little white truths

I reviewed my one of these in I've Never a while ago (see here) and I'm back today to review the second shade I bought, being I Lust For.

Do note that both shades are quite similar (you'll see that in the swatches below), but they are different enough to warrant owning both and I don't regret buying either of them.

And I've said it before but I'll say it again: I'm obsessed with the packaging of these lipsticks, and if I didn't like the formula, I would still buy one just to have it. Yes it sounds ridiculous, but it's the nicest lipstick packaging I've ever come across. I really love holding mine. They make me feel special.

Thankfully I do like the formula too, and while it's not my favourite formula because it doesn't minimise my lip lines, it's still good and I enjoy it. More on that below.

Hourglass claims/product details:

• Reach a new level of luxe with this chic, ultra-slimline lipstick that delivers pigment-rich, long-wearing colour with a comfortable satin finish
• Each shade is encased in a sleek gold applicator that can be used interchangeably with the refills
• Part lipstick, part beauty game-changer, this innovative product boasts all the benefits of a traditional lip colour and more
• Captured in a sleek gold applicator, this creamy lipstick envelops lips in seriously saturated, long-lasting colour 
• Plus it's ultra-slimline so you can forgo the lip liner yet keep your lips looking super precise, contoured and defined
• RRP $49 AUD for the 0.9g lipstick and the packaging; refills $32 AUD for 0.9g

There's the bullet, direct sunlight:

Light and heavy swatches, direct sunlight:

Below I've swatched it beside I've Never (left) so you can see that they're quite similar (although admittedly they look more different on the lips; I Lust For is paler and not as warm):

My bare lips for reference:

Wearing the product, indirect sunlight:

Verdict

This is a really lovely product, and while I'm not going to tell you to go out and spend fifty bucks on less than one gram of lipstick, I will tell you that the purchase was worth it for me personally because I love using mine so much.

I've already talked about the packaging above, but let's just confirm that it's the nicest lipstick packaging I've ever held in my hands. Even if I didn't like the formula, I would be happy to own this just for that. Sad but true...

As for the product itself, I don't think I've ever used anything quite like it - so it's innovative not only in packaging, but also in formula. It's quite a thick, sticky product, and for this reason it really adheres to the lips and stays put well. Sure, you'll need to reapply it eventually, but it will hang around better than most while I'm sipping away at my coffee so I only need to reapply it once every few hours.

Thankfully it also fades evenly and leaves a soft stain behind, and for this reason I can almost forgive the fact that you get so little product because I don't need to reapply it as often as other lipsticks, and I also don't need to apply as much out of the starting gate since it's so pigmented. I said almost forgive ; )

It's comfortable to wear and it's hydrating enough that I don't need to wear a balm underneath, but I am a little aware of this when I first apply because it's quite a heavy formula. However once it has settled down and some of it has come off on my coffee cup, I can't feel it on my lips anymore.

While I did consider giving this an HG tag, in the end I decided not to. Why? Because it does nothing for my lip texture, and since that's something I look for in my lip products, that's not a good thing for me personally. You'll see in the above photos that it doesn't emphasise texture, but it doesn't minimise it either so it's not perfect and I can't sing its praises 100%. Still, I just whack a gloss over mine to get the smoothing effect I'm after and I'm good to go.

'I Lust For' is a peachy nude that's very pretty, although on me it can look a little too pale when I've self-tanned or during summer. For the rest of the year it's fine, though. It's also one of those colours that makes my lips look bigger because it's pale, which is something I appreciate too.

As compared to 'I've Never', that's a warm brown with gorgeous orange/terracotta undertones so it looks more orange on the lips than it does in the bullet. Of the two shades, it's more flattering on me and I can wear it at any time of the year (see my swatches here), but I do like both colours and there's definitely a place for both in my collection.

Overall I think this is a fantastic product and I absolutely love mine, although I'll confess (ha) that this has a lot to do with the packaging - but I do like the formula and I think it almost warrants the price-tag, although I'd want to get more product to say that for sure.

Love.