little white truths

We received one of these Stevie K lipsticks in our Australian edits from Maslow & Co earlier in the year (unboxed here), and I so wanted to love mine because the brand is from Melbourne and I like the idea behind it - but unfortunately this just isn't the right lipstick for me.

The colour King Kylie gives me concealer lips for starters, but it's more the formula I'm looking at here because I didn't choose my colour - and this isn't the right formula for anyone with dry lips who's concerned about lip lines. More on that below.

The packaging is apparently inspired by Melbourne street art and each lipstick comes with a different printed box.

I'm all for details like that, but I'm especially for the bullet itself - it's weighty, it's compact and it just feels and looks classy. Indeed, it may be my favourite of all the lipstick bullets I've ever used. It's sturdy and neat and a lot cooler than I am.

Worth noting is that the brand is cruelty free, which is something I look for in my makeup. While I'm not 100% guided by that as many beauty-lovers are, if a product is cruelty free then I'm definitely more likely to buy it over something that isn't.

Stevie K claims/product details:

• Shout 'n' Pout with the Stevie K lipstick collection
• Highly saturated and perfectly pigmented, our matte lipsticks are enriched with super nourishing ingredients like vitamin e, jojoba and evening primrose oils
• Influenced by the city of Melbourne, each lipstick is encased in a semi-distressed aluminium tube with street art inspired packaging
• Non-drying and long-lasting, they're smoother on your lips than a glass of Hennessy
• RRP $23.95 AUD for 4g

There's the bullet in direct sunlight above.

And there it is in natural light below:

Now for swatches.

There's a light and a heavier swatch, direct sunlight:

And in indirect sunlight:

A gorgeous colour, yes? Not on me.

My bare lips for reference:

Indirect sunlight:

Natural light (outdoors):

There's another sunlight shot, because why not:

And natural light (indoors):

Verdict

Ok, so I don't hate this product but I don't love it either.

Leaving the fact that the colour washes me out aside, the formula isn't right for me - for a few reasons.

First, you'll see in the shots above that it doesn't do my lips any favours and it not only shows off my lip lines, it actually makes them look worse on my top lip. While it's not unusual for a matte to show off my lip-shrivel, it's pretty unusual for one to make matters worse. Mind you, I don't try a lot of matte formulas because my dry lips prefer creams, so perhaps that's just something I'm not used to.

Second, the product goes on very thickly and you do need quite a bit to get an opaque coverage. This is a problem because the product then slides around and you'll see that especially in the top two lip photos above (you'll see it's shifted in the middle where my lips meet). It also has a tendency to crumble off where my lips meet, which is never a good look - nor is it a nice thing to feel.

While of course you can blot the product to help remove any excess, I find doing so makes the finish look drier (and therefore my lips shrivel up even more) and I also find that removing the top layer by blotting does nothing but expose the fact that this product has settled into lip lines and it suddenly looks patchy because it's showing dry texture that I didn't know I had.

And that's my third issue with this formula: after three days of testing, it's made my lips start to flake. Now I've only been wearing it during the day and using a good balm overnight, but that hasn't stopped the dryness setting in. So yes, I don't think this is the right product for those with dry lips.

What I do like about this is that it feels very creamy and it applies without tugging. Problem is, so much of it applies that I'm constantly aware of it on my lips - although I'm still aware of it if I apply only a small amount, so that's obviously a feature of the formula.

Worth noting also is that this isn't the most matte finish I've seen in a lipstick: there's definitely some shine to it. While I personally prefer that, if you're after a matte matte lipstick, then this mightn't be the right pick for you.

It does last reasonably well and fades evenly, so that's a plus. Although as mentioned, when it fades, that's when you can see that it has settled into lip lines and clung to/created dry patches.

So in sum, I really wanted to love this product - especially because it's from a Melbourne brand - but it doesn't work for me so I can't recommend it. Mind you, I've read a few other reviews and everyone else seems to love them, so it could just be that the formula doesn't 'gel' with my dry, 37yo lips. There is a cream formula available so perhaps I would have more luck with that one.

The good news, though, is that after only three days' of use, I've already made a good dent in this product (I guess because so much comes off when you apply it), meaning it's an excellent candidate for Project Pan. I have a very bright orange lip liner that I'd like to pan so I can throw these together: the colour of the lip liner enlivens this shade and it's also a creamy liner so it helps target the lip line issue.

Not for me.