So, here is my second
beauty related post. My blog is almost about everything; things that affect my
daily life. Beauty and learning about makeup has been a big fat hobby for a few
months now. Anyway, I wrote about it quite extensively in my first beauty post.
Today’s product is a
lipstick set from Tarte. I believe this was also a holiday set. It is called
the 5-piece Amazonian butter lipstick
set “Kiss and makeup”. Isn’t that a fun name J? I bought this
from their website directly when they were having some kind of spring sale. It
had a retail value of around $45; I had a 20% off coupon and ended up paying a
final of $34.80, the individual butter lipsticks retails for $16. I was also
pleasantly surprised to receive a deluxe sized lights, camera, flashes™ statement
mascara as a birthday gift…who does not love free cute items? The set is also available
in QVC, hautelook from time to time.
Let’s go to the main
product now, Tarte is a natural brand and as they mention in their website
these butter lipsticks are infused with precious Amazonian butters to hydrate
and smooth lips throughout the day. The product is formulated without parabens,
mineral oil, phthalates, triclosan, sodium lauryl sulphate, synthetic
fragrance. This set is consisting of 5 amazonian butter lipsticks in some
lovely shades ranging from ultra-nude, peach to bright red and pinks. Tarte has
a variety of lipstick formulation. I love the packaging of the kit (so obvious
with any product I buy from them J ). It is
adorned with the typical golden pattern all over the packaging. The actual tube
of the lipstick is also very cute and adorable. Each one has a different base
color like mint green, lavender, coral, violet and light pink with the same Tarte
gold pattern. However, the cap is just cardboard and for me it does not appear
to be very very sturdy. As one of my fellow blogger pointed out, there is a
risk of the lipstick melting down in summer if you carry it in your bag.
The texture and formulation
of the lipsticks is so very lovely. It definitely proves true to its name. It
is not extremely opaque but really buttery on your lips. For me, the
formulation seems to be something between a lip stain and a lipstick because of
its sheerness. Personally I am a big fan of super pigmented opaque lipsticks in
bold color on my lips. However, the pigmentation on these is really great but
they are a bit sheer. You may build it up though. For me, it tends to
accentuate the fine lines in my lips just a tiny bit. But I do not mind any of
these, because these lipsticks give such a hydrating, moisturizing feel to my
lips. I have not been playing a whole lot with the set. But yes, they do stay
for up to 6-8 hours without much need of retouching.
Angelic nude: It is the palest of all. Not a great color on my
olive/tan medium skin tone. But I do believe with a little bit of pink or peach
gloss, I can carry the color without any huge difficulty. I can definitely see
softer skin tone girls rocking this color.
Sweet
peach: this shade has pleasantly surprised me. For the
current spring season, I was looking for a soft peach color, not yet ready to
dive into the whole orange color looks. I think this is the prefect peachy
coral shade for me. Having said that, I will also add that the shade will look
a lot more perfect for girls a little paler than me. But I just love the look
on me; it’s very refreshing, very spring like.
Merry
berry: such a fun color and equally fun name. It’s a bright
red berry color with blue, pink and gold micro glitters. If you ask me, quite a
bold and adventurous color. But luckily I happen to look good in bold dark
colors or so I have been told. I am not sure yet, if I like the sparkles. I am
not a huge fan of frosty look on my lips. But I love LOVE the shade. It never
hurts to have some variety in your vanity.
Pink
poinsettia: Another fun name. Poinsettia is a bright
red flower indigenous to Mexico and Central America, I read so in Wikipedia J.
It’s a bright red-pinky color, but because the lipsticks are sheer, this shade
gives me that particular brightness without appearing to be extremely bold. I
love this shade.
Candy
red:
this is a blue-based classical red. The name has such a strong holiday spirit
to it. It has not been very long ago that I have started to wear red colors,
and I already have developed a weakness for red. I love to play up my lips and
my entire mood with a bright red lipstick. I must admit that Candy Red is my
most favorite in the bunch with Sweet peach being close second. I love how
elegant and playful a look it gives me. Sure, it is not an everyday color, but
the set has other everyday colors for you J
Even if I don’t reach for them every other day, I
love them. They are really moisturizing on the lips. The darker colors do have
a little more staying power than the rest. They do have subtle minty feel to
them, but not as strong as the LipSurgence from Tarte as well.
So here are my quick takes---
Pros:
- Excellent value
- Great range of color as a set
- Very moisturizing
- Added bonus…extremely cute packaging
Cons:
- Not a very
sturdy packaging for the tubes.
I know I am quite late in putting up my thoughts for
a holiday kit; however I still do hope this will be helpful to at least some of
you.
Love,
~Aru
