Lips

Lancome Juicy Tubes

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Lancome Juicy Tubes

Luxury brand Lancome isn’t on the forefront of beauty trends, but Lancome Juicy Tubes ($20) glosses endure as a classic and a favorite in the broader community of cosmetics fanciers.

I like the idea of lipgloss, but rarely the execution. As a youngster, I owned a few Wet n Wild tubes (and they still make a shade I used to use and still enjoy!), but never fully embraced them once I started wearing makeup in earnest as an adult. I can cope with the need to reapply often (though I don’t want to), but sticky is unacceptable.

My preferences translate to a relative unwillingness to risk $20 (or even a sale price; at 20% off they’d still be $16) on one. Admittedly, I was curious though: we’re talking about a non trendy/hype machine product with enduring 4.5 star reviews. Could Lancome Juicy Tubes be that good? What would a $20 lip gloss have to do or be in order for you to buy it?

Giving Lancome Juicy Tubes a Shot

There’s no universe in which I spend that much on something that looks like I could’ve gotten it from Claire’s as a child. When I was able to nab a free sample tube, I did.

In (an acronym and) a word:

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Worth it? Ecolips Lipscrub

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Ecolips LipscrubEco Lips Lipscrub, Vanilla Bean, $3.97

It is plenty easy to exfoliate your lips. You can gently do so with the terrycloth of a towel or washcloth. Some people use their toothbrush (for me, this is too abrasive). You can make your own scrubs with sugar (I usually do). Sometimes, though, its nice to just grab a finished product and not think about getting out oils and sugars and mixing and cleaning up. I found myself in one of the beauty aisles in Wal-Mart and spotted a pot of Ecolips Lipscrub for under $5.

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June 2018 Favorites

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June 2018 FavoritesJune 2018 Favorites
MUFE Rouge Artist Natural N9, $11 / China Glaze Gelaze Diva Bride, $11 /
Hot Tools 1.25 Curling Iron, $40 / Polar Toasted Coconut, $1 / Kenra Dry Thickening Spray, $17

Frankly, it’s amazing that I was able to scrounge up the time to document my June 2018 Favorites in light of:

  • Looking for and dealing with pre-house-purchase stuff
  • Running an annual, weekend-long event mid-month (that destroys me)
  • Crazy work
  • Buying a house (!!!)

…so, I’m giving myself a participation trophy. Details on my June 2018 Favorites after the jump!

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Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural

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Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural N9Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural / N9 Copper Pink, $11

Have you ever come across an item and reacted, “I need ten of these?”

That’s how I feel about Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural in N9, Copper Pink. A few years ago, Sephora offered a mini of it as their birthday perk and I initially dismissed it without trying it. Definitely a fan of MLBBs, I have no idea what I was thinking. Eventually, I got around to it and was nonplussed. For me, it’s the most accurate one yet! Naturally, though, it appears to be discontinued. FML.

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Products I Stopped Using (2018)

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Over the years, as I’ve learned about my skin and honed my beauty preferences, I’ve tried many products. Some worked, some didn’t; some did at one point and then my needs/wants changed.

Face Scrubs

Ages ago, I used a certain walnut-shell-containing, apricot-scented facial exfoliant from a popular drugstore brand. I loved it! Bottom line, though, is those shell fragments can be sharp – and there are more effective ways to exfoliate. These days, my physical exfoliation comes from my Clarisonic and Silkin ReVit. Chemically, I use this AHA gel from Alpha Skin and the occasional BHA Stridex pad.

After a troublesome period with my skin, it is looking the best it has in quite a while save for some stubborn pores on my chin that, frankly, aren’t too visible anyway.

Foundation

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Unpopular Opinion: Liquid Lipstick

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This legacy post has been given a facelift. Opinions remain the same but content has been edited for flow and clarity.

I can’t quite pinpoint where the madness took hold. Liquid lipstick isn’t really a new product or idea; nay, Stila has offered their Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks for several dozen moons. At some point within the last two years, though, liquid lipstick exploded. Most companies offer them now, and those that already had them expanded their lines, and companies who weren’t really on the lip game (like Anastasia), got involved.

And ultimately, I don’t get the obsession.

Needy

Let’s face it – although the point is that they shouldn’t be high maintenance, they are.

  • They require meticulous lip prep; scrubbing to exfoliate is not ever optional when you’re rocking these.
  • You need to moisturize before application…but not too much, or the product won’t properly adhere to your lips!
  • To put the icing on the cake, they tend to be drying as all hell to the lips…and then settle awkwardly in your lip-lines.
  • It’ll last a looong time, but if you ever feel like you need to reapply? More often than not, you’re better off removing it entirely and starting from square one.

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