Addiction Lipstick Sheer

Since coming home last October, I've been on a serious lipstick kick--I finally caved on Addiction Lipstick Sheer. The lineup has ten colors. I was eyeing five of those ten but refrained and went with only three: 001 Super Woman, 002 Last Scene, and 010 Amaranto. I wanted to make sure I like the formula first before getting the remaining two colors on my wish list.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Addiction, bless their hearts, they do so many things right, but WTF were they thinking with these lipstick tubes? What horrendously fugly and huge and plastic POS! I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that this same brand also makes The Eye Shadows that I love to death. What's going on here, folks?

Here's to show how big and bulky the Addiction lipstick tubes are. From left to right: Coffret D'Or Premium Stay Rouge, Lunasol, Addiction, Lipstick Queen Bete Noire, and Suqqu Creamy Glow/Moist, Bright Up, and Extra Glow. See how the Addiction tube is almost twice the size of Suqqu? They both contain 3.8g of product so it's not as if one holds more content than the other. I don't get it. Why, Addiction, why?!?

Then I uncapped the packaging and frowned at the actual lipstick bullet. It's cut so oddly at a steep slant that I have to stand the bullet straight up or tilt it horizontally in order to apply. Despite the bullet being solid and doesn't wobble, the awkward angle of application makes me feel as if I might snap it off of its base were I to accidentally push upon it. And yet how the hell do I suppose to apply a lipstick if not pushing and dragging it across my lips?!? So disappointingly enough, it's been two strikes against Addiction so far :(

The final moment of truth came when I swiped some on my lips and started cursing. Goddammit. Despite the grotesque plastic tube and the weird cut of the bullet, I'm going to have to go back for the remaining two colors after all. The jelly formula is amazing, pretty much Lunasol Full Glamour Lips 02 Cherry Red, Suqqu Creamy Glow Moist, and Lipstick Queen Saints all rolled into one! The texture isn't thin by any measure, but it's not thick like LQ Saints either. Somehow, it feels both balmy and buttery at the same time. It's extremely moisturizing and glossy and just a joy to wear.

All three colors I have are shimmer-free and transparent. They're supposed to be "sheer" too, and yet all three showed up vividly on my lips with just one swipe, and all true to the color they appear in their tube. Best of all, after a few hours of application but the color remained fresh without much fading, until I wiped it off before dinner. I'm so appalled with their packaging and design, but I'm so very impressed with the formula, texture, pigmentation, and lasting power!

- 001 Super Woman: vibrant pinkish red with coral undertone. The color may appear warm in my swatch photo below but I think it's pretty neutral. I wore it out to lunch all afternoon today and while it's bright, it's not loud or attention-grabbing. A very wearable red and I like it very much.

- 002 Last Scene: a warm orangey red and my favorite color out of these three. Absolutely gorgeous and flattering on.

- 010 Amaranto: a grapey purple that threw me in for a loop. You see, I'd actually swatched this along with 004 Cassis (the remaining color on my wish list along with 003 Cherry Cherry) and Lipstick Pure 008 Tokyo Mon Amour in-store at the Ginza Mitsukoshi. The problem with indoor lighting is that it's mostly inaccurate and turns many colors warmer than they really are. That was what happened with 010 Amaranto. By all appearance I chose this color over 004 Cassis because I thought it resembled LQ Bete Noire Possessed Sheer, which has to be one of my most beloved wine-plum-violet ever and is super flattering on me.

However, in natural light 010 Amaranto couldn't be more different! I first tried this color on a cloudy day. When I saw myself in the mirror, I laughed out loud and wiped it off immediately. There was no way I'd leave the house looking like I'd helped myself to one too many grape sodas. The lack of sunshine had brought out way too much blue in the purple, turning it comically hideous. Then I waited for a sunnier day to try it a second time, and that grapey purple was much, much more wearable. So unless you have really warm-toned red lips, this color can only be worn in certain natural lighting, most preferably in the summer when it's golden and sunny outside. So it's not everyone's cup of tea. Conclusion: I should have gone with 004 Cassis instead and skip this color altogether.

Left to right: 001 Super Woman, 002 Last Scene, and 010 Amaranto.