I was sent 2 tubes of
Annabelle Cosmetics' volumelip Lip Plumping Gloss in
Cherryoké &
Sweet Tweet to try out. This is my review of those lip glosses, complete with swatches & of course tons of detailed pictures.
First ImpressionsThe first thing that I noticed was the packaging. The tube is different than the lip glosses that I'm used to seeing. I've only had a lip gloss & a mascara in this sort of tube by a company called Caboodles & that was years ago! Recently I've spotted a few Inglot lip glosses online in a similar tube. I like how Annabelle Cosmetics chose this tube - it helps you quickly differentiate the product from other brands on the market & identify the product easily.
[Click images to enlarge]
The applicator has a slanted tip so it's easier to apply the gloss. The gloss also comes out from the center of the applicator, so you can easily control how much product you want by squeezing the tube accordingly.
Swatches
Hand swatches - Cherryoké on top & Sweet Tweet on the bottom. Each shade is swatched twice. The left swatch is the gloss applied generously & the right swatch is the gloss applied lightly.
Lip Swatches - bare lips, Sweet Tweet, & Cherryoké. Pictures are captioned so read that instead of me typing it out.
Mix it up!I love Cherryoké when it's applied lightly but Sweet Tweet is just not my colour. Instead of just tossing it in my drawer & never looking at that shade again, I decided to dab & blend a little Sweet Tweet with how I usually apply Cherryoké. I did this with my finger so that I had more control over the end result & I ended up with a completely different yet gorgeous shade of pink.
The Main ReviewPros- Different packaging - allows you to easily search for the lip gloss in your makeup stash.
- Not too sticky - it's a little sticky (according to me) but after a few minutes it feels comfortable & it's not as sticky any more. I know a lot of people wont find this gloss sticky at all but I'm more picky than most.
- Moisturizing - I don't feel like I need to reapply this lip gloss because my lips feel moisturized for a long time even when I look in the mirror & the colour has faded. Even though the colour fades, the glossy effect remains for hours! Evidence:
- Non-tingly - it doesn't have that tingly feeling (or what some call a sort of burning sensation) that most lip plumping glosses have. But then again most of the lip plumping glosses that I've used focus on plumping your lips on application, not over time so I can't compare those two types of lip glosses. However, there's no tingly feeling.
- Pigmented - the colour pay off is great & by building up on the gloss you would be able to achieve the same colour on your lips as you see in the tube. Okay, so you would have to be very generous with your application but you can still get that colour.
- Clear tube - allows you to see how much product you have left & when it's time for you to run out & buy a back up ;)
- No taste
- No smell
- Price - the suggested retail price, as listed on the Annabelle Cosmetics website, is $8.50 (CAD).
- Shades - available in 5 gorgeous colours. The colours are bold & most of them remind me of spring. Iced Spice is a light brown shade & it is a colour that I would have previously gone for. Now, however, I've been experimenting with different lip colours & trying more bold colours. With such pretty bold shades, why wouldn't I want to grab those instead?
Metro Mango (even though the gloss does not resemble the colour of a mango at all) is the perfect addition to your spring or summer look since corals are big, I mean HUGE this year. Vivid Volume is a beautiful hot pink. Such pretty colours & there are so many ways that you can wear them. I want them all!
While taking a walk down the makeup aisle in Shoppers Drug Mart, I spotted volumelip in the 5 shades, so I just had to snap a picture!
Cons
- Hard tube - the tube that I received was really hard to squeeze. The picture below shows how I hold & squeeze the tube to get the product out. The company realized this quickly & softer tubes were already being made when I was sent this to review. When I was at Shoppers Drug Mart though, I did see an older female returning the tube because it was that hard. Of course I let her know newer ones will be out soon :) Just make sure when you pick up one of these lip glosses from a store, that they are in the easier-to-squeeze, new packaging.
- Hard to take off lid - the lid doesn't unscrew, instead you have to pull it off. It wasn't too hard to pull off the lid, but I prefer the lids that unscrew just because I can unscrew & apply the lip gloss using one hand for the whole process. I def can't take off this lid using just one hand.
- Lip plumping results over time - I don't know about you, but I don't use the same lip gloss every day. The only lip product that I use every day is my rose salve. To see lip plumping results with this lip gloss, you have to use it continuously and it gives you results over a period of time. Since I do not use the same lip gloss (even if it is available in different shades), I did not see those results. Also, if you're looking for a lip gloss that will give you instant results on application, then this is not the gloss for you.
- Name of shade not on tube - this is not a big deal to most but I noticed it so thought I'd mention it anyway. If you're a beauty blogger & like to mention the shade used in your blog post, or if you're using it & someone asks you which lip gloss & shade you're using, then you might not remember the shade off the top of your head causing an "ummm..." moment. Pictures of the front & back of the tube included for evidence.
Does it meet its claims?When I was sent the glosses, they were packaged in a cute cylinder shaped package, which included the following piece of paper.
Based on my use of the glosses & the list of pros & cons above, I can take a look at the claims list & say:
- Hydration - check
- Comfort - check
- Non-sticky formula - not a complete check (for me) but it's still a pass
- High shine texture - check
- Light coverage - check but you can also build up on the gloss to give you more coverage
Overall, the gloss meets the claims that it makes. Bravo, Annabelle Cosmetics!
Which shade of Annabelle's volumelip Lip Plumping Gloss do you like best?
Curious to see how I got this look? Want to try it for yourself? Watch the tutorial video here. Or you can watch it on my YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/xsaimese) in HD!
Doesn't it look like I used the picture above as an inspiration?
