Addiction Confession and Review: Nyx Lip Butters, Rimmel Show Off Lacquers, and Korres Lip Butter

I have a confession.... I am a bit of a product addict.  This used to be something of a secret I tried to hide from the world by squirreling things away in various drawers and cabinets, baskets and armoirs. This is no longer really possible unless, self admitted organizational freak that I am, I want to break down in fits of sobs over having a huge mess on my hands, so I'm just admitting it.  The category that takes up the most space (two compartments) in my makeup drawer is lip products.



Product junkies each have their vice, and mine seems to be lipsticks, glosses, lacquers, stains, moisturizers, etc. Thankfully for us budget conscious shoppers, there are many affordable dupes for higher end products, with better formulations emerging regularly.

This past summer, Rimmel came out with a greatly hyped line of lip lacquers that promised to deliver ever lasting color and eternally ideal texture.  After watching YouTube reviews by my favorite British Vloggers, I stalked all of the Chicago Walgreens locations within the general Loop area until they emerged on the shelves.  I struggled to believe that such a budget friendly line could really offer a long lasting product that boasted a great texture to boot, particularly when I haven't been the biggest fan of their bolder colored products in the past (they're also not a "friendly" product, as they aren't cruelty free according to the Leaping Bunny list and are definitely not chemical free, so I don't usually use many of their products).

Lo and behold.... I was not disappointed.  At least not with the staying power or the color impact.  Off the bat, you'll notice that the doe foot applicator is not traditional.  It contains a small divot that holds a puddle of color to, I suspect, allow you to apply more gloss fluidly than you would otherwise.  The color definitely comes on strong and I needed to smooth it out with my finger to ensure it appeared even and not goopy.  All said and done, for about $5.00, they're a fantastic alternative to products like YSL's Glossy Stains (although nothing really compares, let's be honest).

Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquer applicators

As I was on the hunt for a new, hotter, pink gloss, I picked up Stellar and, bowing to the coral trend, also grabbed Nova.  I've wound up using Stellar more frequently than Nova, as the peachy coral color just never looks quite even and nice on the lips (pity).  Is that possible, to have one color be quite a bit better in formulation than another?  At any rate, the hot pink was perfect for summer and fall and I wore it quite a lot when going out for dinner or drinks, including to Bangers and Lace, one of our favorite places in Wicker Park that boasts simple-with-a-twist cocktails, delicious takes on pub food (try the scotch eggs and duck sausage!) and pours a very impressive beer list.  The atmosphere in the summer is great - rustic tables and exposed bulbs inside provide that very "in" industrial-chic vibe while the patio on Division wraps around the corner building and provides just enough shelter from the passers by to be a pleasant spot to have a good meal al fresco (not common in Chicago).

Dinner at Bangers & Lace, 1670 W. Division, Chicago

On a mission to find a perfect coral gloss to ease my disappointment Rimmel's Nova, I picked up a few of NYX's Butter Glosses on a whim at Ulta.  Their price point is fantastic ($4.99 and right now buy one, get one 50% off at Ulta!), given that their lip products are generally pretty awesome, so I figured three wouldn't be one too many.  I generally really like NYX products and, as they're cruelty free, they satisfy my desire to use products that are as "friendly" as possible. You can also order these online via my Luvocracy "luvs"!

Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacquers in (L) Stellar and (R) Luna - like how my polish matches? =D

The colors all come off bright when applied heavily with the traditional doe foot applicator, but you can easily swipe your finger (or a brush) over the applied gloss to tone them down a bit.  They layer beautifully and feel great on.  Not sticky at all, they embody what I'd interpret a "lip butter" to be: lip smackin' heaven.
My favorite of the three has alternated: first impressions made me fall for Peach Cobbler - a pinky shade with a touch of orange, but lately I've been attached at the hip to Apple Strudel, which is a pretty, light, sheer pink.  Cherry Cheese Cake, despite the name, is the most orange tinted of the three (I might have swapped the names of Cherry Cheese Cake and Peach Cobbler), and really packs a colorful punch, so I haven't found quite as many opportunities to sport it as the others.  How can they be any better? They seem to be somewhat moisturizing....

NYX Lip Butters in (L) Peach Cobbler, (M) Cherry Cheese Cake, and (R) Apple Strudel

At about the same time, I gave in to a long term desire and decided to try one of the Korres Lip Butters, which friends have told me is insanely helpful for dry lips. They are organic in composition and never animal tested, plus they pack in loads of natural, easily absorbed oils that your skin will love. Thus, I'd been dying to try them for quite a while.
I'm pretty loyal to Burt's Bees and Lypsyl when it comes to lip therapy, so forking over the $12 for a small pot of gloss I'd never tried was a bit tough (Lypsyl runs about $3 and Burt's Bees is about the same).   Nevertheless, I chose one of the more densely colored choices to make the purchase a multi tasker and went with Wild Rose, a sheer berry color.  I love the shade and the formulation, but can't say it makes a huge difference on my dry lips.  I've tried to think of it more as a pretty berry stain, as that's really what it does.... stain everything.... but I tend to accidentally swipe it all over my lips and get it on my face when I forget it's so richly colored and smears so easily.  Because of this, I really don't use it as a moisturizing product but, as previously mentioned, for a lip stain.
Wild Rose is really a beautiful color and the product feels like silk and smells amazing, but it just isn't practical as an every day "chapstick" type product.  I probably sound like an idiot right now because you're probably thinking "well duh, that's not what it's intended for", but oh well.  If you are interested in trying it for yourself, you can find it at Sephora or order it online via my Luvocracy profile.

Korres Lip Butter in Wild Rose

Overall, I'd say the Nyx Lip Butters take the cake for my favorite recently purchased gloss.  The color range is out of this world - so be sure to check it out the next time you're at Ulta!

Does anyone have a suggestion for a great cruelty free, non drying lip lacquer or stain?  I'd love to hear your experiences in this realm (not that I need more lip products...)!

It's supposed to hit the mid to upper 30's in Chicago this weekend, so I hope you all have something great planned (just don't forget your pants - it's not that warm)!


xoxo