Review: Clinique Chubby Stick in Chunky Cherry

I'm enormously pleased to tell you that the amazing prize that I won from Danniella was a Clinique Chubby Stick! If you were following me around December/January time on Twitter you probably would have seen my forlorn moans about being unable to find the Clinique Whole Lotta Colour set. I've been wanting to try the Chubby Sticks forever but I just couldn't justify the cost. Danniella took pity on me and let me choose a Chubby Stick for my prize! I was absolutely shocked and amazed and I can't even express how grateful I am. I decided to pick Chunky Cherry because I don't wear a lot of red on my lips (don't let the profile picture fool you, it was a special occasion!) and I thought this would be a great way to introduce it subtly. Plus, Danniella is a huge red lip fan and I thought I should honour her!

Let's just take a second to bask in it's beauty... ooh, ahh. Needless to say I love the packaging. The cute, floral, pastel box is to die for and I will never throw it away! The tube itself is very familiar since Revlon's Balm Stains are near enough identical (reviews here.) It's a perfect, sleek way to house the product and I love that you don't have to sharpen them. The cap stays on securely and it's very comfortable to hold and use. The colour selection in the range is fantastic and I adore the curvalicious names. Also noteworthy is that these do not have any kind of scent.

I adore the colour. It's soft, glossy and so flattering. It's easy to build up into a deeper colour too so I find it quite versatile. The lasting power also surprised me. The glossy finish doesn't last more than a couple of hours but contrary to everything I've read, I do feel that this gives me a slight pink stain. I love how evenly it fades. When you eat a meal it disappears naturally rather than leaving a tide line. The moisturising claims it comes with are completely justified. It just glides on and is so comfortable and hydrating. I wear this everywhere! Despite the price, I'm totally hooked. I know I'm going to buy one of these myself before the Summer. Perhaps a cheeky Boots points purchase? (£16)

Final Verdict: I absolutely adore it. If you can get hold of one, you should!

Have you tried these? Are you raving like a loony just as much as me?

Lauren

Review: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains in Honey and Crush

 Just like with the lip butters, I'm a million years behind every one else buying these. But why not share them anyway? I've only picked up two shades so far but now that I've tried them, I want MORE. These are possibly my favourite lip colour products of all time. (Big thing to say, but it's true) I love the look of stains but like a lot of people I just find them impossibly drying and because they're so uncomfortable I always end up adding lip balm or sometimes even gloss, which of course completely takes away the intended effect.

Regardless of my raving, there are some substantial negatives. First up, the bizarre menthol scent. These smell like vapo-rub. If you don't what that is, imagine really strong mint crossed with antiseptic. How nice is that? It's not overly terrible though and you can't smell it once it's applied. I've read a few reviews with people saying that they actually like the scent, but for me, if you're going to scent makeup it should be something less clinical. Secondly, the price. £7.99 isn't an enormous amount of money, but it is substantial for a high street product, particularly when you only get 2.7g of it. I'll be honest and say it's a lot of the reason that it's taken me so long to buy any. Luckily a lot of the Revlon range is on offer for £5 each at Boots at the moment which is a far more palatable price for me!
Here they are on me:

Honey surprised me. I was expecting a much more muted almost neutral shade. I actually got a bright, but still undeniably pretty, pink. I do like it, but I think I'm still on the hunt for a more nude shade. Crush is such a stand out gorgeous berry shade. It's deep and vampy and not for the faint of heart. I got a few looks for wearing this outside in the day but I'm going to interpret it as jealousy. Who can blame them? 

The formula of these is to die for. It's a lovely, smooth, lightweight balm with an inbuilt stain. Long after the sheen is gone, a beautiful pink stain adorns your lips. And wow at the lasting power of these babies! I am amazed. I've had Crush on all day and I still have vibrant pink lips. I also love how you can build these shades up to create a darker, stronger colour. Also have to compliment the packaging, I know it's pretty much directly swiped from the Chubby Sticks, but there's no denying that it makes a great housing for the product. The silver twist up section at the base is really nicely incorporated into the design. My only gripe is that the lid doesn't fit on the opposite end of the stick. I don't know about you, but if I can't put the lids on the back end I put them down and it takes me half an hour to find them again. Things literally disappear if they touch the floor. Guess I'm just gonna have to be extra careful!

Final Verdict: get one! or two or three...

What do you think to these? Are they better than the Clinique Chubby Sticks?

Lauren