Lip Gloss

Lip Gloss

Obsession Level: It's Absolutely Everywhere!

I don't know when my obsession with lip gloss started, but it's one that I'm sure I've had since Junior High.  I would challenge anyone that you cannot open a single drawer in my house or look in any bag that I own and not find at least one tube or pot of lip gloss.  It's impossible.  

Now mind you that I'm talking about lip gloss, lip balm, or chapstick...not lipstick.  I don't have anything against lipstick, but I feel like it gets everywhere, is harder to get off of cups and such, gets on your teeth, and is often too strong of a color.  I tend to wear bolder eyeshadow colors, so that means that I like to tone it down on my lips to avoid looking like a Barbie doll.  

I could write reviews for lip gloss products.  In fact, if they'd send me the  product free, that would be a great hobby.  I haven't gotten that gig yet, so I decided to share some of my favorites and review them for you here.  Mind you this isn't a complete list of all the glosses that I have tried, that would take months, but it hits some of the high notes.  

Before we begin, and to put things in perspective, I just collected all the lip gloss out of ONE of my purses and from around my computer area.  There are 17 different kinds of lip gloss, chapstick, or lip balm piled in front of me.  When I go to a store, I seldom allow myself to go down the make up aisle because I will not leave the store without some new purchase.  It even taunts me at the checkout when they put various lip products there.  I should go to weekly meetings about this addiction.  So here we go:

1) MAC Lip Balm (pictured above):

I adore this lip balm.  It's my current favorite.  It's tinted, and there are a variety of shades, so you can have a little color, but it's nothing over the top.  It's got a soft texture and it actually tastes good so you don't mind if it gets on your teeth.  The only down side to it is that it comes in a pot, and that means you have to apply it with your finger.  If you're OK with that, though, then you'll love this.  It's a little expensive (because it's MAC), but it's totally worth it.  I also have some of the MAC gloss in the tube (with the little brush thingy).  I love the color that it provides, but it does get a little sticky to me and that feeling can be annoying.

2)  Burt's Bees Lip Balm

This is an absolute must have product if you get chapped lips.  They have a ton of varieties, but the basic "chapstick" type is the only real kind of chapstick that I ever use.  I'm never without at least three tubes of this.  It has a nice minty smell and tingles a little, which probably doesn't mean anything, but I think it means it's working.  I also have this in the little metal can, but the tube is much less messy since you don't have to use your fingers.  

3)  Burt's Bees Super Glossy Natural Lip Shine

While we're on Burt's Bees, we can also talk about their lip shine.  Basically it's a gloss.  It's got the same moisturizers as the regular lip balm, but it's got a silky texture and it comes in a variety of colors.  I like this gloss just to wear as a gloss, but since it lacks the tingle of the regular chapstick type Burt's, I don't feel like it does a great job of moisturizing my lips when they're really chapped.

4)  Rosebud Lip Balm

My grandmother got me started with this lip balm when I was little.  She always had it around and I love it.  The tin of lip balm travels with me everywhere.  Again, you have the whole problem of using your finger, but it's great.  The strawberry smell is pleasant too.  It's got somewhat the texture of Vaseline, but it moisturizes well and your lips are very soft when you use it often.  It used to be easier to find (think nearly every register), but not it's harder to get.  Luckily you can order it online and have it sent to you.  

5)  Mary Kay Satin Lips Lip Balm

Someone gave me this as a gift once (yes, people give me lip products as gifts) and I love it.  It's the "by the computer" lip balm.  I keep it there to keep applying it throughout the day.  Again, there's the whole finger thing, but it does make your lips super soft.  The downside to it is really that it basically seems like Vaseline.  It has the same texture, a similar smell, and it DOES NOT taste good so you want to avoid licking it off at all costs.  Maybe that's why they made it that way. I do like this a lot, but I have to admit that it's not something I'd probably buy for myself.  I'd use that money to buy one of the balms that I like better.

6)  Estee Lauder High Gloss

One Christmas I got a random gift from my grandmother.  It was a complete make up set from Estee Lauder.  Let me just say that I loved everything in that case, and still have some of it left.  One part of the case contained three tubes of different color gloss.  I love everything about this gloss.  It has an interesting smell (the taste isn't great, but it's not gross), and the colors are light and pretty.  Plus, it remains shiny the entire time you're wearing it.  It just sort of makes me feel glamorous.  There's actually a story that goes with this too.  One winter I was carrying one of the tubes with me everywhere to wear it all day.  I kept it in my coat pocket, where I also keep a variety of things.  When I got to work, I wanted to put on my lip gloss, but it wasn't in my pocket so I thought I must have lost it at home.  When I was walking back home, in the parking lot outside my building, I saw my tube of lip gloss, crushed, lying in the snow.  It was a very emotional moment for me.  That being said, this stuff is pretty pricey and I reserve it for special occasions so I don't run out.

7)  MAX Factor Lip Gloss

The love of my Estee Lauder gloss and the need to preserve it led me in search of a cheaper version of the same thing.  This has been quite the search for me and has taken me through a variety of glosses.  I'm sorry to say, though, that I have not found an everyday lip gloss that's quite as extraordinary as the Estee Lauder gloss.  The very first "substitute" that I tried was Covergirl Shineblast.  Epic fail.  Shineblast smells and tastes fine, but it's not shiny at all, despite its name.  It's also very, very sticky.  The second search sent me home with Rimmel London Sweet Jelly.  Nope, failed again.  It doesn't have much of a smell, tastes just like sugar, has zero shine, and despite its declaration to be non-sticky, I found it a little like applying Gorilla Glue to your lips...back to the drawing board.  The third time out was when I found Max Factor Lip gloss.  This lip gloss smells and tastes fine.  It's not very sticky, and it does have a shine, though not quite that of the Estee Lauder gloss.  It's one downfall is that it has a tendency to separate in the tube, so you feel like you're getting only part of your gloss.  I have been through two tubes of it, though, so I'm fairly satisfied with it.

8)  Covergirl Wetslicks

The closest replacement for my Estee Lauder gloss that I have found is this.  The wetslicks smell and taste fine.  They are not sticky and are very shiny.  I feel like they don't have the staying power of the special reserved gloss, but they're cheaper so I can afford to to reapply more often.  Their colors are also nice, and I can afford to test out more colors since they won't break the bank.     I have them in the squeezy tube and also in the tube with the brush.  My current two favorite colors are honey talks (a replacement for my Honey color from E.L.) and Berry Splash (a replacement for the pink gloss that died in the parking lot).  

So there you have it.  My guilty obsession with lip gloss.  I'm really only slightly ashamed of it when I go through my bags like I did and see it all in a great big pile.  It seems a little out of control then, but normally I just see it as liking variety.  What's your favorite lip gloss?  Anything you can recommend?