Stila Lip Glaze Part V

It takes me a while to think this through, but I've arrived at the conclusion that I'm going to swear off Stila Lip Glazes and It Glosses. I really adore the click pen applicator for the Lip Glazes and the soft brush applicators for the It Glosses, and I think the color selection for both products are very attractive. However, I truely wish these glosses could be better in terms of quality and texture. They both give lovely glossy finishes, but more often than not they don't feel very smooth on my lips, even the ones with no visible shimmers and apply translucent. On top of that, they are so drying and impossibly sticky! I don't mind sticky glosses at all, and I think they are impossibly sticky, take that!

With all that said though, I still have a few Lip Glazes I haven't even touched, so expect more reviews coming up :P After these, I probably won't buy any more Lip Glazes or It Glosses. Mind you, this is not meant to be a critique on Stila as a brand. I'm sure very few people actually like every product from a single brand. With the exception of the Lip Glazes and It Glosses, I think their Color Push-ups and the Convertible Colors are absolutely amazing, so you can also expect to see more reviews of these coming up.

Anyways, back to the Lip Glazes.

Grapefruit: A very pretty bubblegum pink with very slight hints of citrusy scent. It has very fine shimmers that aren't really noticable unless under direct sunlight, so it goes on a matte milky pink. I really like this lip glaze, but I do have a complaint - you would expect a lip gloss like this to feel smooth on your lips, only it's not. For some reason, it feels like there are very fine sand in the gloss and it's somehow a bit gritty. It's the same case as the Apricot flavor, and I don't understand how this happens as I've tried other much more glittery but much smoother glosses. I guess more room for improvement here also.


Nutmeg Spice: May be it's just me, but this Nutmeg Spice smells a bit like spiced chai - yum! :D Other than that though, the color was only okay. I don't dislike it, but I'm not exactly thrilled with it either. It's a mix of mauve and brick red that goes on translucent but ends up turning my lips a bit dark, probably because of the dark red undertone. Not my favorite.


Pina Colada: A pretty much clear gloss with unfortunately frosty golden shimmers. It smells more coconut-y than pina colada, but I don't really mind coconut, so this doesn't bother me. Also, this particular lip glaze is exceptionally thicker and stickier than the rest, similar to Apricot. Likewise, it is also much drier than other Stila Lip Glazes. Nope, a flop for me, sadly.


See my previous posts...
- Stila Lip Glaze
- Stila Lip Glaze Part II
- Stila Lip Glaze Part III
- Stila Lip Glaze Part IV

SkinLite Cucumber and Green Tea Essence Masks

I have previously tried the wash-off versions, Hydrating Cucumber Masque and the Re-Energizing Green Tea Masque, and found both of them disappointingly blah. However, Encouraged by my experience with the wash-off SkinLite Strawberry Yogurt Masque, I decided to give SkinLite Cucumber and Green Tea Essence Masks nother chance. My logic, or rather illogic, was this: since the SkinLite masks were pretty much hit and miss, I might as well try them all. I was somehow hopeful that with this method, I will happen upon something that will work for me.

Not making much sense, right? Yeah, I thought so :D I didn't know what the hell I was thinking either, because -what do you know- both of the sheet mask versions were not that much better than their wash-off counterparts. Ha. They were a little better, but just a little, and not enough to justify anymore money spent on my part (like it was justifiable to begin with LOL).


The cucumber mask still smelled very much like cucumber.


The green tea mask smelled nice, but that was about it.

I really wished these sheet masks were better. I mean, what's the point of putting something on your face only to feel as though you didn't put anything on at all? Now, in terms of makeup, people would call this the "natural" look, as in spending tons of time and products to make one's face look as though it is bare. However, only in the makeup world one can actually get away with this irony. This is skincare, and when spending tons of time and products only to have one's face looks like it hadn't been cared for, people get mad, you know?

Oh well. Next.

Where to Buy? Part II

I have a few more online merchants to add to the original list. I'm sure you may have seen/heard of them already, but if you haven't, here are some more to check out :)

Ichibankao.com, Japan based
Pros:
+ Offers a wide variety of Japanese brands with good color selections, particularly the limited edition collections are always up to date
+ Guarantee authentic items
+ Prices already include international shipping fees
+ Fast shipping, 3-5 days, items are well packed and will arrive safely at your door
+ Kelly (the seller) will occasionally include freebies with larger orders
Cons:
- Gigantic markups on pretty much every brand and every item
- Does not stock discontinued or hard to find items (but you can certainly email Kelly and ask for a special order)

Facial-shop.com, Hongkong based
Pros:
+ Offers a decent variety of Western, Japanese, and Korean brands
+ Prices already include international registered shipping, a 5% discount is given to orders with 3+ items
+ Occasionally, Vivian (the seller) will include freebies with the order
+ If you are lucky, you will find some very good deals occasionally
+ Decent shipping, 5-7 days, items are well packaged and will arrive safely at your door
Cons:
- Huge markups on pretty much every brand and every items, most definitely more expensive than Adam Beauty, a bit more expensive than Gooddealer and Sasa.com, and just a tiny bit cheaper than Ichibankao.
- Even with wide variety of brands, product and color selections are limited

Gmarket.com, South Korea based, think Korean Amazon Marketplace where you can buy Korean cosmetics, clothing, electronics, books, etc., directly from Korean merchants at Korean retail price! I haven't ordered from Gmarket before, not because I don't want to but because of technical difficulties (see the Cons), so I can't really comment much. All the information below are from what I've read about other people's experience with their ordering processes, so please don't bite my head off if I post less than correct information. For further information on Gmarket, including ordering tips and tutorials, please see the links below:
- Lotus Palace's expertise on Gmarket ordering
- Miss Muse's take on Gmarket
Pros:
+ Guaranteed authentic products
+ Paying retail prices without the middleman's markups, which translate to cheap, cheap, and very cheap Korean cosmetics!
+ The seller will usually include tons, as in heaps, of promotional freebies
Cons:
- The site only works with PCs and is MAC-hostile :(
- When you check out, you will be charged an international shipping estimate and not the actual shipping cost. This estimate will always be phenomenally high to ensure it covers the actual shipping costs (I've read $30-40 per order!!!). If the shipping is less (and it certainly will be), the extra amount will be returned to your Gmarket membership account as store credit and NOT refunded to your credit card. I don't quite like how this concept works, add in the technical difficulties in operating the site with my PowerBook, sadly I will not be purchasing from this online merchant at all, which is a shame given I've been eyeing so many Korean items...

TrueRenu.com, US based, this is my supplier of Oshima Tsubaki oils and a few other skincare, bath and body things. Of course, all the items I purchase from TrueRenu are also available else where, perhaps even your local Asian grocery store, but in my opinion TrueRenu has some of the more decent pricings, even with the shipping charges. You should always research pricings and compare merchants before buying, but if you don't really mind either way, TrueRenu is a good store to buy from :)
Pros:
+ Very fast shipping, 1-3 days, items carefully packaged and will arrive safely at your door
+ Occasional freebies are included with your order
+ English information, descriptions, and how-to-use instructions, including a list of ingredients (for those who care), is sent with each Japanese item. I find this rather nice, especially if I'm trying a new item I'm really curious about.
+ A promotional coupon is sent with every order
Cons:
- Offer a very limited number of brands and products as TrueRenu will only carry a product it deems "natural and not chemical," which in my opinion is really quite subjective and, if anything, a bit pretentious.

See my previous Where to Buy? post.

Global Goddess Tribal Quad Eyeshadow

Global Goddess is a small cosmetic line by celebrity makeup artist Shalini Vadhera, you can read more details about her and the makeup line on the official website, so I'm not going to go into details here. I've never heard of the brand, and the majority of the stuff doesn't really attract me because they don't look like they would go well with my skin tone. And plus a lot of the Global Goddess products are very sunny-bronzy looking, too tropical oriented where as I'm more into the pastels, light and airy, sheerer colors.

That said, as soon as I saw the Tribal Quad Eyeshadow palettes on Victoria's Secret website, I just had to have them even though they are a whopping $42 bucks each! From the description of the palettes on Global Goddess's website, the eyeshadows sound pretty exotic with baobab and moringa oils as ingredients, but holysmoke, $42 is still a whole lot for an eyeshadow palette!

But then I caved, and bought not just one but two palettes. Yes, I'm a total sucker, but how can you blame me? Look at those color combos! Aren't they just freakin' gorgeous or what? I'm not into the turquoise and green in the Mombasa palette, but the Eldoret and, especially, the Arusha palettes are just breathtaking! I bought both of them, and I don't even wear plums and purples usually!

***Picture from Global Goddess.

I held my breath when they arrive, and wow, the color swatches on the Global Goddess's website were dead on! The palettes look exactly as shown online, at least to me they do, but you should judge for yourself too. The Arusha palette is just as beautiful as I expected it to be, and the Eldoret is very pretty as well.

The Arusha palette comes in a black snake skin-print paper case with a plastic slip cover. Inside, there are no applicators included but there is a mirror.






The colors in the Arusha palette includes (from left to right):
- Plum: luminous, medium intensity
- Rose pink: luminous, medium intensity
- Milk chocolate brown: luminous, high intensity
- Pink champagne: luminous, very sheer


Despite the beautiful colors in the Arusha palette, I'm sorry to say I haven't had much luck with the eyeshadows, unfortunately. They showed up lovely on the back of my hand, but they just would not cooperate upon application to my lids. The lighter colors did not show up at all, while the darker colors did not blend very well. In the end, I looked so bruised up you'd think I got punched in the face :(


The Eldoret palette comes in a similar fashion as the Arusha, in a brick red animal-print paper case with a plastic slip cover.






The colors in the Eldoret palette includes (from left to right):
- Off white: luminous, very sheer
- Muted turmeric yellow: semi-pearl, low intensity
- Coppery brown: luminous, high intensity
- Golden ginger: luminous, low intensity


The Eldoret palette is even more disappointing than the Arusha palette, sigh... :( Given 3 out of the 4 colors are sheer to low intensity, I had a really hard time getting them to show on me, even though, again, they showed up fine on the back of my hand. I particularly struggled with the coppery brown color, which turned muddy, and the pearly shimmering muted turmeric, which totally fell flat upon application!


What's the problem here? I don't get it! I wonder if the oils in these eyeshadows were not getting along with my waterproof sunscreen (which I do wear on my lids) or something? But I've never ever had any trouble with makeup application over my sunscreen. If anything, my sunscreen makes a great base/primer! Gah...what did I do wrong? I'm so sad I couldn't work these correctly! May be I will try again (and probably again, and again) using different brushes in the future - the makeup artist did mention on her website that a good brush is key to application. I want to be able to wear these eyeshadows, they're so pretty (not to mention they cost an arm and a leg)!!! *pouts* :(

Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm Part II

Update February 17, 2009

As soon as my order from Victoria's Secret arrived, I tore into the package, only to feel my heart sank -HORRIFIED- they all have shimmers! SHIMMERS!!! I HATE shimmers!!! Curse you, Victoria's Secret! Why did you have to put shimmers into my precious lip balms? Why?!? They are freakin' lip balms, dammit, and they should stay beautifully translucent as they are supposed to be! But nooooo, you just have to ruin them with shimmers! Gah I'm so angry!!!

Okay, I'm calm now :) Anyhoo, just as I thought, the new packaging is different, smaller in circumference but thicker. See for your self!

New packaging (left) versus old packaging (right)


New packaging (left) versus old packaging (right)


No worries though, as the new packaging contains the same amount of product as the old packaging, 17 g or 0.6 oz.

The original lip balm Clear Shine is in a pale angel pink tin pot now, very pretty! And thank goodness, it retains its original milky translucent color (or rather, non-color) WITHOUT any shimmers! Most importantly, its formula also remains the same: it is still the super smooth, moisturizing, minty, soothing, not too thick, not too thin, non-sticky, super glossy lip balm I know and love *smooch*!

Clear Shine (I didn't post a picture of the actual balm inside since it looks the same as before)


As for Pretty Buff, it looks like a gorgeous nude lip gloss with golden shimmers, doesn't it? The only problem is: it is NOT a gloss, as least not strictly one. If anything, it belongs to a generation of gloss-balm hybrids, as in it has a balm's soothing/healing properties but with the finish and staying power of a gloss. I will have an entire post devoted to these gloss-balm hybrids later.


The biggest redeeming point of all that shimmers in Pretty Buff is that although the shimmers look chunky and glittery, the balm is surprisingly smooth. In fact, it doesn't feel any different than the Clear Shine going on my lips! I was so dead sure the shimmers was going to change the texture of the balm like it did with many many shimmery glosses out there, making it all sandy and scratchy, but it did not! I guess that makes me feel a little better, and just a little because the gold shimmers are still very visible on my lips since Pretty Buff applies pretty much clear.


This means if you are looking for a gloss with gold shimmers but wish it was more soothing and nourishing like a balm, this VS Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm in Pretty Buff is one of the best candidates out there for you (and I honestly don't know any other comparable ones - please do tell me if you know!). As for myself, I still wish VS hadn't put the shimmers in Pretty Buff as the balm would have been much more beautiful without all the excess sparkles. Sometimes, beauty is in the understatement, you know?

Petal Soft is a muted cassis pink with very fine purple iridescent shimmers. No worries, the shimmers are so fine, Petal Soft actually goes on with only a slight pink tint. The purple iridescent shimmers does not leave a purple cast and the shimmers actually don't show at all! This then leads me to another complaint: why bother adding the shimmers if the balm goes on translucent anyway? Why not leave the product the hell alone and spare it the unnecessary ingredient that doesn't add to the end result?


I'm sorry for hitting you guys over the head with my no-shimmers-in-the-damn-balms rants, but VS already have a gazillion and one Beauty Rush Lip Glosses that are (sticky as hell) glosses with tons and tons of shimmers! With the one unique product that actually differentiates itself, why would they want to change it so that it looks indistinguishable from the rest now? I just don't get it! Good thing Petal Soft's redeeming point is also the fact that it feels identical to the original Clear Shine. Phew!


Out of the 3 colored Soothing Lip Balms, Pink Sugar is probably my favorite. Can you guess why? Because while it is hot pink and has pinkish shimmers, the shimmers are so sparse, far and few in between that the balm is practically translucent! It goes on with a very pretty almost-fuschia pink tint with no visible shimmers. And I also love it that this Pink Sugar feels identical to the Clear Shine too - hooray!


I can't help it, but looking at the shimmers in my balms makes me picture the folks at VS as a bunch of giddy tweens who just got their hands on a giant pot of unicorn glitter and are all too sugar high excited to use it.


Sigh...Fine. I give up. I will stop yapping now. If you don't mind the shimmers in your balms, I give all the VS Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balms four thumbs up. Yes, my feet too, just to show how much I love these balms, despite the super annoying shimmers!

----------------------------
Original post Friday, February 6, 2009

Okay, ready? Cover your ears, because I'm going to go nuts - kyaaaaa!!!!

So why the hyperventilation? Well, for a while, I was so sure Victoria's Secret was going to discontinue this beloved lip balm of mine. It disappeared from VS's website about a year ago and its presence had been waning from the stores, causing me to stock up whenever I stop by.

And then one day, yesterday actually, -poof!- I was just browsing online (bored, you know?) when I spotted it on the VS website. It looks like VS is revamping the lip balm again, adding another pale angel pink with silver prints to its current hot pink tin pot. And the lid looks more domed this time around too, instead of being kind of flat. Sadly, it looks a bit smaller too, but I can't be sure since I was just looking online. I'll definitely compare the two sizes once I get my hands on some of these, and you bet I will, especially that pale pink tin, it won't escape my grasp. How cuuuuute!!!


But wait, the surprise didn't just end here. I was totally caught off guard, but as soon as I saw this I almost screamed: my beloved lip balm now comes in 3 other beautiful tints too, in addition to its original translucent milk white balm! Ladies and gentlemen, behold the new Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm in 4 colors: Clear Shine, Pretty Buff, Petal Soft, and Pink Sugar.

From left to right: Clear Shine, Pretty Buff, Petal Soft, and Pink Sugar.

***Pictures from Victoria's Secret.

You know how sometimes when a company adds a tinted version of their popular lip balm, and the tinted version always turns out kind of disappointing, like too pigmented, too opaque, too frosty, too...not right? Well, these colors for the Soothing Lip Balms actually look juicy and delicious! All look like translucent without shimmers colors that will hopefully give you that my-lips-but-better, not that the clear version doesn't already does that for me! And you know how I feel about translucent tinted balm/gloss :D Score! Somebody loves me - I feel so blessed! I'm definitely going to get one of each color!

Oh wait, I just did :D Will definitely update when they arrive!

P. S. There is not a "Part I" to this Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm post. If you are looking for the original review for this lip balm, please see my previous Lip Balms post.

Shiseido Savon D'Or Soap

I spotted this Shiseido Savon D'Or Soap at my local groceries and picked it up on a whim, thinking of my Super Mild Soap.



Umm...it smells like Ivory soap. And while that's not a bad thing, it also feels like Ivory soap, so dry and harsh. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with Ivory soap. It's a cheap, dime a dozen good ol' soap, okay, more like $2 for 3 bars, but you get my drift. The problem with Shiseido Savon D'Or is that while it feels like cheap soap, it's not so cheap, a whopping $6 for 3 bars, triple the cost of Ivory. Sure it's imported, but it's so not cool to import crap and then mark them up 3 times! I mean, after a little more than half way through the freakin' soap got a huge crack right down the middle of its length good's sake! Did you hear me, Shiseido? Your soap cracked, and good soaps don't crack. I want my money back!

You should just save yours...

Lip Balms Part II

ChapSticks
The original ChapStick goes back in the days with me, as in, like, elementary school days. I'm sure it has been there for everyone else as well. I still have memories of looking out of the school bus's window while fiddling with my Cherry ChapStick! I honestly prefer these to the Bonne Belle Lip Smackers and Soft Lips. My favorite would have to be the Cherry, because it had a slight pink tint to it, it was only lightly scented and it just worked best for me. The Original flavor smelled kind of sickening, I dislike the Spearmint flavor (in general), and Strawberry smelled kind of fake to me. I stuck with the Cherry ChapStick for the longest time, all the way to college until I found the Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm that quickly replaced it. Blame Victoria's Secret, but they've converted me into a fan of oil-based lip balms and since then I have fallen out of love with ChapSticks because they are now way too waxy for my taste.

***Picture from Chapstick.com.

Softlips Lip Conditioners
Okay, I probably have tried every single Soft Lips lip balms out there, both regular and limited edition flavors. They were all the rage when I was in high school, leading me to stray from my ChapStick. In the end though, they couldn't keep me. They feel nice and not as waxy, but they also last for a whole 15 minutes! Plus the tube was so tiny, cost twice as much as the ChapStick, and I kept having to reapply them so often, I'd go through a tube in a couple of weeks! But every now and then they would come out with these new or limited edition flavors and tricked me into trying them again! I have used Cherry, Strawberry, Vanilla, and Raspberry on and off when I needed something quick and too lazy to reach for my gazillion other lip balms. Most recently, I tried the limited edition Sugar Cookie, which was only okay because I still prefer the regular flavors. And the Tinted Lip Conditioner in Pearl, oh man, it was a BIG mistake to try this one. It turned my lips white with frosty and opaque wax! Yuck!

***Picture from Softlips.com.

C.O. Bigelow
The folks behind the well known Mentha Lip Shines. They're not my favorite, but they're not bad. I've tried a few things from them.

Mentha Lip Shine-Breath Freshener
The original lip shine and breath freshener in one. I tried these as soon as Bath & Body Works introduced them, thinking they would be similar to the VS Soothing Lip Balm. I thought it was going to be my favorite lip balm in a tube, so why not, right? Well, not to be mean, but who the heck's idea was it to combine lip balm and breath freshener? I really liked the strong mint flavor, and I really appreciated that it was an oil-based lip balm, but did it have to taste like I've slathered toothpaste all over my lips? Worse, it was sugary sweet, for poop's sake! This very product was what started my loathing for candy-wannabe lip products, not to mention whatever they used to sweetened the thing with irritated the hell out of my skin - it was so thin and runny it bled beyond my lip line! I tossed it ASAP. Garr...

***Picture from C.O. Bigelow.

Mentha Lip Shine Soda Fountain Collection
Yes, I know what I said about the Mentha Lip Shine. Did I mention I have a weakness for sales? Bath & Body Works had a sale for the Soda Fountain Collection, ok? I couldn't help it. I reviewed both the Butterscotch Vanilla Sundae and Strawberry Sundae just a few days ago, so I won't repeat myself here.
Butterscotch Vanilla Sundae


Strawberry Sundae


Rose Salve
I never saw this at Bath & Body Works before, so I wonder if it's new? Anyways, when I did see in the store, I grabbed 3 :D And I was happy I did. It's a milkier version of the salmony pink Smith's Rosebud Salve, only with Smith's Minted Rose Lip Balm's texture, which I like a lot! In fact, I prefer this C.O. Bigelow Rose Salve over the Smith's Rosebud Salve. It could be because the C.O. Bigelow version doesn't go all "rosy" on me. It smells like rose-flavored Carmex :D And while I don't particularly like the smell of Carmex because it's a bit strong, the hints of rose actually softens it! Basically, it's not too strong one way or another, and that's a hit with me. Minus the minty factor, it's basically identical Smith's Minted Rose. I love it and am considering restocking already (along with some more Smith's Minted Rose, of course) :D


B&C Laboratories
I think the single factor that sold me on these Lip and Moist Creams was their packaging. However, that's not to say the products are less than stellar - they are all marvelous! I keep all the lip creams at my end table, where I usually lounge and all the moist creams at my nightstand. I get kind of fickle and pick out my flavor depending on my mood :D

I have already reviewed these, so you can see my previous posts on them below:
- B&C Lab Lip & Moist Creams
- B&C Lab Lip & Moist Creams Part II

Because this post is on lip balms, I'm posting only the pictures of the lip creams :D

Apuru chan


Kumomo chan


Mikan chan


La France


Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Minty Lip Shine
Yep, more Victoria's Secret. I swear they must have made thousands off of me. I kept telling myself I'd never fall for their tricks again, only to trip all over the place every time. Damn! This Minty Lip Shine runs pretty darn close to the Mentha Lip Shine, only it's a bit thicker (and doesn't smear as much) and lasts longer, so it was spared my wrath. While it is sugary sweet, which I very much dislike, I've warmed up to it quite a bit and reach for it more often than not. You can see my previous post on it below:
- Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Minty Lip Shine



See my previous Lip Balms post.

C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine Soda Fountain

Given how much I hated the original C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine, buying these from the Soda Fountain Collection was a bit...er...silly of me. But hey, we've already established that I'm a total sucker for pretty things, and plus Bath & Body Works had a sale so...I'm weak, I know.

Anyhoo, the Mentha Lip Shines from the Soda Fountain Collection turned out to be not so bad. Yes, they're still too sweet for their own good, but their texture is a bit thicker and not as runny as the original, so they don't bleed as much and don't irritate my skin. There are 4 flavors available in the collection: Butterscotch Vanilla Sundae, Hot Fudge Sundae, Marshmallow Sundae, and Strawberry Sundae. I bought Butterscotch and Strawberry, and I'm glad I got those 2. I probably will not try the other 2 flavors because one is too pale and the other is, well, too brown.

Butterscotch Vanilla Sundae: a Lancome Juicy Tubes in Touched by Light lookalike, only thinner in texture with minty sweet vanilla flavor. It is just a sparkling clear gloss with warm golden shimmers and still retains its smooth texture.


Strawberry Sundae: for me, this one was the riskier buy of the 2 since I don't know how opaque it would be on my lips. I've ran into tons of innocent looking lip balms/gloss that turned totally opaque on me. Luckily, this one ends up being my favorite one between the 2! It smells like tangy candy, not strawberry sundae, but with minty sweet flavor, and goes on a very pretty milky (but not opaque!) sakura pink! It gives my lips that sweet look that does not make me pale but instead, more feminine! If you have naturally red lips, this one will tone them down and make them look pretty at the same time :D

Lorac Mini Mocktail Bar Part II

Finally, I got around to try all the colors in my Lorac Mini Mocktail Bar! It has been many many months, long enough, right? Sorry!



From top down, left column first: Razberi Cosmo, Caffeini Martini, Sex on the Beach, Guava Tiki, Tropical Dream, and Lava Flow.


Let's just say the entire right column contains all my favorites, plus Sex on the Beach at the bottom of the left column. That's 4 out of 6, not too bad at all! For the reviews of Razberi Cosmo and Sex on the Beach, see my previous Lorac Mini Mocktail Bar post.

Caffeini Martini: Woh, this one is just like Razberi Cosmo, waaaay too pigmented and opaque! Out of the 6 glosses in this set, these 2 are more like liquid lipsticks than glosses. The Caffeini Martini smells really nice just like coffee, but the color I absolutely cannot wear, and not just because it is too pigmented for my taste. I know in the picture it looks like a rosy bronze, but on my lips it looks like a bronzy coffee. Urgh. Definitely not for me.


Guava Tiki: Now this is more like it! Guava Tiki applies as delicious as it smells - a lovely translucent guava (just like its name!) with coral undertone. It's like a brighter, more moisturizing, smoother, and less sticky version of Stila Apricot Lip Glaze! It even smells like its Stila twin, with hints of guava. Guava-flavored Japanese bubble gum - that sounds yummy :D Given all the pros, I would say Guava Tiki beats Stila Apricot by a mile! If you like Stila Apricot, definitely give Lorac Guava Tiki Mocktail a try!


Tropical Dream: Another hit for me in this Mocktail Bar set. I really honestly thought this gloss would turn frosty on me, but it did not. It applies a gorgeous semi-metallic nude peach iridescent shimmers - so pretty! Another unintended effect this gloss has on me is plumping. Yes, my lips look really pouty and plump with this on, and it's not a plumping lip gloss at all! Oh well, doesn't hurt me :D Scent wise, it smells like...those chewable vitamins for kids, like a mix of berries and tropical fruit punch. Sounds odd, I know, but I don't mind the smell.


Lava Flow: Yet another hit for me in the lip gloss set, Lava Flow is a neon strawberry with hot pink chunky-almost-glittery shimmers. Sounds scary, huh? Don't worry, the gloss is actually quite nice! The shimmers are chunky but the gloss feels surprisingly smooth, and although Lava Flow is decently pigmented, it is translucent enough for me to use. I should point out that it layers beautifully on top of Guava Tiki or Tropical Dream, or any other innocently translucent gloss that needs a little sex appeal rather, seriously! I usually just apply Guava Tiki and Tropical Dream, then dab Lava Flow on my lower lip, just in the middle, for a luscious and super sexy effect! Absolutely love this gloss! Oh, and it smells like chocolate, which is not exactly my preference, but I like the gloss enough to put up with it.