Over the years I've been described as a lot of things, someone once described me as the most scarily intelligent person that they'd ever met, whilst some else described me as funny, in a weird way, we came to the conclusion, that probably the best way to describe both myself and my mum was quirky, and to be honest I'm okay with that. I've never wanted to be a sheep, and I'm never going to be one of those people that everybody loves, or that fits in anywhere like a jigsaw, I'm an individual and I'm proud of that.
It goes with saying therefore, that my outlook on life is also pretty quirky, I love anything just that little bit out of the ordinary, and anything that's just that little bit different. I'm obsessed with David Lynch, one of my favourite TV programmes at the moment is Finding Bigfoot, I love daisies, and psychedelic prints, and eventually getting back on point, I love make up brands that stand out from the rest of the crowd
Although they've been widely copied, and imitated, with their quirky, vintage style, and their often tongue and cheek humour, if you want something just that little bit different make up wise then Benefit is a good place to start.
I'm a Bene Babe and I'm proud of that, take away the fun exterior, and your usually left with a quality product that does exactly what it promises. I've tried so many of their products over the years, and so many of them have become permanent additions in my make up bag. It's hard to believe that they've been around since the 1970's, and whilst so many products in their line have become real classics, they aren't one of those brands that rests on their laurels, and their constantly developing new products and trying to please a new generation of fans.
So far in 2017, we've seen several new additions to their popular boxed blusher range, with an entirely new shade Galifornia, and with some new incarnations of some old favourites, Hoola Lite and Dandelion Twinkle. All of these on now on my wishlist, but today I'm going to talk about another relatively new Benefit addition, their new They're Real lipsticks.
Late last year, Benefit released two new kits just in time for the Christmas rush, both under their ever popular They're Real banner. These kits, an eye and a lip kit, were just taster of what was to come, when at the beginning of this year they released a whole new range of eyeshadows and lipsticks.
The whole point of every product in the They're Real line is to take the stress and the hassle out of make up, every product is an innovation and is designed to make us all into make up artists without the years of practise and training. Since I have the enthusiasm but not always the skill, this line is right up my street, so as a little Autumn and Winter treat I picked up both of the kits, the They're Real Big Sexy Eye Kit, which I'm going to talk about in a future post, and the They're Real Big Sexy Lip Kit.
This beautiful metal tin which make the perfect gift contains, 4 half size, 0.75g lipsticks from the new They're Real Double The Lip Beyond Sexy Lipstick & Liner In One range.
Packaged in metallic, plastic tubes, that resemble Benefit's famous They're Real Mascara, these products are probably one of most unique lip products that I've seen in a long time.
Lets face it, a lipstick in most cases is just that a lipstick, they can be short and chubby, or they can be long and slim, but however they're shaped, take away the packaging be it classy or simple, and in most cases, unless you're a real beauty junkie, you probably couldn't distinguish one pink lipstick from another one. Occasionally now you'll see the odd one that looks different say with a gel core or a coating but the majority of lipsticks on the market today look pretty similar. These ones though are just that little bit different and they're different for a very good reason.
Open these beauties up and your probably expecting to see just a thin, boring ish lipstick but these lipstick or should I say lipsticks and liners in one, have two things that make them unique. As you can see from the photograph above these lipsticks not only have a distinctive teardrop shaped tip, but each lipstick also contains two colours in one. The dual colour thing isn't that new really but the shape is, because what this product enables you to do is to both line and fill in your lips, in one swipe. All you do is apply the lipstick like you normally would only making sure that the pointed tip is positioned along your upper lip line, and that you turn the lipstick upside down to fill in your lower lip.
There are 8 shades to choose from in the full 1.5g size, but this kit gives you the opportunity to try 4 of the most popular shades in a handbag friendly, half size.
The shades are from left to right, Flame Game, a fiery orange, red, Pink Thrills, a classic, bright pink, Revved-Up Red, a cherry, pink red shade, and Lusty Rose, a lovely neutral rose pink.
Apologies that the swatches aren't that neat but what I was trying to show you, was the slight colour variations between the lipstick and the liner shades. In the bullet I think the differences look a lot more pronounced, and in some cases quite scary. I wish the obsession with darker or different coloured lip liners to lipsticks would crawl under a rock and die - I'm not a fan at all, and despite looking in some cases like they could give you that sort of look, the difference on the lips with these ones is actually quite subtle.
In every single one that I tried, the lip liner shade didn't look obvious, the colours just complimented each other perfectly and in my experience the slight colour variation actually gives the lips a slightly plumper, and fuller appearance. I think that's really the whole point of these lipsticks to actually make your lips look fuller, and as though you've spent ages applying lipstick and liner, and by and large Benefit's consumer testing appears to say exactly that, with 91% of participants saying that there lips looked visibly fuller and sexier. I definitely like how they look on my lips and since I personally received several compliments when I wore them, I think I have to agree with them - what do you think?
Flame Game
Pink Thrills
Revved-Up Red
Lusty Rose
I've really enjoyed wearing these lipsticks, and this kit has even taken me out of my comfort zone with shades like Flame Game. As you can see the pigmentation is superb, and whilst the semi matte formula, isn't the most hydrating, it doesn't leave your lips dry and parched. I guess the formulation also helps with the illusion of fullness, and it also aids the wear time, I didn't quite get the 8 hours that Benefit claim but I easily managed a few hours out of each one which considering the amount of water I drink, is pretty amazing in my book.
Although 95% of testers that Benefit surveyed claim that these lipsticks are super easy to apply, I personally think that you need a little bit of practise just to get your technique on point. I found them pretty easy to apply on my top lip, but I struggled at first when I had to flip the bullet to do my bottom lip - I was all fingers and thumbs for some reason. The bullet itself is ergonomically designed so it's pretty easy to hold and practise as they say makes perfect.
So do I like these? In it's simplest terms yes I do, I have to say when I first swatched them I wasn't sure but once I started using them, I got it, I love the coverage, and the wear time, and my pout definitely looks a little bit fuller when I wear them. Any drawbacks? well if you love really moisturising, and really creamy lipsticks then these probably aren't for you, and they do have a slightly weird, almost TCP like smell, and taste, but that soon disappears, and the positives for me firmly outweigh any negatives.
The Benefit Cosmetics They're Real Big Sexy Lip Kit, retails at around £25.50 and is currently available from various retailers including, the official Benefit Cosmetics website, as well as Boots, Debenhams, John Lewis, House Of Fraser, and QVC UK. This kit is great for travel or for trying out some new colours, or for anyone who wants to try out this new concept but if you like what you see, you can also buy the individual lipstick in the full size, in these four shades, and in additional four shades, for around £16.50 each. My favourite colours in this kit are definitely the pinks, Pink Thrills and Lusty Rose, so even though I did get another mini in a recent Birchbox, I can definitely see myself picking up the full sizes in the near future, and I'm definitely going to add the shade Nude Scandal to my ever increasing beauty wishlist? What do you think about these lipsticks? Have you tried them yet? Let me know your thoughts below x
