May Box Items Two and Three

The second item in my Sephora box was the Grande CosmeticsGrandeLIPS Hydrating Lip Plumper. I received this lip gloss/plumper in clear, though it has quite a few colors. At its full size, it retails for 27$. Now, this is an interesting product for me because I'm not someone who usually purchases cosmetics for long term effects. I don't buy wrinkle creams or the like. It's not that I'm against them. It's more that I'm poor.  So the idea of something having long-term results is kind of new to me.*

Basically, the lip gloss/plumper is supposed to improve the volume of your lips using a specialized hydrating formula. There are the short-term effects, which show up usually 3-5 minutes after an application, and then more lasting results that are supposed to happen if you use the plumper twice a day for a month. Now I'm not sure about what will happen a month from now, but this product certainly has results on a quick basis. I noticed it most on my lower lip. It got nice and poochy after I used the gloss.

I was pretty hesitant about this product because several years ago, I had a really bad experience with a lip plumper. It burned my lip so badly that it hurt for hours. The Grande is certainly tingly when it's applied, but, at least for me, not to a painful level. It also has a nice scent and taste to it. I certainly wouldn't kiss anyone after I put it on, not without warning them first.

Overall, I'm pleased with this product. Given my past experience with plumpers and the fact that I don't spend money on long-term cosmetics, it's certainly not something I would have purchased for myself. Then again, that's one of the nice things about getting a box like this.

The next product was the NUDESTIX Magnetic Matte Lip Color. It normally costs 24$. This is a three-in-one lip color. It works as a liner, a stain, or a lipstick. It's supposed to stay in place all day. The color I received was the Greystone. I wasn't that happy with this one. I think maybe the color was part of the problem. The Greystone, as a lipstick, was way too dark for me. Even when I blotted it down to a stain, I wasn't that pleased. It was better, but still not great. It worked okay as a liner, but only under certain circumstances would a wear a liner that dark.

I checked the color swatches included on the page and feel like, honestly, any of the other colors would have suited me better. If I were buying this for myself, I would have gotten the Rose. It's closer to the kind of colors I usually wear. If I were feeling my gothy roots, I would have gone for the Vino or the Burgundy.

If I'm being honest here, and this will probably apply to any lipstick I receive, I have to keep in mind that I'm usually not that pleased with this kind of cosmetic because I think, with my skin tone, the natural shade of my lips is always the best match. I may highlight them and shade them, but the majority of the lip will just be covered in a clear gloss.

In this case, another problem is the fact that it's matte. I'm just not a fan of how matte lipsticks look on me. There are people who rock the hell out of matte, but I am not one of them. Matte lipsticks dull out too much of what is great about my lips and then I have to spend way too much effort to rebuild that with other products. It's more effort than its worth for me.

So, one lip product, I love. The other one just doesn't work for me. I did enjoy messing with both of them and will certainly keep working with the plumper, just to see what it does. As for the 3-in-1, I'll keep it around for shading.

* That reminds me, I never reported back on the Castor Oil eyebrow experiment. I believe it worked-ish. My eyebrow hairs look better and they did grow a little longer. However, they've thinned and grayed out so much that it may take quite a long time before I see major changes . . . if ever.