These Kiss Sticks by Careline that are actually a the local answer to the ColourPop Lippie Stix -if I'm not mistaken.




Like I mentioned, in previous posts, old 'established' beauty brands are wanting, in the shade department. Most of these shades cannot work on darker skintones, medium skin has a tiny more option but as always, light to fair skin tones have the lion's share of suitable shades...anyway.

PINCH - Berry mauve

LUCID - Warm rosey-mauve

JUST BETTER - Beige pink-nude



These Kiss Sticks have been around for years now and I haven't written anything on them yet and despite these 3 shades being the only ones that I feel work on me, I'm quite pleased with them.

Priced at less than Php 200, these lippies fall into the cheap or rather, extremely affordable range. With the twist-up packaging and sharpener at the bottom of each stick, it feels reminiscent of school days - but not treading the juvenile category. It feels 'young' & 'hip' while not quite looking like a child's art supply.



As I've mentioned these 3 shades are the only ones I can confidently wear as an everyday lip look. I had two more shades that I wanted that would work, but they were almost always out of stock so I let it go.

Just better is something I do mix with other lippies in my stash -to lighten or do the 'blurred lip' look which it does well.

Lucid and Pinch, I just wear on their own most of the time. So you might ask, how well do they mix with other products?



These are very creamy. While not slippery and/or emollient, these blend out and glide on as well as can be. They aren't moisturizing at all nor do they tout that claim - so exfoliate, moisturize and stay hydrated because these emphasize your cracks, crevices, demons and dry lips.

The finish is your traditional creamy satin, not matte thankfully, but not full on glossy either. 



Despite emphasizing my parched-mummy-lips to high heaven, I still reach for these from time to time because they're: 

Fuss free - The narrow lip color makes for cleaner and nicer application compared to the standard lip bullets tubes. The sharpener at the bottom, keeps it nice and precise when you want it to.

Slim and sleek - The cap fits closely and has a satisfying snap on the body of the stick, so there's no chance of it drawing inside your makeup bag or purse. It doesn't take up much space, especially if the rest of your makeup kit contains 'stick'-like packaging as well (very schoolastic cute).



This doesn't have any particular scent or any additional fragrances like the usual vanilla or candy-like sweetness other lip products tend to have. 



While I personally prefer soft creamy cloud-like matte formulas ala Sunnies Face lip dips and fluff mattes, these are something worth mentioning. It did got me thinking though, if Careline released this or reformulated this but with something similar to Sunnies fluff mattes texture....ooooh can you imagine? I would for sure check that out. I hope they do create it, but with more universally flattering shades across all skintones.

I confess, I'm a fan of BLK. After first trying out their Travels All-day Intense Matte Lipstick reviewed here, I decided to venture more into their brand which tout 'uncomplicated beauty' regarding their products. A very alluring tagline for makeup newbies and makeup aficionados alike.

blk All-day Matte Powder Foundation

Touching the powder itself- it feels fine and smooth. It's not dry or chalky and has the faintest smell of typical talc powders. It feels lightweight on the skin and the finish is quite natural. Application-wise, I typically use a fluffy brush and lightly apply this on top of my base whether that be sunscreen or on top of the blk skin tint. The result is a soft matte finish and yes, skin-like. I wouldn't say this is a powder foundation in the original sense of the word, this feel most like a typical pressed powder with sheer-light coverage. Something to set the makeup, keep the oil at bay or touch up with.

While I do like the texture and the small amount of coverage it gives, I have a tiny problem with the shades. This only comes in a whopping TWO shades. Light beige and this one. I would feel a little bit better if they release a translucent one and maybe 2 more shades that have an olive or yellow undertone. Because after a while, this leans a smidge orangey on me- which makes me look off. Which brings me to the their other product...

No this can't be made to full coverage no matter how much you put on, just needed to get that one out there. It does look skin-like and natural but at most it can be built up to a semi-medium (if you push it) without sacrificing the nice natural finish it gives. 

Right off the bat, I like the runny texture. It gives you the idea that 'I am just a tint with some moisture nothing more' and I love it. On the skin it feels like an emollient moisturizer but not heavy or extremely tacky. It's not a matte finish, more of a slightly dewy natural one. The component (tube) is something I like as well, as it provides a more precise dispensing of product. And the bottle is small and sleek (everything from this whole line looks perfection btw love the 'neutral/skin' minimalist packaging) making it an easy addition to any a makeup kit/area. 

I feel like their darkest, Chestnut would work better in terms of undertone, but it's just too dark on me when I tested on the counter. So I decided on Vanilla, despite being obviously pink-beige. I felt like this is easier to work on as it is only a 'tint'. The undertone is prominent with being as light coverage as it is. I find that most of the shades in the skin tint are prominently red/pink in their shade. ----WHY IS THAT. I'm not saying no one in the Philippines has that undertone, but why not release some more extra shades that are more blue/green, heck I'll take a yellow undertone over this pink.

And this is why I like Vice cosmetics better in terms of shades. They have a wider array than most locally available cosmetics brands with most of them being yellow and/or golden in undertone. While I don't particularly like their extreme oxidation on me (turns at least 2 shades darker) I applaud the idea behind the release of more than the 'standard' 4 shades from the get-go.

I really really like these two products -don't get me wrong. The price-point is very fair.  They're cruelty-free! The packaging looks good. The components of the products are sturdy. I love their matte lipstick formula. Their philosophy is nice...

but the shades. Man the shades. I think they have to work on that. They have to release more colours for warm and olive skinned individuals and really make their products uncomplicated. Because if I have to use extra products to counter the mismatch of shades, then how uncomplicated is it really?

Traveling with make-up can be a little more stressful than it needs to be especially for the makeup lover. There's the issue of the liquid bases and huge canisters eyeshadow and powder. Not to mention the many lippie choices you have to consider for day-to-day, depending on the finish and itinerary, how it doesn't clash with your outfits or when you're so spoilt for choice but can only bring at most 2 lippies etc etc etc.



Made for the wanderer and jetsetter in mind, these mini (and when I say mini I mean the bullet is about 2 inches in height the product inside even less) lipsticks are the quick and easy companion of people who need options when they're traveling and don't add up on the airport scale.


Ingredient list

The names are must-visit locations of every traveler.


Isn't the packaging beyond adorable? From the box to the tubes themselves - this collection feels very well thought-out. I do appreciate the matte lego aesthetic and the animal icons on each tube it can come across to some as a little juvenile given the packaging and how mini this is (about 2 inches in height).



The blk travels set retails for P1,499 with eight creamy matte shades to choose from. Why all the animal icons? It's because the set donates a portion of the sales to the WWF or World Wildlife Fund .(If you haven't tried their lippies, isn't that a good incentive to try them? lol)



These particular lipsticks are made in Taiwan while I believe makeup in their other collections are made in Korea. All their products are cruelty-free and PETA approved. 


On to the swatches :



These lipsticks were released in a set way back, around this time last 2018 I believe. Hence the 'holiday' main box packaging. I might've switched the labels of the hand swatches. Sorry!








LA and Paris are shades I'm lukewarm about. They work when I have a specific look in mind, but I prefer them more as washes or tint rather than full on color on the lips.




*Colour on photo shown is London*

Application-wise there's full color with one swipe but full opaqueness can be achieved with two full swipes.

*Colour on photo shown is New York*

LONDON and DUBAI are my most favorite shades out of everything. Majority of the reason being that they're nudes and they're so flattering.


*Colour on photo is wrong. From left to right (new york and london)*

Hongkong is the perfect blue-based deep red on me. It's perfect.

The texture and consistency for most if not all the lipsticks are the same : matte and creamy but not  soft. The finish is definitely matte and it's creamy enough to apply without heavy dragging but  not easily meltable(?) There's some stability to the formula. Don't expect kiss/budge-proof as these do transfer but I find that they leave a slight stain on the lips as it fades throughout the day.

As for how it feels on my dry lips, sufficient prep is needed as these are matte. The small size offers a little more precision than the usual normal sized tube and you can easily finish a tube in a couple of months before it even expires - so that should boost your hitting-pan lemmings. Some of the shades might not work for the darkest of skintones, I think these are perfect for fair to medium-tanned skin, anyone darker some shades would look ashy or too odd.

Try this if you want an introduction to the blk matte lippie formula or you're the type to bring more than two lippies whenever you travel or you just want to finally finish a tube before it even comes close to expiring.

As for me, I like its size and the different shades and the fact that it answers my particular quirk when bringing lippies with me. I personally would like at least two universally flattering options for when I travel. So this set is a cute little addition to my travel makeup bag.

Have you tried any lispticks from blk or any other makeup? What else is good with the brand?

xx,
CJ

PS. Thanks to my beau for gifting me these. I personally love the story more of how confused you were when you got these though. The lipsticks are just a sweet bonus. :P

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This CC Cooling Cushion is specifically made for dry, sensitive skin that is prone to redness. So of course I practically ran towards this variant. There really isn't much in terms of coverage which is perfect for me and the texture is watery and thin.

Sheer coverage works best when you want to re-apply throughout the day. Most products that have coverage, I find tend to cake up and look like you have a lot of base on.


The Face Shop Miracle Finish line - CC Cooling in shade V203.



I'm a sucker for packaging so this black and gold cushion case is a+.
Priced at Php 1,095 it's a little more steep than what I usually get but I got this buy one,get one so it's a better deal.



It has this cooling sensation because of the 'Snow oil' that aids in calming itchiness and irritation. And that factor makes it a nice 'summer' or actually perfect for our Philippine weather. Full ingredients here.



The tone is yellowish and with a little olive.

Following my previous liquid lipstick review here , I'm coming at you with another liquid lipstick review. This time from Ever Bilena.

If you're a beauty lover you'd probably have or have owned an EB Matte Lipstick at least once. You know those OG squarish black-tubed lipsticks that smelled like wax (and sort-of like 'old lady' makeup) from their main line. They were truly matte and CHEAP.

I had one in Mauvey and well...Mauvey. I felt like that was the safest 'blind-buy' colour before, but that was before my obsession with deep dark wine, reds, warm nudes and roses came in to play.

So take that well beloved OG lipstick and put them in the preferred formula today( liquid format) ét voila. We have the EB Liquid Matte Lipsticks.

Read on for my thoughts and swatches about this DELICIOUS smelling, LIGHT-as-a-feather and SUPERBLY pigmented liquid lipstick.


Here it is dried down. The colour dried-down has darkened very slightly.

I purchased five colours that I know would work well for me and that I can actually wear on more than one occasion.


Bare lips.

Packaging | Consistency | Application

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Right off the bat, I like that it's just a simple clear tube so you can see the inside and the standard doe-foot applicator. Having tags of the shade on the top of the tube as well as the bottom is a great touch.

As you open the tube you do get a whiff of something sweet but not overpoweringly so. Something like cupcakes? Pulling the wand you can immediately tell it's very liquid-ey. As such the application is smooth and tug-free leaving an even application of colour. Some colours like the Vamp Red, need at least two swipes to make the colour on your lips even. Matte lovers rejoice because this dries to a powdery matte finish that's transfer-proof.


Sexy Nude a peachy salmon colour.


Siennas as an warm light orangey brick.

Wear time | Formula

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If you wet your lips with water (anything non oily) it does get slightly tacky and very slightly separates. I've noticed that while using Careline's formula as well. But it didn't crumble and my lips didn't look like the Sahara desert. It was still comfortable enough for me to wear all throughout the day.

Plus I didn't have to worry about it bleeding, moving around and crumbling like I have colored polvoron on my lips.


Toast of New York a warm milk chocolate with red tones.


Vamp Red - A cool-toned red.

Price : 195
Net Weight : 5. 5ML

Ingredients : Isododecane, Hydrogenated styrene/isoprene copolymer, talc, ,trimethylsiloxysilicate, phenoxyethanol, ethylhexyglycerin, fragrance, may contain tintanium dioxide, red iron oxide, yellow iron oxide, black iron oxide, d&c red 6, d&c red 7, fd&c blue 1


Dusk is a deep dark red with purple tones.



Once dry it's quite a challenge to remove. So you have to use oil-based removers. I used Simple's Micellar water (not oil based) and had to rub hard multiple times for it to come off. The good news is that they won't transfer (unless you eat  or put on something oily).



I noticed that since the consistency reminds me of Colourpop Satin Lips and some of the shades from EB are from the same colour family I decided to put them side by side for comparison. (Plus Careline's Gotta Go)



Siennas, Sexy Nude and Echo Park are close to each other. Sexy Nude is lighter and more pink, Echo Park is darker with more brown in it, Siennas is darker then Sexy Nude and has more red.


Final thoughts?

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