red lipstick” off your bucket list, try Russian Red lipstick by MAC.

To purchase Russian Red lipstick, your best bet is a local cosmetics counter or (if you’re really lucky) a MAC store.  Online, the MAC website is your most reliable source for this shade.  You’ll pay about $20 after shipping and handling.  Worth it.

Bare Escentuals Buxom Lips – my most expensive lip gloss

I can’t believe I paid $18 this weekend to replace a tube of lip gloss that I lost.

But really – it’s that good.

So good, in fact, that I willingly endured another trip to my local ULTA so that I could plop down $18.  For lip gloss.

Bare Escentuals Buxom Lips is currently tied with Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer for my all time favorite lip gloss.  And while Burt’s Bees is awesome and only about $4.99 at a drugstore – I still couldn’t resist the urge to get my hands on another tube of Buxom Lips.

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Friday Flops: Lip Plumper. Ouch

The idea of a lip plumper is intriguing to me.

According to commercials and reviews, a cosmetic lip plumper is a product you apply like lip gloss and it makes your lips appear fuller.

Like collagen, but without the needles or doctor appointments.

Now, I am blessed to have fairly full lips.  My face might be round and I might be severely lacking in the cheekbone department – but I’ve got good lips.  The only thing my lips need is regular moisturizing and a little bit more color.  Lucky me.

Of course, that didn’t stopping me from playing with a few lip plumpers the last time I was in Sephora.

I poked around and located the most expensive product – because that’s usually an indication of a product that should work.  At least, that’s what cosmetic companies tell us.  That’s how I discovered Lip Injection Extreme by Too Faced.

The name should have been a warning.

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The Best Lip Gloss is a Lip Balm

With summer quickly approaching, it’s time to think about lip gloss.

You knew that, right?

OK – quick lesson.  Lip balm or lip gloss is perfect for summer makeup looks because it’s light and mainly sheer with just a hint of shine.  Full color lipstick is usually too heavy of a look for summer.

Lesson over.

If you’re like me – and most women – the bottom of your purse and cosmetic bags are littered with lip glosses you’ve tried and half used tubes of lip balm.  And that’s OK.

A girl can never have too much lip gloss, after all.  And because it won’t last all day, most women like to keep a tube of lip gloss close by at all times.

The problem with most lip glosses is that the stuff that makes it shiny can also make your lips sticky and dry.  In fact, that’s why a lot of women go the lip balm (a fancy word for chapstick) route – because their lips need the moisturizing and they can’t stand the dry feeling of lip glosses and lipsticks.

I have found the perfect solution in the form of the world’s greatest (and my new favorite) lip balm.

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