little white truths

Both these lipsticks are currently on my Project Pan list, so best I review them before I finish them.

I bought them because I'd seen a few people rave about the formula and I also really like these two colours, but alas they don't work for me at all.

Indeed, I've come to realise that Rimmel lipsticks don't work for me in general, so I stopped buying them a while ago.

Rimmel claims/product details:

• Lightweight, fresh colour
• Burst of energy and moisture
• Bouncy shine
• Vitamin A, C and E enriched formula that gives lips an energy shot of moisture
• Ultra lightweight texture
• Non-sticky
• All day comfort
• RRP $13.95 AUD for 4g, but do shop around

The packaging of these is similar to the original Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipsticks (I've reviewed one here), with the difference being that those have a purple cap while these have a pink one.

Another difference between the two formulas is that the originals STINK of perfume (I find them to be unwearable for that reason), while these ones smell more like a balm: to me, they smell and feel like those Bonne Bell lip balms in the blue tube.

The formulas are otherwise quite similar, it's just that these ones are sheerer and offer a softer colour.

I own two shades: 600 Spin all Spring (a bright summer coral) and 700 Better & Brighter (a nude).

I really enjoy the colours so no complaints there: it's the formula I can't live with.

There's a shot of 600, natural light:

And there's 700:

Below are swatches of the shades in different lights.

Direct sunlight:

Indirect sunlight:

Natural light (outdoors):

Natural light (indoors):

My bare lips for reference:

Wearing 600, indirect sunlight:

Shade 700, natural light (indoors):

Verdict

I don't like these lipsticks and I don't recommend them.

They're thin and sheer in texture and they apply without tugging. I agree that they're not sticky but they are very slippery so they have a tendency to move around.

Indeed, both shades 600 and 700 travel outside my lips very quickly. You may be able to manage this issue with a lip liner, but I personally don't bother with lip liners and I'd prefer to have a lipstick that performs well on its own.

Neither shade lasts well on the lips, which isn't surprising due to the slippery texture, but just be aware that you'll spend all day reapplying these. I personally don't mind doing that for a good formula, but I don't think this is a good formula so it's annoying.

As you'll see in the photos above, these do absolutely nothing for my lip lines - if anything, they emphasise texture - which is a big no no for me because I want my lip products to plump up and smooth out my lips. These don't.

My other big gripe with these is that they're incredibly drying. Although they mightn't look or feel like they would be drying, they are. My lips feel super dry underneath them so I always need to pair them with a lip balm, and they've also dried out my lips with frequent use (my lips are flaking off as we speak).

In other news I can't always get an even application with these and they slip around and gather in lines, plus they look patchy on the lips. I also get lines across the inner rims of my lips when I'm wearing these - even when I haven't pressed my lips together. On top of this I spend half my time eating them, because they travel inside my mouth when they bleed. Erk.

Overall I don't like these lipsticks and I've given them a 'disappointing products' tag. If you want a good budget lipstick, head to the Maybelline section. These Rimmel ones have been a nightmare to use for me, and they're also not 'structurally sound' - they melt with frequent use (as do the original Moisture Renew Lipsticks), and they slip around in and fall out of the plastic cup at the base of the bullet. This causes a lot of product wastage.

Blurgh.