Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain: Rendezvous

I'm sure you've all heard about these little beauties by now.
Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains had a lot to live up to, following the raging success of their cousins, the infamous Revlon Lip Butters. As I have said before on my blog, such was the hype surrounding the Lip Butters that I almost didn't want to like them, but alas, I just couldn't resist their charms, and to be honest, I think few people could. So after having been won over by them and by Revlon's Photoready foundation, I was very much looking forward to the release of these chunky pencils, although, never having purchased a similar product, I wasn't sure what to expect.
The Balm Stains have a smooth, slightly waxy texture, and require some pressure when being applied, but for me, the fact that they are not too slippery bodes well in terms of staying power. I find it easy to get an even colour all over my lips, and I like that I don't need to be as meticulous with this as I might a lipstick, with which any little mistake is glaringly obvious. Another definite bonus is the lack of sharpening required as the product wears down, thanks to it's handy 'twist up' mechanism.
So, onto the shade I chose.
Being a huge fan of orange lip colours, Rendezvous was the obvious choice for me (although I now wish I had picked up several of the other shades too!). It's a juicy tangerine shade, a true orange with no pink, red or coral undertones, and while that might sound scary to some of you, it's actually incredibly wearable. It's not just because I personally enjoying using these sorts of shades, either - I can honestly say that this, out of all the orange lip colours I have ever tried, is by far the easiest to pull off. If you have never tried anything similar, why not take the plunge and give it a go? Applying a light layer leaves you with a pretty orange sheen, whereas a bolder look can be achieved with a second. I'd say that pigmentation is pretty good, though it's definitely buildable.

- I'm afraid these photographs haven't really captured the true colour very well, but I decided to include them anyway because I always prefer to see them in reviews. Rendezvous is really much more, well, orange than it looks here, and as I mentioned, not at all red. - 

I have actually heard that, out of all the colours available, Rendezvous has the least staying power, but not having tried any of the others, I can't really comment on that. What I can say, however, is that regardless of this, I have been extremely impressed. I have never, in my life, found a lip product that stays on my lips for more than about ten minutes! I don't know why that is, but I tend to apply one, have a drink, and that's it - gone. And yes, even the most long-wearing lipsticks and stains are included in this. I do have a Topshop Lip Marker which is able to stand the test of time to some extent, but I must say, it does not fade evenly at all and leaves my lips looking patchy.

So imagine my delight when I tried this little treat out for the first time, went about my daily business, hadlunch, and then looked in the mirror to find that it had stayed put! Yes, admittedly it had faded to some degree, but not really much - and even better, my lips were still a lovely, even colour! 

Now, while these are 'balms' as well as stains, I wouldn't say that they are hugely moisturising, but then they are certainly not drying either. However, as with every lip product, I would recommend giving your lips a good exfoliate prior to application to achieve the best results. If you already have dry patches then they are going to show up, but I have yet to find a lip product with which this is not the case.

One more thing to mention is that these pencils do have a light, minty scent, which for me is not a problem at all and is actually rather pleasant, but if any of you dislike scented products then this mightn't be your cup of tea. Maybe this is childish of me though, but I would have quite liked it if the pencils had had fruity scents, as I always enjoy those.

So, as you have probably gathered, I am really enjoying using this product, and it has barely been off my lips since I got it! I will definitely be buying some more, although I think that Rendezvous is going to remain my favourite shade. Revlon really have come up trumps here again, and I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with next!

A little summary of the main points mentioned for you:

• Good staying power
• Fades evenly
• Reasonably moisturising, though not hugely so
• Pigmented but buildable
• Handy twist-up mechanism
• Light minty scent

So I hope you enjoyed reading, and that perhaps if you have been on the fence or hesitating about trying these then this might have helped you make your mind up!

If you have tried the Balm Stains, what did you think?

Happy Friday! :)

xx

July Favourites

, I can´t BELIEVE it is already the  of July! This year is going ridiculously quickly, and I feel like I haven´t done half of the things I wanted to yet!
Anyway, one thing I have, of course, managed to do, is to buy and to use plenty of beauty products, so without further ado, here are my favourites for this month.

Bach´s Rescue Remedy

I haven´t really mentioned this before on my blog, and I´m not going to go on and on about it here, but for the last year or so I have been suffering from anxiety. It´s not the kind of thing where I feel nervous before a stressful event, or when in a difficult situation - of course, I do feel like that, but this is more of a physical thing where I feel permanently on edge and cannot relax, even when I have no reason to be feeling this way. It´s more a case of my body than my mind (although of course it is probably my mind that is causing it, one way or another), and so this Rescue Remedy, sprayed twice on the tongue whenever I am feeling it, really helps me to relax. It´s not a miracle worker, but knowing that I´ve got it to hand is reassuring. It contains Cherry Plum, Clematis, Rock Rose, Star of Bethlehem and Impatiens, which all have calming properties.

Do any of you study from stress of anxiety? If so, how do you deal with it? I´d love to know if you have any tips!

Caudalie Eau de Beaute Beauty Elixir

I don´t think this one needs much of an introduction, given it´s popularity within the blogosphere. I am quite sure that you will have read at least one post about this before, if not many more!

Anyway, I got my hands on this a couple of weeks ago and have been using it daily ever since. I generally have very good skin, but recently I seemed to have started getting some unexplained breakouts. I´ve found that this stuff has worked wonders in clearing them up, and my skin feels soft and looks radiant after using it. I usually use it after cleansing, morning and night, and find the menthol scent really soothing and invigorating. However, I haven´t had as much success using it as a ´refresher´on my makeup throughout the day, as many people have raved about in their reviews - for me, it doesn´t seem to make much of a difference!

Revlon Photoready Foundation

This has become my daily go-to foundarion and has been a real ´grower´, considering I was on the fence about it in the beginning. I reviewed this product a couple of weeks ago, so if you are interested in reading that then you can find it here.

Liz Earle Intensive Nourishing Treatment Mask

This is a product I´ve had for a while, and which, despite my general love for Liz Earle skincare, I wasn´t too impressed with. It´s a mask which is designed to be applied to the face in a thick layer and left for around fifteen minutes after cleansing, and to be honest, I never really noticed much of a difference in my skin after using it. However, recently, I was in need of a face mask as my skin was asking for some TLC, so I decided to try applying this at night and leaving it on while I slept. Well, I´ve got to say, using it like this has made all the difference. In the morning, there is no residue to rinse off as my skin drinks all the moisture up, and is left feeling lovely and baby soft.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous

I´m going to be reviewing this one later in the week, so I won´t say too much now. But I must say, I absolutely love this shade and have been wearing it almost every day since I got it.

Benefit The Porefessional Primer

I wouldn´t say that I LOVE this or find it amazing, but I have been finding it quite useful when applied to my forehead, which can tend to get a bit oily, as this does a good job of mattifying it and creating a better base for my foundation. I also like to use it on my nose, to hide the obvious pores I have there. But I wouldn´t use this all over my face, as I much prefer a dewy, glowing finish.

Benefit Coralista and Benefit Dallas

I´m going to review both of these soon, so again, I´ll save my chatter for then. But I will say that hey have fast become favourites and go-to products in my daily routine, and when I use Dallas as a contour, together they are the dream combination for me.

So, that´s it for July. I have really been genuinely loving all of these products, and it hasn´t been like some months where it´s hard to choose anything that has really floated my boat. To be fair, it might be because I have ácquired´more products than usual. Not that I´m meant to be on a spending ban or anything. Ahem.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed having a little peek into my makeup bag and the like. Have you tried any of these products? What are your current favourites?

xx