Your Lips But Better

NYX mega shine lipgloss in beige, estee lauder pure colour lipstick in crystal baby, l'oreal colour riche nutrishine in nudy pink,
australis colour inject mineral lipstick in boogie woogie, maybelline baby lips pink glow in baby pink

swatches: australis lipstick in boogie woogie, estee lauder lipstick in crystal baby, NYX lipgloss in beige

swatches you can't even see: l'oreal lip balm, maybelline baby lips

if you've been reading my blog for a while you may have noticed that red lipstick is a near-daily occurrence for me. i know some people are intimidated by the thought of wearing bold lip colours but i'm the opposite. i have quite pigmented lips even when they're bare so i find it hard to pick a nude that doesn't make me look like i'm wearing concealer on my lips or that isn't too brown for my skintone. but these are five lip products i've found that are perfect for days when i want to wear a bold blush or eyes or just want a more natural look.

these NYX mega shine lip glosses don't seem to be talked about as much as say the NYX butter glosses which were a new release last year, but i've heard this shade was a hit back in the day and i can definitely see why. hands down my most perfect "your lips but better" shade, it's the exact colour of my lips and when i put it on they just look smooth and glossy and my whole face looks a bit more put together. i believe the estee lauder lipstick must have been in one of their gift with purchase offers from a while back because it's in the older packaging and because i would never have chosen a shade like this on my own, but it actually works really well for me. it's a really neutral lipstick that isn't too light or too dark but i do like wearing it with a sheer pink lipgloss over the top as well as on its own. the australis lipstick is the darkest of the lot but it's still fairly neutral on me and it's great for when i want some colour but don't want it to be too bold. i actually think these lipsticks are really good quality, they're smooth but they don't slide around and they smell like my cabbage patch kid dolls from when i was little.

this l'oreal nutrishine is a bit of an anomaly, the nutrishine range is the brand's offering to the tinted lip balm/lipstick-hybrid family that most drugstore brands have these days (think revlon lip butters, maybelline colour whispers, etc). i only have two shades (nudy pink and nudy peach) which aren't really shades so much as they are sligthtly tinted balms. the thing that makes these different from a normal balm is that after a couple of swipes they become super glossy. they're not exactly a nude product but they do add a little bit of shine to otherwise bare lips. now i don't really get the whole baby lips thing, they remind me of using lipsmackers in primary school and they're just not a product that piques my interest. having said that, the pink glow offering is a different story. i bought this just to see what all the fuss was about and whenever i used it on bare lips i could swear it was actually changing the colour despite being a clear balm. turns out i was right! like the vastly more expensive dior addict lip glow, this reacts to the pH balance of your lips and turns them into your own customised colour, and they definitely work because i noticed the difference before even reading about the product - not bad for under a fiver.