I don’t know when this obsession started as up until about 6 years ago I was a lipstick girl. If I didn’t have lipstick on it felt wrong and went to great lengths finding ones with staying power. Something must have changed though as now I am obsessed with glosses and balms. I thought todays blog post would be on ‘what I carry in my handbag’, but in honesty bar my purse, keys and ‘emergency’ kit, its mainly lip stuff. Yes I am a girl with a problem and an obsession!

My new edition is from ELF cosmetics and their Minty Lip Gloss in the colour Miami (D12). This gloss is a little sticky and hard to get out the tube I find. So it means multiple dips into the pot to get your lips covered. Once on it stays put for an hour or 2. It has the most amazing minty smell which is great for someone like me who is addicted to coffee and paranoid about that ‘coffee breath’. It has a sweet mildly minty taste which I love and at a bargain price of £3.50 (And Elf are nearly always doing offer codes) I think its a great bargain. I have tried this over other lipsticks but found it ‘wiped’ them off more than anything and lessened the staying power. So for me this is definitely a ‘gloss only’ on the lips. It is one of my favourites at present and one I recommend to all!

The Barry M lipgloss which I have no idea what it’s called as it doesn’t say but this one was the one that came with the Impulse promotion about a month ago and was teamed with Very Pink. I probably don’t use this as much as the other one I’ll be writing about shortly but it still needs to be mentioned! The colour for me is a little too pink/opal. For some this is great but I prefer glosses which are corel or nude tones. Still it was kind of a freebie so I’m not complaining. It glides on amazingly, so smooth and silky and doesn’t feel sticky at all. The smell is of strawberries I’d guess at or something very fruity – it reminds me of strawberry hubba bubba! Colour wise this is more of a gloss I’d use over a lipstick but for today I’ve swatched it without so you can see. It is almost glittery and has a pearlescent colour too it with a pink sheen. I don’t think the image does it justice to be fair. The brand is definitely another one I love, but I prefer the other shade which I’ll show you next. It lasts really well, I’ve been known (if I don’t keep licking it off my lips) to have this on for a few hours before re-applying. Gorgeous gloss though and another one I think is fab!

The other Barry M lipgloss came with Impulse Flirt and is one I use almost daily! It is a gorgeous nude colour and unlike the other one smells of vanilla and toffee maybe? Although on the swatch and my lips in these pictures it appears to be a clear gloss it actually has a beige/toffee undertone to it so there is colour there, but only faintly. It reminds me of something but I can’t put my finger on it. As before its fantastic I just prefer the colour of this one as it’s more of a nude. I really hope I’m going to be able to get another one of this, or at least a dupe as it really is a daily favourite for me.

My ultimate favourite gloss with sparkles. I normally wear this one its own or over a very nude lip. I love the sparkles, I love the nude beige colour but I do not like the tingling. I shall explain… 17 Va Va Voom Lip Plumping Gloss really is fantastic stuff. I have it in too shades, So Buff and So Peach. So Buff is my favourite but I like So Peach when the days are Sunny. It doesn’t taste really of anything and both glosses have sparkles in them with So Buff being the more nude and So Peach having coral orange undertones. It says on the tubes about their being a tingling sensation because they are plumping glosses, can I just saw yes it does tingle but it also stings! Not for long and when I use it regularly I don’t even notice it, but for the first few applications it can feel like you are having a reaction to the gloss. This isn’t the case (Well not in mine), the glosses are really great though. The glide on well, last for a few hours, look gorgeous on their own or over lipstick or stain and I find (Not that I really need it) they do plump your lips too. As someone once said, ‘Beauty is pain’ or in this case, mildly uncomfortable. It costs £3.79 which considering how long other lips glosses have lasted me and this one only lasted a month isn’t too bad but not as good value for money as some I’ve used.

The BEST lip smoothing cream EVER! Ok In my opinion but it is worth EVERY penny. I have been using Clinique’s All About Lips now for about 9 years, maybe a little less but to say it is my favourite lip smoothing cream is an understatement. If I’m not wearing makeup I wear this, or I put it on under gloss, lipstick or anything really. It makes your lips satin smooth, helps get rid of sore dry lips to a degree although balm or vasaline is always best for that and also is a great lip primer for lipstick. It can stop lipstick bleeding, even the DARK reds. I buy a tube every year and it lasts me about as long. I think its about £16 I bought it on offer last time. Lasts forever and although its meant to be for removing the lines around lips and locking colour in, I think its something ANYONE can use. I’ve been using it since I was in my 20′s and I have to say its something I’ve converted 10 people to using as it really is that great. So if you have flakey lips, get some Clinique All About Lips!!

I only use 1 lip balm, nothing else compares to this balm and I go to silly ends to try and get more when I’ve run out and Space NK hasn’t had any. Kiehl’s Lip Balm #1 in Mango (as you can see by my battered tube) is the best balm ever. It isn’t cheap when you are paying £9.50 for 15ml but it lasts a ridiculously long time (I’ve had this about 18 months) and would say I use it daily. It’s like any lip balm in that its clear and gives a light glossy look, but it moisturises and removes any sore cracked lips. I just have never found a balm that compare to it. Even friends pinch mine as they love it too – they really should buy there own!! If there is one balm I think you should spend money on it would be this one. They also do it in other flavours if Mango isn’t your thing, I buy mine in store at Space NK but I believe you can buy it online too at other retailers.

I have deliberately left off of here Benefit’s Posie Tint and Benetint namely as they are great lip stains but you have to add a gloss to them and I personally wouldn’t wear them without adding a balm or gloss over the top. I think maybe I’ll do a separate blog post for them another time as they are great products but I’ll say not my favourites.

Well, I hope maybe that may help someone, even if it is to avoid Just Bitten. Or if you have had a good experience with Just Bitten, please tell me! I don’t like to bad mouth products but I do like to be 100% honest on what I think.

Lots of Love,

Mel xxxx