GUCCI Rouge a Levres Satin LIPSTICKS 2019 Review, Swatches: PART I BOLDS

GUCCI Rouge a Levres Satin LIPSTICKS 2019 Review, Swatches: PART I BOLDS

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, July 19, 2019

Remember Gucci Beauty? They launched back in 2014, with Pat McGrath as one of the creative directors, but the range faded into oblivion in 2016.
They've relaunched now, with a spankin' range of 58 lipsticks in three finishes, for Summer 2019! The range is inspired by Old Hollywood and art and antiques - a passion of current creative director Alessandro Michele (shared by yours truly). This shows in the naming of the lipsticks, as well as the packaging.
Since I've been having a rough time lately, with allergy issues for myself and health issues for my family as well, I decided to treat myself to some of these (as well as a couple of other luxury lipsticks - see here for another recent lipstick haul - I tell you, there is NOTHING like a luxe lippie to cheer you up). Unfortunately, the more muted shades were out of stock when I placed my order, so I picked some of the bolder and brighter shades. I held off on the review, hoping the subtler shades would be back in stock soon. I then lost patience, and went ahead with the review, only to find that all the shades were back in stock! I have some dusty roses on their way to me - I will be adding the swatches of those to this very same post, so do bookmark it and check back in a couple of weeks' time!
For now, I have some of the bolder, fuchsia shades to show you, though I'll definitely tell you what shade numbers contain what colour families, and how to choose the shade you want.

UPDATE: I HAVE RECEIVED MORE NEUTRAL COLOURS - SWATCHES ADDED BELOW. 

Scroll down for my review and swatches of the Gucci Rouge a Levres Satin Lipsticks for Summer 2019.

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Estee Lauder Pure Color DESIRE ROUGE EXCESS LIPSTICKS Review, Swatches

Estee Lauder Pure Color DESIRE ROUGE EXCESS LIPSTICKS Review, Swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Thursday, July 18, 2019

For me, the biggest problem with the Estee Lauder Pure Color Desire Rouge Excess Lipsticks is that name. WHY Pure Color? Why not start a whole new range instead of adding length - and confusing - to a handle?
I'll explain.
First, we had the Estee Lauder Pure Color lipsticks. Then came the Pure Color ENVY Sculpting lipsticks (reviewed here) - regular first, followed by a matte range. Then, we had the Pure Color LOVE Lipsticks (reviewed here). Liquid lipsticks followed (all reviewed here) - Pure Color Love Liquid lip colours, and Pure Color PAINT-ON Liquid Lipsticks. ARGH! Stop already! Can't they remove the "Pure Color" suffix at least now? Why is it on every darn lipstick launch ever? Surely Estee Lauder Desire Rouge Excess is enough without tacking on Pure Color in there?
Enough ranting about the name. Let's talk about the lipsticks themselves. These come in stunning packaging, possibly the best we've seen from Estee Lauder. Very heavy metal. All gold. Satisfying click. Incidentally, these are the lipsticks that are supposed to have the highest percentage of pigment in any Estee Lauder lipstick so far.

Scroll down for the review, swatches, and demo of the Estee Lauder Pure Color Desire Rouge Excess Lipsticks.

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Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Matte Lip 3D Lip Colour Review, Swatches

Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Matte Lip 3D Lip Colour Review, Swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, March 26, 2017

I have been obsessed with the Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Lipstick in Perfectly Bare - see review and swatches here. The shade was so pretty and the lipstick so creamy that the SAs in Selfridges wanted to know what brand it was, and refused to believe me when I said it was a Boots buy.
The Sexy Mother Pucker Matte Lip 3D Lip Colours are a 2016 launch from Soap & Glory. At first, I gave them a derisive look - they were lip crayons, after all, and I always find that lip crayons are less pigmented and less lasting than bullet lipsticks, let alone liquid lipsticks.
The SA at Boots convinced me to pick one of these up. There were five shade options. I chose the mauve-iest shade of the lot - Chocoberry, which is neither "choco" nor berry, but a regular mauvey-pink.
If you are in the UK, buy from Boots here. US readers can get this from here.  

Scroll down for more on the Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Matte Lip 3D Lip Colour, including swatches and review.

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YesStyle Top 10 Korean Beauty Products 2016: Review, FOTD

YesStyle Top 10 Korean Beauty Products 2016: Review, FOTD

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Thursday, August 18, 2016

Korean and Japanese Beauty retailer YesStyle has put together their curation of the Top 10 Must-Try Korean Beauty products for 2016, featuring the bestselling products on their website. I am a regular @YesStyle customer and have reviewed one of their beauty sample boxes here.
A word about YesStyle - they are Hong Kong-based, ship worldwide tracked free for orders above US$35, and offer free samples with every purchase. 
YesStyle's Top 10 Must-Try K-Beauty set comes in the same cute packaging as their sampler boxes. The #YesStyleTop10 are a nice mix of makeup and skincare, and include famous K-Beauty brands such as Etude House, Tony Moly and Laneige.

Scroll down for a look at YesStyle's selection of Top 10 Must-Try Korean Beauty Products for 2016.

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Holika Holika Dessert Time Lip Balm Set Review

Holika Holika Dessert Time Lip Balm Set Review

Skin care Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, September 29, 2015

If there was a contest for the cutest packaging ever, the Holika Holika Dessert Time Lip Balms would win hands down. LOOK at the photos. Cupcakes!
Does the packaging make you feel hungry? All of these smell as good as they look! I got one in a Memebox last year and ended up buying the whole set from W2Beauty - they ship worldwide with tracking for a mere $2.50.

Holika Holika is one of those cult Korean beauty brands whose packaging takes cuteness to a whole new level. These lip balms have held the pride of place atop my vanity ever since I bought them.

Scroll down for my thoughts on the Holika Holika Dessert Time Lip Balms.

Bite Beauty 5 Night Fix For Lips review

Bite Beauty 5 Night Fix For Lips review

Skin care Cosmetopia Digest   Saturday, March 28, 2015

For soft, smooth and flawless lips in five nights.

I cope with stress by chewing and pulling at my lips, peeling off my nails and twirling my bangs until they form a knot that needs chopping off. Not very sensible or healthy habits. To rub salt into my chapped lips, I spend all day in an air-conditioned environment, which dries my skin further. So my lips end up perpetually flaky, tender and dry.
I have been reading great things about the Bite Beauty 5 Night Fix For Lips for a while now. This set contains two products - the Agave lip mask and the Whipped Cherry lip scrub stick. It promises chap-free lips in five nights of treatment.

Read on for my review of the Bite Beauty 5 Night Fix For Lips, which contains the Agave Lip Mask and the Whipped Cherry Scrub.

Lorac Pro Matte Lip Color Pink, Mauve, Rose Taupe review, swatches

Lorac Pro Matte Lip Color Pink, Mauve, Rose Taupe review, swatches

Reviews Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, August 10, 2014

Move over, Bobbi Brown Lip Colors and everything else. I have a new favourite lipstick. Okay, second favourite, since Chanel Rouge Double Intensite, reviewed here, is my number one, but then they have discontinued my shade, Rose Garnet. Boo! Hiss!
You know I love a subtle lip. Not for me are the deep berries, bold pinks or bright oranges. Give me your  dusty rose, your neutral brown, your MLBB shades.... You also know I love my matte makeup - matte finish foundation, matte eyeshadow and matte lipstick.
The Lorac Pro Matte Lip Colors combine both these qualities. They do have bold shades, but the ones I picked are the subtlest of the lot. Add matte-but-not-drying to beautiful shades, great pigmentation and really good staying power, and these retractable lip colours have shot straight to the top of my list of best lipsticks. They are probably my favourite products from my mid-year makeup haul here.

Here is my review of the Lorac Pro Matte Retractable Lip Colors and swatches of Mauve, Pink and Rose Taupe.

Lip Factory Box July 2014 unboxing, review

Lip Factory Box July 2014 unboxing, review

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, August 05, 2014

The reason I am posting the July 2014 Lip Factory beauty box in August 2014 is that it arrived on the last day of July and then I went a-travelling.

Lip Factory is a US-based makeup-centric beauty box that sends out full-sized products, no samples. There is a very high level of customisation possible, and the customer care is amazing. I mean it. I have been emailing Memebox for more than a month now over a missing box and nothing has come out of it. Email Lip Factory once and you get your problems, if any, solved.
To order, go to lipfactoryinc.com. Make sure you quote my referral code 385650 for 50 points apiece, which you can redeem against products or boxes.
Last month, they had sent out Girlactik Beauty products, as you can see here. July 2014 is Lip Factory's second anniversary month, so I expected another brilliant box. Were my expectations met? Read on.

Here is my review and unboxing of the July 2014 Lip Factory beauty box.

Too Faced Melted Fuchsia lipstick review, swatches

Too Faced Melted Fuchsia lipstick review, swatches

Too Faced Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, June 23, 2014

My four-year-old Canon T1i or 500D has finally gone to the place where all good cameras go after being thoroughly ill-treated and exposed to snow, rain, shine, mist and everything else you can think of. Until I get a decent replacement (and I have a trip in the way), I will be using a Cybershot point-and-shoot, so picture quality will be worse than usual.
The Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipsticks are probably the most talked-about lip products launched in 2014 so far. I picked up just two - Melted Fuchsia and Melted Coral - because the ones I really wanted (Nude and Peony) were out of stock at the time. I also want a couple of the newer releases - Marshmallow. Which means more of these lipsticks will be featured here soon.
These are supposed to have the "shine of a lip gloss", the "lasting power of a stain" and the pigmentation of a lipstick. What more can anyone want?

Here is my review and swatches of the Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick in Melted Fuchsia.

Lip Factory Box replacement May 2014 unboxing

Lip Factory Box replacement May 2014 unboxing

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Wednesday, June 18, 2014

A US-based beauty box that ships internationally, Lip Factory is makeup-centric and comes with at least five full-sized products per box. I have been subbing since June 2013 and have received some amazing boxes, as you can see here. The best part is that you can customise your profile according to colours you want, and they generally try to follow it.
The last two months' boxes from Lip Factory were disappointing. I had damaged eyeshadow, a lipstick with a fungal infection, colours and products that were the opposite of my profile... a replacement for April 2014 was promised, but did not turn up. So when I showed them the damaged products from May 2014, their amazing customer care sent me a whole replacement box with some additions to make up for the disappointment. Here is what I received:

Pixi Tinted Brilliance lip balm Radiant Rose review, swatches

Pixi Tinted Brilliance lip balm Radiant Rose review, swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, June 16, 2014

I am probably one of the last makeup-using women on the planet to get on the lip crayon bandwagon. At first, I refused to go near anything that looked like it belonged to my junior art class (which I failed) at St Mary's Girls' Convent, than in my makeup bag. I prefer full-coverage lipsticks any day, and, to me, balm-stains sounded just a step away from lip glosses, which I religiously avoid. When I finally got around to trying some of the crayons out, I was unimpressed by the Chubby Sticks, the Just Bittens (just bitten the dust, more like) and other lip crayons. Chubby Twist, seen here, caked and flaked on me. I bought a few Korean lip crayons, including Tony Moly, but remained equally unimpressed.
When I received a Pixi Tinted Brilliance Balm from one of my besties for my birthday, my first thought was that I would have to get rid of it without her finding out. And then, I tried it out.

Here is my review and swatches of the Pixi Tinted Brilliance Balm in Radiant Rose.

Lip Factory Box May 2014 review, unboxing

Lip Factory Box May 2014 review, unboxing

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, May 26, 2014

There is no doubt at all that the generously-packed Memebox has spoilt me thoroughly and increased my expectations from other beauty boxes. But, even if you take Memebox out of the equation, there are beauty boxes that I used to love, which had a very decent standard. Then, a few boxes down the line, they became downright disappointing. Glamabox was the first to go down that route, sending slimming "wraps", Cetaphil and chocolate before I decided to cut my losses and run. The next to bite the dust was A Beautiful World, who sent a tea bag and 5ml pots for 32 quid. And now, it is Lip Factory's turn, after a marvellous six-month run, where I had declared each month's box their best-ever. All I can say is, I hope they pick up next month, and I hope Memebox remains consistent forever. Read on to know why this tirade.

Here is my unboxing and review of the May 2014 Lip Factory beauty box.

Bobbi Brown N#de Lip Color #18 review, swatches

Bobbi Brown N#de Lip Color #18 review, swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, May 25, 2014

Google hates it when I use the term "nyude" - spelling mistake made intentionally to avoid adult content penalties - but unless someone tells cosmetics companies not to use the terms "n@ked", nyude and so on, blogs do not have a choice.
Anyway. I received a set of Bobbi Brown lipsticks as birthday presents - I got to choose the shades, so yay! Needless to say, every one of them was a dusty rose or rosy-neutral. My family keeps asking me why I asked for seven or eight lipsticks that looked exactly alike, but what do they know about the beauty of dusty rose? Today, I will show you one of my favourites from this set.

Here are swatches and the review of Bobbi Brown Lip Color in shade #18 or "N*de".

Etude House Rosy Tint Lips swatches, review

Etude House Rosy Tint Lips swatches, review

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, April 14, 2014

I had received a sample of the Etude House Fresh Cherry Tint along with a Korean makeup haul and was eager to get some full-sized lip products from the brand. I settled on the Etude House Rosy Tint Lips, which were launched last Fall, because this range had shades I thought would suit me best, and the reviews were great. I could not find any vampy shades and the roses on the packaging screamed spring/summer rather than fall to me.
The Etude House Rosy Tints come in eight shades. I bought #3 (Rose Petal) and #7 (Tea Rose) off W2Beauty, which is my favourite Korean cosmetics website because of the sheer amount of samples Alice (founder and owner) sends me and because she also sends candy!

Here is the review and swatches of Etude House Rosy Tint Lip colour.

Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense Lipstick #29 Satin Rosewood review, swatches, photos

Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense Lipstick #29 Satin Rosewood review, swatches, photos

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, March 10, 2014

After using - and owning - no other lipstick apart from Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Lip Colour, reviewed here, for years, I spent the latter half of 2013 building up a decent lipstick stash. And most of them were dusty rose/pink shades.
I hit the MUFE counter at Sephora wanting to try out the Aqua Rouge lip colours. Although I ended up picking up shade #10 from the fabulous, long-lasting range (will review soon), I didn't really come across an Aqua Rouge shade I lost my heart to, the kind of dusty rose I was looking for - not even Aqua Rouge Rosewood. That was when the SA showed me the Rouge Artist Intense lipsticks.

Here is the review and swatches of the Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense Lipstick in shade #29 or Satin Rosewood.

LA Splash Chubby Twist Auto-matted Lipstick in Pink Orchid review, swatch, photos

LA Splash Chubby Twist Auto-matted Lipstick in Pink Orchid review, swatch, photos

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Saturday, March 08, 2014

Warning: This is not pretty.
I knew there was a valid reason why I never liked LA Splash products. First, there was that horrendous glitter eyeliner from the worst beauty subscription ever (see here), appreciated by non-makeup-buffs alone. It always separated into clear water and chunky blue glitter that never dried and was dripping and could be wiped off ages later. I gave it - on demand - to a teenaged neighbour who didn't know much about liquid eyeliner. I await the day when she actually tries more liquid liners and realises what a decent liquid liner looks like.
Then, there was the mascara-that-refused-to-come-out-of-its-tube. I pleaded, begged, coaxed, bullied, threatened and bribed it, to no avail. I have no idea what that mascara actually does or even looks like. That one, I binned. I like to be somewhat neighbourly.
And the news that LA Splash once used a model's photograph for their ad campaign without her permission worsened matters. What brand does that??
Finally, there is the Chubby Twist Auto Matted lip crayon in Pink Orchid. Of the three LA Splash products I have been thrust with, this one is the best.  And, my first impressions were very good. But....

Here is the review of the LA Splash Chubby Twist Auto Matted Lipstick in Pink Orchid, and swatches.

Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Rose Garnet lip colour swatch: My HG lipstick

Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Rose Garnet lip colour swatch: My HG lipstick

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, February 23, 2014

Yes, all those tubes are the same lipstick. Around four similar boxes constituted the sum total of my lipstick collection until the latter part of 2012.
You have been reading my praise for my ultimate Holy Grail lipstick, the Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Ultra Wear Lip Colour in Rose Garnet, from the time this blog began. I've received messages asking me what makes it special and where it is available, so I thought it was time to devote a post to it.
This is the only shade and make of lipstick I owned for two years and I have gone through quite a few of these. Chanel discontinued this shade and relaunched the Rouge Double Intensite range in November 2013 (boo!) - but as you can see, I have five full tubes and a sixth tube in use at the moment and hopefully a seventh on the way, so I'm good for a while. See why I firmly advocate hoarding?

Here is my review and swatches of the Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Ultra Wear Lip Colour in Rose Garnet.

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb review and swatches of Bee Sting

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb review and swatches of Bee Sting

Too Faced Cosmetopia Digest   Thursday, February 13, 2014

Among the plethora of palettes and lipsticks I picked up in December was the Too Faced A Few Of My Favourite Things makeup palette, reviewed here and much-loved by me. This came with a mascara - Too Faced Lash Injection - and a plumping lip tint, the Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb Moisture Plumping Tint in Bee Sting. Too Faced was one of the first brands to come out with a lip plumper. I am not a fan of lip gloss or sheer tints and give all of them away unopened. But this is Too Faced, a brand I love more than all others except for theBalm and Benefit, so I decided to try it out. Moral of story: If you make up your mind not to try out lip glosses and tints, STICK to your decision.

Here is my review and the swatches Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb in Bee Sting.

Givenchy Le Rouge lipstick in 105 Brun Vintage swatches, review and photos

Givenchy Le Rouge lipstick in 105 Brun Vintage swatches, review and photos

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Wednesday, February 12, 2014

I was swatching the Urban Decay Revolution lipsticks at Sephora and wondering why I wasn't wowed when the SA from the Givenchy counter invited me to try out the Le Rouge Intense Color Sensuously Mat lipsticks which launched in 2013. The moment the semi-matte formula hit my skin, I knew I was picking up at least one. There are 12 shades in this range and they differ a bit in various parts of the globe, but there are naturals, roses, reds and browns in all sets.

Here is the review and swatches of the Givenchy Le Rouge lipstick in #105 Brun Vintage.

Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet lipstick 34 La Raffinee review, swatches, comparison

Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet lipstick 34 La Raffinee review, swatches, comparison

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, February 10, 2014

The Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet lipsticks first came out in 2011 but I had been perfectly content with Chanel Rouge Double Intensite and wore - and owned - no other lipsticks until Chanel discontinued my shade in 2013. Ever since, I have been searching for a replacement dusty rose lipstick that lasts forever. Naturally, I stopped at the Chanel counter itself, where I proceeded to lecture a hapless SA on why my shade should never have been stopped.... Anyway, she had her revenge when she swore that the Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet lipstick in shade 34 - La Raffinee - was a perfect dusty rose and that it would last forever. Within minutes, she had effected the sale.

Here is my review and swatches of the Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colour in shade 34 - La Raffinee.