For 8 months of the year, my heart lies with lipstick, but come Summer, I’m a glossy girl! A flawless complexion is the beauty trend this Summer - and nothing enhances this more than a slick of gloss. Spoilt for choice with a string of shiny new releases, these are my top picks…
The Brights
From top: Burberry Lip Glow - Pink Sweet Pea; Estee Lauder - Plexi Pink & Vitage - Coral Dream
Here is Pink Sweet Pea on my lips, photographed in direct sunlight (wearing a layer of Xen Tan Moroccan - review coming soon!).
Burberry Lip Glow in Pink Sweet Pea, £18.50 link is unlike any lip gloss I’ve ever tried and I may as well ’fess up from the start that it’s my fave. Make-up doesn’t get much more gorgeous than this glamorous hot pink bullet. The colour is proper fuchsia: cool, bright, blue toned pink with purple-violet iridescent undertones in a texture that builds from a sheer wash up to full on glamour (my preference of course!). Wearing off like a lipstick… the gloss reduces and lips are left coated with an even, slightly softer wash of bright pink. Yup, I’m besotted. (These claims are not made lightly, coming from someone who once deemed lip gloss as not worth more than a fiver!)
Estee Lauder Plexi Pink, £18 link is both pretty and wearable in equal measures. The perfect everyday pink when I want to brighten up my look without looking too in your face. Slightly thicker in texture than the Burberry, this has more of a traditional lip gloss consistency, presented in a glamorous gold lidded wand that deserves to be whipped out at every opportunity. I posted about it on Instagram here.
Vitage Natural Lip Lustre Mineral Lip Gloss in Coral Dream, £11.20 link is a vivid red toned coral with discreet silver shimmer. It has a fine texture, good pigmentation and feels moisturising on the lips - a great option for an easy-to-wear everyday bright lip that makes me feel so Summery every time I wear it! This is the kind of colour I reach for when I’m going for a BB cream, mascara and quick lip look - it makes me feel polished with little effort.
The Nudes
From left: Stila Hibiscus, Clarins Candy Shimmer, Bare Minerals Maverick and Aerin Sunset.
I really wanted to include Stila’s new Festival of Colour Lip Glaze trios in this post as they’re so cute and such great value but they seem to have been a sell out (please leave a comment below if you’ve spotted them anywhere!). Hibiscus is here in their place as the Stila Lip Glaze formula holds a special place in my heart… I wore a raspberry pink shade on my wedding day! Hibiscus is a mauve toned brown with cool shimmer. The texture of these is sheer and allows your own lip colour to shine through, so they look slightly different on everyone. Most colours are reduced to £11.25 at Escentual right now.
Bare Minerals Maverick, £13.60 link is part of the new Marvellous Moxie Collection and totally up my street. I love a brown toned nude with good depth of colour and this one really suits my skin tone - great for days when I want a nude lip that won’t wash me out! The texture is beautiful, really fine and more like a lip sheen than a gloss. The doe applicator is bigger than usual and sits at an angle, which makes application really easy - and the gloss leaves a light peppermint fragrance and slight tingle which I love! I thought I had a swatch of this but can not find it, so will include in another post soon.
Aerin Lip Gloss in Sunset, £22 link is a perfect nude shade that I’ve been wearing a lot. I’m quite pale in this pic and must admit it looks even better with a light layer of self tan. A warm peachy beige, it dresses the lips without being too ‘look at me’ and works beautifully with a smoky eye…. brilliant for any occasion from an everyday ‘quiet’ lip to a glammed up evening look. This is the first Aerin product I’ve tried; I love the simple elegance of this capsule range by Estee Lauder’s daughter and will definitely be back for more! ps packaging = perfection!
Clarins Natural Light Lip Perfector, £11.25 (usually £17!) link has been a staple in my make-up bag for years and Candy Shimmer is such a pretty new shade for Summer 2013. The gloss looks quite deep in colour here; at other times it’s a barely there pale, milky shell pink that works well alone or over a lipstick. It doubles up as a lip moisturiser and I love the idea of a treatment and gloss in one… the little sponge applicator is lovely to use and the tube is light and handbag friendly.
Brights & Nudes
A perfect bright and nude lip menu if ever I saw one, I think this line up includes at least one perfect shade for everyone. The two pinks and the two lightest nudes have been on my lips most days… I’m loving Lip Gloss season!
Are you a glossy girl?
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