I love opaque lipsticks.
I love the color pay-off, and the rich texture. They're a great way to dress up the lips instantly, and they last better than glossy lipsticks without feeling as dry as matte lipsticks.
But intense lipsticks aren't usually known for being comfortable to wear. Most have to sacrifice moisture for color. So I was curious to check out Bobbi Brown's new Luxe Lipstick range (SGD$44), launching 15 October 2015 in Singapore, because they promised to combine great color intensity with a nourishing, comfortable semi-matte texture that can reduce fine lines and relieve flaking. Sounded like exactly what I need.
The lipsticks have a much flatter and wider bullet tip for quicker application, and a point shaped for a precise edge without having to use a brush.
What do I think of these?
They are still new to me but so far these are buttery-smooth and almost every single shade is opaque in one stroke. I expected these to feel a lot drier, but they go on like silk. I would classify these as classic creme formulas - too soft and creamy to be classed as satin/semi-matte. They also stay relatively creamy for the next few hours and don't go matte-looking quickly like pigment-rich lip products usually do.
There were a couple (like Brocade) which needed to be built up a bit more for opacity, but that's not to say it was patchy and sheer by any means. It was just slightly less intense than the other shades in the range, which go on opaque instantly.
As for the colors, there are 30 and they run the gamut from nude to brown to pink to coral to red to dark. And because it's Bobbi Brown, you can expect a good variety of classic nudes and naturals in different undertones. In fact, there may be a few TOO many Nudes/Beiges/Browns in my opinion, but then I prefer to mix it up from day to day. The natural tones here make up over 1/3 of the entire range, which might be overwhelming for Nude lip novices. Several of them are quite close in tone, although I know nude lovers will definitely appreciate the tiny differences in tone because a hint more pink or orange can entirely change how a shade looks.
Wear-time varies depending on color. Many of the brighter and deeper colors stain the lips and will seem to last slightly longer than the softer shades. But I don't find this range to be especially long-wearing as far as intense lipsticks go. I still recommend a liner if you're wearing one of the stronger shades, to prevent smearing and bleeding.
I have 27 of the 30 shades to swatch for you at this time, so here they are below.
What's good are also the deeper neutrals, which are very on point and super-trendy right now. You have Neutral Rose, which is a nice soft "MLBB" shade, Pink Buff which is a brown-based beige, and Soft Berry which is a great warm rosy brown which looks great with a tan.
I always love pinks and berries, and there are quite a number of good shades in the line. I especially love the warm salmon-y Bright Coral and the intense raspberry (Raspberry Pink) and fuchsia (Hot Rose) shades.
Even the pale peachy-nude, Baby Peach, surprised me by going on smooth and even. And all the orange and coral shades are fun.
But try the reds. You have a blue-red (Russian Doll), a cherry red (Retro Red), a classic red (Parisian Red), and a vampy red (Your Majesty).
The one con to this would be that they won't stay on as long as slightly thicker, drier textures, so as mentioned above, wear a liner if you are applying one of the deeper or brighter shades, just so that the edges don't smudge and feather.
