The Rogue at the Social – Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel in Have We Met?

Greetings from the darkest corner of the Annual Adventurers’ Social, fellow rogues!

So, when I say ‘darkest corner’, I should probably clarify that it’s because that’s the natural place for all the rogues to hang out and swap lockpicks. I don’t retreat there out of any particular feeling of social pressure, although (to be honest) the alternatives are more ‘extroverted’ but not really more social. I mean, you’ve got the warriors brawling, the paladins and clerics trying to out-zeal and out-aura each other, the bards jamming up near the stage and the druids communing out in the backyard. As for the rangers, well, they’re into the whole camo thing anyway so it’s OK if you can’t find them. Me, I prefer the darkness.

This is all a very roundabout way of relating to the name of the latest piece of treasure from my recent Dubai Lootstravaganza – the lipstick called ‘Have We Met?’ from Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel line, something I’d never tried before (by reason of it being Sephora exclusive). The lipstick reminded me of those Adventurers’ Socials – lots of introductions, unfamiliar faces, excitement and the sort of ‘eyeing each other up’ you do when you’re trying to work out if you’re going to have to fight them off to be first to the good loot in your next catacomb. Fortunately,  Have We Met? passed with flying colours!

From the original Loot post: Marc Jacobs Have We Met? and YSL Rose in Tension (reviewed here)

Have We Met? is, I should say from the first, exactly the sort of lipstick that gels (ha. ha.) with me perfectly. It’s in the peach/pink spectrum, has gentle pale gold shimmer, is sheer enough to be put on without a mirror but gives the perfect MLBB look to my zombie mouth, and lasts a comfortable, hydrating 3 hours – not so long that you can really get through a full dungeon without reapplying, but not so short that you start to get more irritated by it than by the goblins gnawing at your shins. I might collect outrageous purples, and LOVE the super-longevity of other lipsticks, semi-sheer, inoffensive, hydrating pinks are my go to for every day. If they have sparkle in them, this is a definite bonus. So: if you like super opaque, super long-wearing lipsticks, this may not be the one for you.  I’d still advise you to swatch it anyway, just because it’s super pretty.

Susie the Rockbard gaining the upper ground over the guy who spilled her drink. Skeletal Necromancers can be total dicks.

The Marc Jacobs line was one that I was particularly keen to try upon gaining access to a Sephora, actually – I’d read decent reviews of the lipsticks and eyeliners and new brands are always exciting. When I reached the counter, the eyeliners were mostly either destroyed or absent (out of stock I assume), and there only seemed to be about 4 colours on offer in total (which I think is slightly less than you can get in the US?) so I swiftly moved on to the lipsticks. Not that I need much encouragement to do that anyway *cough*.

This guy just won’t quit! There’s always that *one* skelemancer at the Social who never knows his limits. Fortunately, the sleek black wall of MJ’s lipstick tube is on hand as a fortification.

There were several shades that caught my eye, but as soon as I saw Have We Met?, I knew that was the one for me. The classic red (Neo-Noir) appealed, but I was sort of unofficially on the lookout for things that I would be likely to wear on an everyday basis. Have We Met? fit the bill perfectly, and a couple of token swatches later it was resting happily in my basket. I can’t believe I had overlooked this shade when Christine was doing all her lovely swatches of the line over at Temptalia, but it may have been covered by that ‘well, I have no real way of getting this’ haze that overcomes you sometimes, living in Middle Earth.

While Susie and the Skelemancer (pluralise that last word and that could totally be a band name) argue, take a look at that superfine golden shimmer!

Anyway, to come back to the point, this lipstick is a medium, light (but not pale!) pink with superfine golden shimmer in it that gives sheer-buildable, even coverage. As soon as I put it on, I was even more strongly reminded of a favourite lipstick of mine – Revlon’s Colorburst Lip Butter in Peach Parfait. The two lipsticks differ in many respects: Peach Parfait is warmer/peachier, its glitter is larger/grittier and it’s meltier in the tube. In terms of wear, coverage, application and feel (aside from PP’s ‘grit’) however, they have a lot in common. I should probably mention at this point that you should not be deterred by ‘shimmer’ – Have We Met?’s shimmer is so fine that what you get is a luminous, almost glossy effect that incorporates a bit of a plumping illusion. This is not a frost, kids!

Swatchy goodness. I’ve added a little swatch of Revlon’s Colorburst Lip Butter in Peach Parfait, as Have We Met? reminded me of it in several ways.

The packaging is totally functional, and also quite stylish in that ‘shiny black case with metallic detail way’. It has a magnetic closure too, so it’s quite secure. The scent is that faint, pleasant vanilla-type one, and I couldn’t taste anything during or after application.

Lipswatchy goodness! Peach Parfait once again makes an appearance. The sun has an indecisive relationship with the clouds.

 

I feel like I should qualify my ‘sheer’ statement from earlier by really emphasising that this lipstick is *wearable* sheer, but easily buildable to ‘normal’ coverage. The application is smooth and easy (Look Ma, no mirror!) and as you can see from the lip swatches above, it makes even horribly dry winter lips with natural zombie colour look plump and smooth and ‘MLBB pink’. The pictures will also hopefully confirm my promise that this shimmery treasure isn’t a frost (if you’re averse to those – frost mages may be disappointed!), and go some way towards convincing you that this lipstick is definitely worth your time if you’re looking for a nice everyday pink with a bit of added sparkly interest. I must say, I’m very pleased with this example of the Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel line, and will definitely be investigating other colours when I’m next in a position to do so. So, uh…how about some conferences in the States, Academia? *nudge* 😉

What do you think, fellow social-adventurers? Have you already met your perfect MLBB lipstick? Have you tried the Marc Jacobs line? Do you also rogueishly hug the shadows at large social gatherings or are you cutting up the dancefloor with the wizards?

The practicalities: Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel lipsticks cost US$24 for 0.12 oz / 3.4 g, are permanent, and may be acquired from Sephoras in the US and the Sephora in the Dubai Mall (at least), as well as http://www.sephora.com.

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your innear ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

A Party Rogue’s Legacy: Revlon Super Lustrous Lipsticks in Icy Violet, Carnival Spirit and Pink Sizzle

Greetings from a land of purple tundra and crazy parties, fellow rogues!

Every so often, you’ll see me duck back from the front of the party to let you know about some loot I’ve sighted – if you’ll recall, once recent example of this involved me waving my arms about the unexpected arrival of the Revlon Legacy Lipstick Collection (see the flailing and full arm swatches here). There was also some babbling about/swatches of the lipsticks from the Rio themed 2014 Revlon x Gucci Westman collection (first spotted here). I’m happy to report that – thanks to a convenient sale- I am at liberty to present a couple of gems from these collections, plus a bonus lipstick!

Revlon lipsticks! Legacy: Icy Violet, Gucci Westman: Carnival Spirit and regular permanent Super Lustrous line: Pink Sizzle. The picture at right shows (L-R) Pink Sizzle, Carnival Spirit and Icy Violet.

All of these lipsticks are from the Super Lustrous line – I have yet to try the Colorburst lipsticks (although I have several of the Lip Butters), but I am already a fan of the SL formula (I’ve reviewed the famous Fire and Ice here, way back near the beginning of my little blog adventure!). Frankly, Revlon’s cosmetic line, even just restricted to lip products, is pretty intimidating. If the average Revlon counter were a dungeon, the sheer number and variety of undead/monsters/trolls/irritable warlocks/etc would be almost overwhelming! I mean, variety is a wonderful thing, and there’s no risk of getting bored, but it can get intense. Still, you know that if you need to find a certain colour of lipstick in a certain finish, Revlon’s probably got something for you!

Anyway, I’m rambling (what a surprise). 😛

The druid, selecting lipsticks near the Spring of Suitable Presents for Sisters. Fabulously helpful place, that.

The reason I’m highlighting the variety you can find at Revlon is that our trusty druid friend was recently in the throes of trying to find a suitable birthday gift for his sister. Naturally, he turned to me for assistance (rogues are nature’s dagger-based problem solvers), and I unhesitatingly recommended a lipstick. Not being a lipstick aficionado like myself or our dwarven warrior Sigryn, the druid looked rather panicked, but I suggested we visit the nearest village with a Revlon merchant. Surely, I thought, we would be able to find something there!

As usual, I was right. It only took a few minutes of pulling tester tubes out of the rack and swatching them before he pointed to a pretty, sheer medium pink and exclaimed ‘This one looks suitably inoffensive!’. You’ll have to pardon his expression there – he had just been somewhat horrified by the ones marked ‘Frost’ (‘I’m not swatching *anything* that someone’s put frost magic in – are you insane?!’) and was still recovering. The lipstick in question was Pink Sizzle, a ‘Shine’ lipstick from the SL line. It’s a medium, warm pink with sheer coverage and a glossy finish, and wears (suitably moisturisingly) for about 2-3 hours. It’s a great choice for anyone who wants an everyday pink lipstick, with enough colour to give life to your face but enough sheerness that you can control how intense it is, and can apply without a mirror. In actual fact, I rather think this is a good one for lipstick beginners, as the pink is close enough to neutral to suit most!

Pink Sizzle. He was worried there’d be fire magic in this one, if you can believe it. Druids, eh? 😉

While our faithful druid was busy grappling with the wall of lipsticks, I was on a more targeted mission, deftly pulling out a couple of other Super Lustrous gems that I’d had my eye on already More specifically (and probably no great surprise to anyone reading this), I was after Icy Violet from the Legacy collection, and Carnival Spirit from the Gucci Westman Collection.

(Just to get a couple of generalities out of the way: packaging is totally standard, with the bonus of a window in the top end so you can see the lipstick inside. There’s no scent or taste that I can discern, aside from perhaps the vaguest of vague ‘cosmetic’ smells.)

Let’s take a look at some orange goodness:

Carnival Spirit. Despite its name, the bright orange colour of the bullet and the Rio theme, this is a very gentle, tame lipstick! 😀

Carnival Spirit is an interesting artefact. Everything about it suggests that it will be an outrageous orange experience…but when you put it on, what you get is a sheer, glossy warmth that turns whatever natural pink you have in your lips into a pretty coral. As you know, I don’t have a lot of natural lip pigment, or naturally red lips, but it still doesn’t read ORANGE. It fits in beautifully with a collage of my favourite sheer coral lipsticks. This is definitely a great investment if you want to own an orange lipstick, but still want to be able to wear it every day with any outfit and any amount of other makeup. It has a number (see first photo), so I’m assuming it’s in the permanent line now, meaning it should be available everywhere! Huzzah! The only downside to this lipstick (assuming you’re happy with sheerness, etc) is that if your lips are having a rough day, the coverage may be a little uneven on the dry patches. It’s still nicely moisturising while you wear it, but the application could be tricky. Wear time is, predictably for a sheer glossy lipstick, in the region of 2-3 hours.

Icy Violet.
It never occurred to me to worry about frost magic in lipsticks like these. I mean, there isn’t even the tinkly ice magic sound when you open the cap!

Icy Violet is another chameleon of a lipstick. The name and bullet would lead you to believe you are getting an aggressive, warm lavender frost lipstick (unless you remember this one from earlier times, before it was discontinued). However, what you’re actually getting is a soft, pinkish brown base with gentle purple shimmer/sheen to it. This is eminently more wearable for the everyday quest, and I feel it’s probably another one that will show up slightly differently on different lips. The coverage is sheer but very buildable, with the amount of ‘frost’ you get increasing with more passes. The lip swatch below is probably two or three strong passes, and I’d say that’s about as frosty as it gets. Aside from being less scary than you might assume, the less aggressive frost also means that the lipstick is not at all drying – in fact, it has quite a nice protective feeling. Not super moist, not slippery, but takes good care of your lips. Wear time is a little longer than Carnival Spirit or Pink Sizzle, coming in at 3-4 hours (totally normal for me). I’m very pleased to add Icy Violet to my purple lipstick collection, not only because if its history angle (first released 1946), but because it’s actually a really nice day to day lipstick as well!

Lip swatches! As you can see, Carnival Spirit and Pink Sizzle are pretty similar once applied!

A note about the above: my lips are a little pinker than usual, as I took the photo in the middle of a swatchfest, when they’d been being rubbed clean and re-lipsticked over and over. As a result, Carnival Spirit and Pink Sizzle actually look quite similar, almost as thought they are just two versions of the same thing (one more orange, one more pink). In all honesty, I probably wouldn’t get both, but I somehow doubt that there are many of you out there currently agonising over whether you should get PInk Sizzle *and* Carnival Spirit ;-).

You can also see in this picture that Icy Violet is less of a full on frost, even at three layers, and more…well, the word ‘lustrous’ comes to mind, which is appropriate for this line of lipsticks. I’m not sure if the Legacy lipsticks are going to be reintroduced into the permanent line at all – Icy Violet (and the others) does not have a number on the label at the base, indicating that for the moment they’re limited edition. Hopefully they’re bringing them back full time, though, as the Legacy line seems to have been popular!

What do you think, party members? Would you wear any of these lipsticks? What’s your favourite lipstick from the Super Lustrous line – if you have any?

The practicalities: Revlon Super Lustrous lipsticks cost NZ$ 23.50 / US$ ~7-8 for 0.15 oz / 4.3 g, are permanent (excepting Icy Violet here), and may be acquired from Revlon counters around the world.

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your innear ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

Nude Lips for Cool, Pale Rogues – Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Demure

Greetings from my secure lipstick vault once again, fellow rogues!

So, nude lipstick has always been something that has mystified me. As a vampirically pale rogue with almost-no-pigment lips, nude lipstick seems at best a little redundant, and at worst makes you look like someone warmed over Barbie’s corpse (if it’s a pink nude) or just warmed over a corpse (if it’s a beige nude). I suppose I always associated nude lips with the ‘concealer lip’ – you know, the super editorial kind of effect that looks amazing with a smokey eye if you are not me. (I will be chatting a bit more about my views on nude lips for cool-toned, pale rogues at the end of this post, for those that are intrigue, but for now, on with the story!)

Anyway, a nude lip is what you might call the perfect, classic stealth makeup tool, and as part of my seemingly neverending quest to find one that doesn’t look terrible, I spoke to Eleimos the Druid (a conoisseur of the ‘natural’ look), to see what advice was forthcoming. To my surprise, I was wordlessly handed a shimmering pink tube, that turned out to be Revlon’s Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Demure.

 

Apologies for the lighting – I try to take all my photos in natural light, and the weather is a little dank and dingy at the moment…
Eleimos, a druid of few words but excellent taste in nude lipsticks.

 

I will confess, I was sceptical. Much as I adore these lipsticks, a little part of me was worried that I’d get the death lip again To my joy, this fear turned out to be unfounded! What I got instead was a beautiful shell pink/peach nude with very fine silvery microsparkle that enfolds my lips in a luminous, gossamer cloak. Since I am at risk of waxing too lyrical right now (and I’m not professionally a bard, you know), let’s have another photo of the actual product…

 

A closeup of the product tip, in which you can see some of the shimmer and sparkle. Have you ever had a staring contest with a lipstick? Eleimos has (and won).

 

Demure is a very good name for this particular chubby lip pencil – it goes on smoothly, with a sheer-to-buildable coverage, and the sparkle (like a druid) is present but not ‘in your face’ – to quote Jaa’s recent (and excellent) review of a Tom Ford blush, this lipstick has ‘adult shimmer’. 😉

I would quickly note here that if you have a darker skintone/more pigmented lips than I do (not difficult!), there’s a possibility that you might find this lipstick to be a harder nude (appearing to have a more white base to it). When I first saw the swatches over at Temptalia, that was what made me cautious about this particular shade, as (wonderful as everything looks on Christine, damn her!) it appeared to be more ‘pale’ than I ideally wanted. However, you can see from the lipswatches below that this isn’t the case on me. Christine was quite right, as usual, when she said she thought it was a shade that would look different on different people!

The packaging, wear time and delicate, minty scent are all the same as for the previous lacquer balm (Whimsical) I reviewed, so If you’d like more detail, please pop over here. In short, however, the mint scent is non-plumping/irritating, the packaging is totally functional (also pretty) and the wear time is decent for a sheerer, glossy lip product on me. This particular shade was non-drying on me – I wouldn’t say it was overtly hydrating, but I didn’t have any problems either.

Behold! Ye Olde Lip Swatches!

 

Left: no pigment natural lips with poorly defined edges. Right: effortlessly pretty, shimmering ‘nude’ lips, courtesy of Revlon Demure Lacquer Balm.

 

A little Rogue-to-Rogue Chat about Nude Lips for Cool-Toned, Vampires: Generally speaking (and this is my own personal preference, based on experience), true nudes are a bad idea for us. Almost everything ends up looking way too ‘editorial’ (or corpselike), and few nudes have just the right undertone (most are too orange/yellow or too purple). Obviously, if you are actively aiming for an ‘editorial’ look, then don’t let me stand in the way of your shuriken! I’m talking about things you can wear when you’ve got a smokey eye on, don’t want to go the whole hog with a red lip, and ALSO don’t want the cleric and paladin asking you if you’re feeling OK every 5 seconds. Or things you can wear to the tavern without your fellow adventurers starting to string garlic and crosses up around the place, and writing postings with rewards for your head on a stake. So here are my personal tips:

For us, the easiest ‘nude’ is actually ‘MLBB’ – it’s still nude (or maybe ‘natural’) in the sense that you’re not wearing an obvious colour, but you have a bit more flexibility in the finish and the undertone, to help inject some life back into your complexion. I want to be able to toss a nude lipstick or gloss on, and not have to go the full bard with blush etc to try and perk me up again afterwards. Some good examples of my usual favourite way to wear a nude are: sheer corals, soft but not too pale pinks, and our good friend Demure here, which is nearly the same as my non-lip-colour, but still gives me life, sparkle and prettiness.

What are your favourite nude lipsticks?

 

The Verdict: These chubby pencils from Revlon have been really impressing me – they’re smooth to apply, non-drying, come in many fabulous shades and colours, and (with Demure here) have introduced me to a new wearable nudes that I never thought I’d find. A truly rogueworthy product!

The Practicalities: Revlon Colourburst Lacquer Balms cost NZD 20.50 / USD ~9.00 each for 2.7g /0.095 oz, and are available from drugstores and pharmacies the world over, as well as Farmers in NZ and www.revlon.com. ❤ I’d like to take a minute to note that this wonderful lipstick came to me courtesy of my lovely mum and sister, who knew how keen I was on this range, and got me one ❤

 

Until next time, fellow rogues, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

 

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images on this blog are the property of Syl unless otherwise noted. They may not be reproduced without permission – if you do, I’ll send goblin hordes after you. Plague-ridden ones.