Product Smackdown: Long-Lasting Lip Colors
A bold lipstick is a surefire way to brighten up your look, and it's pretty obvious that here at R29, we're big fans of the bold. Problem is, most dramatic lip hues are also high-maintenance, requiring tons of touch-ups to keep the color looking vibrant. Long-wearing lipsticks promise to keep their color for hours on end, but we've been burned before by empty pout promises, so we challenged three staffers to put their money where their mouths are and test out the latest stay-put lippies. They tried out an all-natural tint, a drugstore stain, and a high-end lip color for five hours to see how each held up to coffee breaks, office pizza parties, accidental napkin wipings, and multiple meetings. Read on for their lip diaries and to find out which new long-wear reigns supreme.
Who: Julia Anderson, senior brand integration manager
The Contender: Clark's Botanicals Ultra Rich Lip Tint
This all-natural lip tint is free of scary chemicals, but does the trade-off for all that natural goodness mean a lip color that slips off after a few hours?
10:28 a.m.: "I like the idea of color in a squeezable gloss form. Anything that resembles Vaseline Lip Therapy I can totally get behind. Cons? It took caking about four layers of goop on for the color to even begin to pop. Right out of the gate, I'm a little hesitant about its staying power."
12:35 p.m.: "I considered sushi a smart lunch option in my noble effort to preserve my pucker's stain. But with all the chewing and soda sipping I'm guessing a lot of the shine has worn off — the red gloss on my Diet Coke can is a pretty sure sign."
1:54 p.m.: "My work station in the R29 office has a subtle draft that makes makes me a little sniffly. I go to blow my nose and see some lipstick smudges on the tissue. Argh!"
2:30 p.m.: "Lots of calls and meetings mean stress-induced pursed lips. I catch a glance of my pout in my iPhone and notice that most of the ruby color and glossy sheen has faded."
Result: "My lipstick stayed in place for probably an hour or two before heading seriously south. I might grab this if I needed a touch of color and shine for a quick snapshot, but not for long-lasting pigment."
Clark's Botanical Ultra Rich Lip Tint in Rachel Red, $19, available at Clark's Botanicals.
Photos: By Erin Yamagata, Courtesy of Clark's Botanicals
Who: Julia Anderson, senior brand integration manager
The Contender: Clark's Botanicals Ultra Rich Lip Tint
This all-natural lip tint is free of scary chemicals, but does the trade-off for all that natural goodness mean a lip color that slips off after a few hours?
10:28 a.m.: "I like the idea of color in a squeezable gloss form. Anything that resembles Vaseline Lip Therapy I can totally get behind. Cons? It took caking about four layers of goop on for the color to even begin to pop. Right out of the gate, I'm a little hesitant about its staying power."
12:35 p.m.: "I considered sushi a smart lunch option in my noble effort to preserve my pucker's stain. But with all the chewing and soda sipping I'm guessing a lot of the shine has worn off — the red gloss on my Diet Coke can is a pretty sure sign."
1:54 p.m.: "My work station in the R29 office has a subtle draft that makes makes me a little sniffly. I go to blow my nose and see some lipstick smudges on the tissue. Argh!"
2:30 p.m.: "Lots of calls and meetings mean stress-induced pursed lips. I catch a glance of my pout in my iPhone and notice that most of the ruby color and glossy sheen has faded."
Result: "My lipstick stayed in place for probably an hour or two before heading seriously south. I might grab this if I needed a touch of color and shine for a quick snapshot, but not for long-lasting pigment."
Clark's Botanical Ultra Rich Lip Tint in Rachel Red, $19, available at Clark's Botanicals.
Photos: By Erin Yamagata, Courtesy of Clark's Botanicals
