Of Toys and Co: Chicca Mesmeric Lipstick Part III

Tuesday, September 5, 2023

Chicca Mesmeric Lipstick Part III

In my last Chicca Mesmeric Lipstick post, I declared no more unless they came out with something special. Well, they did. The last collection Chicca released before Kanebo discontinued the brand had a couple of colors that caught my eyes, so I picked them up and then some: 44 Sweet Talk, 46 Soft, 47 Red Fir (I'm actually not 100% certain if it's Red Fir or Red Fur ^.^" Please correct me either way!), 48 Burgundy Gold, and EX15 Lucent Red Pure.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

I'm going to straight to the color descriptions.

- 44 Sweet Talk: bright carnation pink with white base despite appearing translucent in the swatch photo. Which is to say it's a little too bright and too pink for me, plus the white base makes it unusable, so I passed it on to MIL who loves these colors.

Here are 39 Carnation versus 44 Sweet Talk, with 39 Carnation being very slightly pinker and warmer, but again, we're splitting hair here. See comparison swatches below.

- 46 Soft: a pink-coral, a color I should like based on just description, but even the swatch is deceiving--this color has white base as well, and it turns pale on my lips :( Boo. Hiss. To MIL it went also and she loves it! It's comforting to me to know that at least these lippies are loved.

Here are 40 Roses & Love versus 46 Soft, with 40 Roses & Love the redder one of the two.

- 47 Red Fir/Fur: medium pink, swatched on the cool side but applied warmer on my lips.

Here are 23 Garnet versus 47 Red Fir/Fur versus 41 Red Blueberry, with both 47 Red Fir/Fur and 41 Red Blueberry being pinker and more pigmented than 23 Garnet. 47 Red Fir/Fur and 41 Red Blueberry are very similar, save for that lovely periwinkle sheen in 41 Red Blueberry.

- 48 Burgundy Gold: a translucent and vampy blackberry. While it doesn't look much in the swatch photo, it's surprisingly flattering on my lips. As if that's not enough, it has gold, violet, and periwinkle micro shimmer that renders the finish almost metallic. The first time I applied this, I gasped. It was gorgeous! I want a backup of it but of course the brand's been discontinued and it's nowhere to be found anymore :(

Here are 35 Grape versus 48 Burgundy Gold, with 35 Grape turning totally violet next to 48 Burgundy Gold.

- EX15 Lucent Red Pure: sheer and muted poinsettia red with pink undertone.

Here are EX15 Lucent Red Pure versus 19 Red Rose versus 06 Lucent Red, with 19 Red Rose being a neutral, slightly deeper red and 06 Lucent Red being a warmer red.