LOVE N' LOATHIN: Velourlips in Rio-D

There's something about coral lips, for me. Especially the bright, poppy ones, like today's feature -- Rio-D ($9.95).

These Velourlips have been hyped for quite a while now, so I've always been keen. Can't remember when I purchased Rio-D. All I remember is purchasing it with another lighter pink shade, Ho-Chee-Min.

Doe-foot applicator

Well, what do ya know?

Both shades are two of the most unwearable shades in ma collection. Can't remember the last time I've picked up such unwearable lip shades... lol. The last that made such an impression was probably Revlon's Nude Attitude (eep).

Rio-D, is an extremely bright... um, coral. One of those shades that you'll see Shannon of Shanxo (Youtuber) wearing. It's not one that many can pull off for its intensely bright hue, and I, yours truly, purchased this with hopes that I will be one of the selected fewer who'd be able to pull off such a shade.

HA HA.

I think I could, and kinda did. Eeek. Its brightness is immeasurable with words. Look!

I wouldn't mind wearing such a bright shade out, but the matte formula does not mix well with the brightness.

The Velourlips are formulated to be creamy, matte, pigmented and long-lasting. The key-term is "long-lasting". Bright colours generally put enough emphasis on the flakes and lines of the lips, and to have it with a matte (aka drying) formula... Mmmhhhm. Nay.

As nice as it looks in the photos, on my lips, you can see every single flake. And streak. It requires layering for a full opacity, but my problem with this is that the more you layer, the streakier and drier it could look.

Sad to say, but I won't ever wear this out for that reason, so I'm not exactly sure how to finish this tube up. It's a miss for me.


Such a bummer.

Rimmel London Provocalips Lip Colours ❤

I'm sure you've heard much about these, about their out-of-this-world long-lasting formula. OK. That was over-eggxageration, but these Provocalips ($17.95) the most long-wearing lip products I've ever tried!

I've mentioned in my previous swatch post that they did not budge off my arms until I brought in an oily dual-phase make-up remover, but that was just on the arms, right?! Most products tend to do so on the arms, but wearing them on the lips is a different thing.

Well, guess what! These Provocalips lip colours do not budge on the lips either! AND CALL ME CRAZY, BUT I ACTUALLY WENT AHEAD AND TESTED THEIR "16 HOURS WEAR" CLAIM.

Worst day of my life, I hated having to constantly photograph, check-up and having something on my lips for 16 hours!!!

Don't worry about the lighting differences, swatches will be down below! 

6AM: Freshly applied. Sealed it with the gloss. Also over-coloured my lips a tad.

10AM: The "gloss" wore off not too long after, but in this photo, the the lip colour settled between the lines. Didn't feel drying though. I didn't reapply the gloss, for trialling purposes!

1PM: Munched down two packets of instant noodles. Yum! It was somewhat oily, so there's teeny tiny tad of rub-off from the center. Intensity of the shade is still same-same!

4PM: Snacked on a peanut-butter bread roll, downed two smoothies. You can see how it is from the center.

10PM: Alright, 16 hours! The intensity definitely worn off, but the colour is still there! I sneaked in a pie before I took this pic, so that's the result after 3 meals and 2 drinks! Oh, did I mention that I also had a noon-nap and a shower?

Not the most attractive lip photo, desculpa.

Rollover for effect

No bleedings! Hooray!

The weightless formula is impressively non-drying, but [ridiculously] long-lasting. It won't budge unless it meets anything oily, and I'm not kidding. Here's a short snippet of it against Garnier Micellar Water:


It's applies to be extremely pigmented and glossy, but after 1-2 minutes, it dries down to a matte finish. The clear gloss is a must to seal down the stickiness and to have the colour stay in place.

In saying so, one thing that could potentially become a "problem" also lays within the formula. It's like a nail polish. You'll have a fair bit of time to apply and fix, however, once it starts to set, you'd be better off not touching it any more to avoid turning it into a hot mess. Once it sets, it's unmovable. If you need to fix, apply the clear gloss and THEN go over and fix up any bits you needed (don't worry, it won't feel thick).

With this, it means that when your meal is oily, [very] slight retouching is a must. It's not like a lipstick, where you could try to "move" the product around to even-out instead of re-touching. It'll chip from the center.

For the light shades, some layering is necessary, but it's not drying! Don't you worry!

OK! SWATCH TIME!

OH! And if you rollover these images, you may be able to see me with a dose of silliness(I'm a poser, yes I know!!).


I'll Call You
Light pink. Extremely bright on my tanner-skin. Needs to be layered for a full opaque coverage.

I'll Call You
A lot of people like this shade! It's a very easy-to-wear pink-berry shade.

Kiss Fatal 
It looks dark, but it's not "vampy". It's just a deeper mauve that pulls a tad berry-toned. Really strange colour and is definitely not one that I'd reach for often. Reminds me a lot of a nail polish I own!

Little Minx
I'm ALL for the brights, and this one is it! The brightest pink for the collection, but it looks so damn nice on the lips and in photos!

Skinny Dip
Oh my god, this true nude seriously just sinks into my skin-tone. It completely erases my lip colour and makes me look like a zombie. I'm not really one for nudes. Love the name though.

Make A Move
I can't say that this is a MLBB colour for me, but I'm pretty sure it is for some. I like it a lot, just because it seems like one to suit all skin-tones. On Mum, who's much tanner than myself, this looks amazing on her. Instantly lights up her face. Don't let the shade on the packaging deceive you!

Kiss Me You Fool
ANOTHER bright one, but red! This fire-engine red is one of my top picks from this collection!

Play With Fire

Another red, but darker and deeper.

My top picks? Little Minx, Make A Move and Kiss Me You Fool. 

I think this range is really worth looking at if you're after something that will last day and night (don't we all though?). These will surely replace my NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams for the clubbing nights! The shades are limited, but hopefully that will change sooooon.

Your picks?

Disclaimer: Products mentioned in this review were provided for review consideration and has not affected my opinions/comments made.

Max Factor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks

The looooooooooong awaited review for Max Factor's Giant Pen Sticks! I'm so excited to share this post with you guys, because these are ze bomb. I really like them and I'm hoping that you will too!

To be honest, I was kind of skeptical about these lipstick/balm hybrids. I didn't think I'd like these at all. I honestly thought they'd be annoyingly slippery and sheer on the lips, but most shades from the range are pretty pigmented and are easy to build up on the lips. SO happy to report to you all that they don't slip and slide on the lips. They glide on smoothly and settle really nicely, without making the lips feel dry ^_^!

In terms of the lasting power, I feel like there's only a slight consistency across the 6 shades. Each shade has their own level of pigmentation and ultimately, that also contributes to their longevity.

Probably the most true-to-swatch shades I've ever photographed ~.~

In no particular order....

Couture Blush

Couture Blush was my first pick to trial and it's definitely one of my favourites from the range. I'm ALWAYS in for these muted/nudey pinks and fortunately, it's a shade that I can work with, without looking washed out (or lookin' like a dead fish). It's decently pigmented, but coverage could be built up in a whim! I can sport this shade without any worries for up to 3-4 hours before having to touch up.

Vibrant Pink

Vibrant Pink.. I honestly didn't think I'd like it, because it looked a bit hard to wear/pull off.. HOWEVER! When I applied this... I instantly fell in "like" (possible, yes?). I reaaaaaally like this colour and I would highly recommend it if you are in for bright pinks (*ahem* @sleepandwater). It's BEAUTIFUL and is really easy to pull off!

I felt like the texture of this shade was outstanding. Other shades aren't bad at all, but this one just applied to be amazingly smooth and pigmented. Settles, stains and sits on the lips quite nicely. Truthfully, I can't pin point the exact lasting time for this, but it lasts no lesser than Couture Blush.

Intense Plum (eeek!)

Intense Plum is an intense, dark plummy shade with teeny, tiny purple shimmers.  The purple shimmers give off a subtle (purple-y/violet), metallic sheen on the lips when worn. It leaves a tad of a stain when blotted, but is quite easy to remove. Intense Plum is a high-maintenance shade. I've worn it on the lips for up to 6 hours before removal, but I found myself touching up every 2 hours because the colour kept fading from the centre!

Passionate Red

Passionate Red is described by my sister as an "old lady" colour. It's a deeper red that I'm not too fond off, but somehow looks so nice on me in the photo above (wot?). Nothing bad about the shade, but I just personally prefer brights better. It's quite pigmented and can last for yonks too. It IS prone to bleed after a large meal so please be careful! Also needs touch up!

Designer Blossom

Designer Blossom is a sheerer and warmer-toned red. Very quick and easy to build up. At a sheerer application, it's a really cute watermelon-red! This shade is perfect for those who wants to give red lips a go, or sport red lips without looking too overdone for uni or work.

Hot Chocolate

Hot Chocolate -- the sheerest of them ALL. This shade is more like a tint than anything else. It has a bronzey-base colour with golden shimmers, but once applied, the outcome depends [wholely] on your natural lip colour. For me, it's very much of a MLBB (my lips but better) lip colour, which I don't mind. I can definitely see me wearing it on more natural days, but I still prefer pinks! I also couldn't pin down the exact lasting time for this because the colour is so sheer! However, the gloss that it offers lasted quite a while..

In all, I really like these Giant Pen Sticks (so much that I went out and bought 4 for my Instagram giveaway!). Vibrant Pink, Couture Blush and Designer Blossom are my faveees.

Please note that these Giant Pen Sticks aren't twistable, so you'll need a jumbo sharpener for them. I suggest that you throw these into the fridge before sharpening, to harden up the product. Also, when slotting on the cap, be EXTRA careful because these are so creamy and soft that you'll slide the cap RIGHT into the product... Trust me... I know.... >__<"

What are YOUR thoughts of Max Factor's Giant Pen Sticks?

Which shades are your favourite picks?

Max Factor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks, 6 shades, $9.95, available at Priceline, Big W, Target and other Max Factor stockists.


Disclaimer: These products were provided for review consideration. All opinions within this post are of my own and remains uninfluenced.