Lip Stain Crazy: Make Up For Ever Aqua Rouge and The Face Shop

[All purchased by yours truly]

I think that warmer weather causes me to get more into the light texture/high impact lip thing in a  big way.  That, or I am lazy and can't be bothered to retouch my makeup very often throughout the day.  Whatever reason it may be, I bought a few lip stains that I thought were different and interesting enough to warrant a post. 

From The Face Shop I got two lip stains that are very different: Lovely Me:Ex Aqua Tint in 01 Juicy Cherry and the Lovely Me:Ex Milky Tint in 02 Baby Peach.   From Make Up For Ever (MUFE) I got the Aqua Rouge in 18 which is called "Coral" even though I know MUFE has a habit of not naming their shades. 

Face Shop Juicy Cherry, Baby Peach and MUFE 18 Coral

Per special request, I have been on the hunt for a Korean lip stain that rivals Benefit's Benetint.  Since this Juicy Cherry shade is the first that I've tried, I don't know yet if anything else is comparable but it is a very nice stain on its own.  With a doe-foot applicator and a very thin watery consistency, the stain is easy to apply and feels very comfortable on the lips.  There's no extra "layer" of product feeling on the lips and the result is a bold easy to wear red.  My biggest complaint with this product is the taste.  Anyone who has worn lip stains like this knows that they can taste very artificial and chemically.  I haven't used this on the cheeks because rosy flushes always make me think of cold weather.  If you can get past the taste, this is a really good budget lip stain choice!

I already own one of The Face Shop's Milky Tints (check it out in an earlier post on my Spring Edit) in the pink shade.  I thought I would like the orange shade in the range better but this peach one really caught my attention.  It's a light pinky-orange shade that looks natural.  In fact, I sometimes think that this is a little too natural and needs to be built up on my lips for better pigmentation.  I think that is the biggest drawback for this formula.  The Milky Tints lack the boldness of the Aqua Tints because they have a bit of a milky opaqueness that is the trait of most non-red stains.  This one doesn't have as much of a strange taste and I prefer to wear this on my cheeks for an easy shade that is very light and very natural.  

I think reading beauty blogs really pushed me into wanting a MUFE Aqua Rouge because otherwise I am not very interested in these long-wearing formulas from any brand.  After the storm of posts on this product when MUFE launched and sent their PR samples out, I was pretty sold on the formula but in particular, this color.  I am a sucker for coral as I have said and this looked so pretty I had to have it.  On me, this reads a little bit light and more orange than pink.  I have a certain affection for pinky corals so this one is a bit out of my comfort zone but I love the shade nonetheless.  The paler base of this shade makes it pop a bit more than an average coral so it isn't necessarily a neutral shade.  As regards to the formula, I think that this is very long-wearing but still not an "all-day" kind of thing.  It's very drying and emphasizes any flaking/dryness your lips are suffering so exfoliating and heavy duty lip balm is needed.  You really have to use the gloss that comes with it or else your lips feel like they're being vacuumed of moisture when this dries or "sets".  Overall, I like that I finally have a coral lip color that actually lasts (albeit not through a meal) but I don't see myself rushing out to get other shades in this formula.  

Quick Lip Comparisons:  Things that Seemed Really Similar but are Actually Quite Different

Also, Thing I Couldn't Resist Buying


[All purchased by me]


This is sadly not a "dupe" post as denoted by that verbose title.  I started out with a couple lip products I liked (and which you've already seen many times in this blog) and thought that since these are some of my favorite products of the moment, I should go off and find some comparable products to blog about.  Well, it didn't end up working out so well but I did get a couple of new favorites to add to my collection. 

I thought that (in formula):

Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquers (which go by the much cooler Apocalips in England) 

= 

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream 


and (in shade)

Maybelline Color Whisper in Coral Ambition

=

Dior Addict Lipstick in Delice (I should just stop talking about this already)

Clockwise from Top Right: Rimmel Stellar, NYX Antwerp, Maybelline Coral Ambition and Dior Delice

As you can see from the swatch, the Rimmel Show Offs are extremely opaque much glossier than the NYX Lip Creams.  These Rimmel lip lacquers have the texture of a thin lipstick that is comfortable to wear and easy to apply.  However, these are surprisingly not food or waterproof and last on my lips about as long as a typical bright lipstick would.  The color is a bright almost neon pinky coral with zero shimmer.  I thought these would remind me of the Lip Creams in their pigmentation but it actually surpasses the NYX by quite a lot.  It's a true bold lip suitable for anyone who wants a traditional lipstick finish in a nicer formula and easier application.  The Lip Creams are decidedly matte and you need to build them up for full opacity.  I think the color selection in the Lip Creams is slightly more appealing but that is purely personal preference.

I thought that I would find a dupe for Delice in the new Color Whisper line and this seemed to be the closest pick.  However, it has a much whiter base than the Dior and reads more nude on my lips.  In terms of formula, I think that the Color Whispers are closer to matching the texture of Dior than the Revlon Lip Butters because they are thinner and more glossy.  However, the Dior has more of a balm texture whereas the Color Whispers feel lighter and more "gel-like" as their formula claims. I have yet to try L'oreal's take on this lip trend but will report back if I do on which one comes closest to the Dior formula people like so much.


Lastly, my random impulse purchase of the month (so far) is this Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Candy Coral.  Did I buy it just to try out the cool texture of this product?  Maybe.  Have I seen this in pictures of some pro makeup artists recently?  Yes.  Could I resist?  No.

Beware as this really is not super-pigmented.  It's endless entertainment molding this around the pan but when it comes to getting this color on your cheeks, multiple swipes are needed.  I think using a brush may help but have yet to try that out!