Hey guys!

If you follow me on instagram @SheenaShares, you'd know that I promised these swatches a while back. So this post is actually a long time coming. And I'm only gonna give you half of what I promised. Terribly sorry about that.

Apologies aside, let's do a recap on the shades I got.

The 6 shades I got were Dalia, LBB, Brink, Frida, Lumiere and Button.

However, today, I'll be sharing my thoughts on only the 3 lightest shades i.e. Button, Lumiere and Frida.

Just a quick overview, these lippie stix are very creamy across the board. The extent on how creamy the lippie stix depends on the finish (satin being creamier than the mattes) but still creamy nonetheless. The scent I get on this is reminiscent of Maybelline lipticks ("play dough"-ish) though on a fainter scale. Therefore I doubt these would offend anyone's nostrils.

[NOTE: The lighting of each picture differs slightly because I shoot using natural light. I have adjusted the properties accordingly, such that the true colour of the lipstick is shown (as much as possible) although the true colour of my skin is not. Hahaha. In addition, no lipliner or balm was used so excuse the less than precise application (: ]

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LIPPIE STIX | BUTTON

LIPPIE STIX | Button | Lip Swatch

BUTTON is described as a mid tone warm nude shade with a satin finish. On my lips, it looked lighter than a medium pink with a peachy undertone. I would advise those with a skintone of NC40 and above to stay clear from this shade to avoid looking pasty. 

TEXTURE: 5/5

The texture is very smooth and creamy. In comparison to Mac lipsticks, I would say that the texture is more a kin to cremesheen rather than satin. 

APPLICATION: 4.5/5

The formula made for smooth application. However, 0.5 mark deducted because you do have to be careful not to twist up too much or risk breaking it. This shade in particular seemed more fragile than the rest. 

PIGMENTATION: 5/5

Despite it being a light shade, pigmentation was on point as it even covered the outer edges of my lips, which are pigmented dark brown.

LONGEVITY: 4/5

It remained more or less the same after 6 hours of no eating or drinking at home. It was neither drying nor hydrating. Hadn't put it through the eating test because I never use this colour out (too pasty for public). But I would imagine reapplication is much recommended with it being a light shade.

LIPPIE STIX | Lumiere

LIPPIE STIX | Lumiere | Lip Swatch

LUMIERE is described as a dusty mauve pink with a matte finish. In person, it has a bit of a white undertone to is which may not work for my skin tone or darker. I personally do not like this shade on me. I love mauves but for some reason, it makes me look pale. For reference, I'm a 173 in MUFE HD Foundation.

I also feel the need to add this because many people expect it to look the same on the lips as it does swatched on the back on the hand. The back of our hand tends to be more neutral because it rarely comes directly under the sun. Unless your lips are a true pink, it is unlikely that it will show up as a true mauve on the lips. If you want that look, get both the pencil and the lippie stix. 

  

TEXTURE: 4.5/5

This formula, or rather the matte formula in general, does not drag but it is less emollient/creamy than the satins.

APPLICATION: 4/5

As this formula is less creamy, more attention is need when applying. Put too much pressure and these would break. In addition, this particular shade is not buildable. In the close up, you can still see my lip colour peeking through. This was despite trying to create a more opaque layer. Layering actually caused some of the cream to move around a bit. 

PIGMENTATION: 4/5

From the close up, you can definitely see the other edges of my lip. In addition, you may or may not tell but my inner lip colour can actually still be seen, just that not so obvious because my inner lip colour is similar. However, if I were to look in a mirror, I can definitely tell which parts of my lips a 'exposed'.

LONGEVITY: 3.5

It remained more or less the same after 6 hours of no eating or drinking but by the end, it got slightly drying. On me, these didn't last me through a meal. It went extremely patchy after a meal. Not transfer proof.

LIPPIE STIX | Frida

LIPPIE STIX | Frida | Lip Swatch

FRIDA, funnily, is described as a warm mid tone nude pink, which is a similar description to Button. Reason being, I found Button to be more pink than Frida. Frida is similar to Button but has a tinge more orange to it. Frida is a satin finish. I personally think this a a great nude for me (lighting is making my skin tone look fairer than it actually is, in reality, there isn't that much contrast.)

TEXTURE: 5/5
Similar to Button, texture is very smooth and creamy. In comparison to Mac lipsticks, this is similar to a cremesheen finish.

APPLICATION: 4.5/5
The formula made for smooth application. However, 0.5 mark deducted because you do have to be careful not to twist up too much or risk breaking it, although not as fragile as Button.

PIGMENTATION: 4.5/5
My inner lip colour is fully covered, only the edges of my lips lay exposed hence the 0.5 mark deduction.

LONGEVITY: 4.5/5
It remained more or less the same after 6 hours of no eating or drinking. It was neither drying nor hydrating. It didn't become patchy after a meal but it didn't exactly last me through a meal as well. One could go on without reapplying but for me, reapplication was a better choice. Not transfer proof.

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That's it guys.

'Til the next post!

♥ Sheena V

Related: US Online Shopping | Colourpop Cosmetics Review (service)

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Hey there!

Hope this finds you well (:

I've been short of time recently because my prelims and exams are fast approaching. In Feb/Mar and May/Jun to be exact.

Therefore I apologise that I haven't been updating twice a week as I've been last year. I do try to update at least once a week and there should be a Review + Swatch on 3 of Colourpop Cosmetics Lippie Stix. I know I have 6 but I could only photograph 3 before I had to head out. Haha.

As much as I would like to post up swatches of the myriad of lip products I have, those posts are dependant on the sunlight and Q's availability because it is him who helps photograph me. Which means that I basically only have the weekends to do that. In addition, the past two months have been rather gloomy therefore at times the sunlight I get isn't bright enough. #thestruggleisreal

Don't fret though, I've been compiling whatever product photos I can shoot by myself and planning out my blog schedule for when I finally am on semester break. I may be busy with school + work, but I still found time to shop online. Heh.

RECENT HAUL

I've been testing out products and formed opinions on most of them so I'm very excited to when I can finally get the chance (and time) to share it with you. That's why I started this blog is the first place, I'm a opinionated individual wanting to be heard. Hahaha. I'll also posts prioritise limited edition releases because what's the point of updating if it's already sold out right?

SEOUL 2014

Makeup aside, if you've read my travel tag, you'll know that I went on holiday last Dec to Bangkok and Seoul. I also have some posts planned pertaining to that but those will to wait. (Not to mention I still have my Perth posts. Heh.) Those posts won't exactly be about what I did but more to Tips & Tricks you might appreciate knowing before heading there, from a budget (basically whatever category I belong in) traveller perspective.

MY 22nd BIRTHDAY LUNCH

On to something more personal, I recently turned 22 and I feel... Old. It's not the number itself that makes me feel old but the fact that my youngest sister is finally in secondary school.We have a 9-year age gap, get what I mean? Sometimes I forget she's too old to get toys as presents. Hahaha.

BACK IN 2010, LOOK HOW YOUNG MY SISTERS ARE

That's basically all I have to offer today. May you have a wonderful week!

♥ Sheena V

Okay, maybe one last thing. 

Q meanly made this meme;

Hahaha he cb.

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MAC | Red Red Red | Toxic Tale

Hope this finds you well!

Forgive the lack of  updates, prelims and finals are coming so hadn't had the time to write much. Please bear with my sparse updates until those end.

I have tons of product reviews I want to share with you after, in the mean time, follow me on Instagram @sheenashares to get a sneak of reviews that might come your way.

However, I did want to share with you a lipstick that Mac Cosmetics released as part of their Red Red Red Collection. Since it would only be officially launched on our shores this Feb, I wanted to give you guys the heads up because this one lipstick is sooooo good.

Toxic Tale (Satin)

A bright coral, this shade piqued my interest as this coral seemed to lean more towards pink than orange which was exactly what I wanted (although it does seem more orange off the lips, but on, it's definitely more pink). I somewhat bought this blindly because I didn't even get to swatch it in person because it was my aunt who helped me purchase it (at 20% off, no less) as she won a pass to the preview launch. I forwent the other shades in the collection because this was the only opaque shade of the lot. I personally would rather spend $30 on a opaque lipstick than a "tinted lip balm" but that's just my opinion.

TEXTURE: 5/5
It had a smooth, creamy and thick texture. There was no lumps and bumps. Creamy such that there was no chaffing of lips once on. The consistency wasn't so thick that it would slide of the boundaries but not thin enough that a mere rubbing of lips would lead to colour disappearing.

APPLICATION: 4.5/5
It's stellar texture allowed for smooth application. There was no dragging across the lips however because it is of slightly thicker consistency, it won't exactly slide across the lips either. It does take a wee more muscle power but I can't complain because the non slip allows for more control on application. For intense shade, control is much welcomed. In addition, the formula for this allows building up for a more intense colour without patchiness.

PIGMENTATION: 5/5
What I really love about this shade is the ability to control intensity without compromising much on the opacity. My lips are pigmented dark pink with brown edges. Therefore, even most opaque lipsticks are unable to cover the edges of my lips. However, 2-3 layers coats my lips quite nicely without any brown peeking through. Heck, even a single layer (shown below) manages to coat my lips pretty damn well.

LONGEVITY: 4.5/5
I had this on through a soupy and oily meal and it was still visible. My lips did not look oily albeit it did look slightly duller / less neon. However, there was no pressing need to touch up after the meal thus making it a fuss-free lipstick. There was also slight fading in the inner lip but if your lips are pigmented pink, it's barely noticeable since Toxic Tale leans more towards pink. It was neither hydrating nor drying.

ONE layer applied for a softer look

To sum it up, I highly recommend picking Toxic Tale! Don't let the the it daunt you. In the tube and swatched on the hand, it does look a bit "whoa nelly!" but as seen above, a single light layer gives a soft but vibrant look that brightens up the face (:

♥ Sheena V

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