Review: Rimmel Provocalips

Are they really worth the hype?

Hey guys - hope you checked out my wishlist on instagram. Today's post is a review and as you can tell from the title, it's all about Rimmel Provocalips.

For the past few months, I've seen tonnes and tonnes of reviews about the new (not-so-new-now) Rimmel Provocalips hitting beauty blogs and instagram pages around Australia. I finally had the chance to try these little gems out and thought I would give my honest opinion.

All the blogs that I have read thus far have raved about these products listing them as amazing, incredible etc. Since receiving these products in the mail, I have spent the past few weeks testing them out in rain and shine to see if they lived up to their name.

Let's start off with Rimmel's claim:
"Up to 16 Hours of lip liberation. Wild without a trace!

• Kiss proof, transfer proof, food proof high impact endless colour.
• No tight feeling or dry lips. Lips feel smooth and moisturized all day long.
• Easy removal with Oil based makeup remover"

Now let me dissect each of these sentences and provide you with my personal experience.

1. Kiss proof, transfer proof, food proof high impact endless colour

Boy oh boy is this true. I tested this out two ways, first without the seal side and second with the seal side. Either way, this product did not budge. At all. These lippies are truly long lasting... even after my morning coffee, breakfast, lunch and dinner. I had them on for 11 hours straight and it didn't move. My work colleagues even commented on how they were amazed my lipstick didn't go all over my coffee mug. I must admit, I was too and it was nice not having to wipe away any carry over from my lippie to my cup. I think Rimmel's claims are 100% accurate on this. While I didn't test the 16 hour claim that the product makes, 11/16 hours is already pretty dang good in my opinion. 5/5 for longevity.

2. No tight feeling or dry lips, lips feel smooth and moisturised all day long

Now even though the lipstick lasts forever, there has to be some sort of trade off. To me, once you put on the colour your lips it feels super dry and tight until you put on the seal. However, the one (and biggest) issue for me is that the colour grouped together and formed a crumbly mess that became super dry throughout the day (typically started around 2-3 hours of application). The product literally crumbled off my lips and because it's so hard to get off, this resulted in uneven and patchy lipstick all over my lips (which was very unattractive). I tried everything to stop it from happening by using the product on its own, using it with a lip balm, using it with a lipliner... but nothing worked. Do you guys have any tips on how to prevent this or has it happened to you? I love the longevity of them but I don't know if I can forgive it for the patchy result after a couple of hours of wear.

The other thing that I wanted to mention was that because of the odd texture produced, it was hard to reapply if I wanted to. It just became a hot mess on my lips.

3. Easy removal with oil based makeup remover

I wouldn't exactly say that it was easy... in fact it was almost a tiny bit painful trying to remove it because so much tugging was involved (even with an oil based makeup remover). But to me, this wasn't a deal breaker as I prefer a lipstick that would last all day and be difficult to remove than one that slips and slides and requires frequent reapplication.

Who should buy this?

I haven't seen many youtube or blogs talking about the patchiness of the products so maybe it's just the ones I have. I think that if you are into a lippie that is super long lasting and one that you don't have to constantly reapply, this is yours (I say give it a go). For those girls with dry lips, I would be careful. Of course, there's no harm picking one up and try it out (there's always a 50% sale at Chemist Warehouse) to see if it suits you.

Important Update 02/02/2015:
I've found a way to use them that doesn't make them crumbly! Just be sure to use a LOT of the setting side. Taking this into account, I actually really like these products. They are the longest lasting products I've ever used on the lips and they have amazing colours. Waiting on Rimmel to release more colours and I'll be happy to pick some up. Estatic that I've found a way to avoid the patchiness. =D!

Love Cindy aka Skindzmakeup

Chit Chat: Christmas 2014

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

As I walk into shopping malls and even into my office, all I see are Christmas trees and decorations all around. I guess it's that time of year again when we put our stockings and Christmas trees up, cook a lot of delicious food and prepare for family/friend gatherings.

It didn't quite hit me that another year had gone by until this morning when I was preparing for work. I had my Bath and Body works candle out, a large mug of delicious coffee and a bright red lipstick to start the Monday (refer to the picture below). Turns out I'm more ready for the holidays than I thought. Haha. Juts an FYI too - the YSL Rouge Volupte Shine in number four is the perfect texture and colour for the holidays. It's super moisturizing, provides some gloss to the lips and is pretty much a bright red lip.

I'll be posting up my Christmas wishlist shortly so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, make sure you post your wish list and #Skindzmakeup.

Have a beautiful week.

Love Cindy aka Skindzmakeup

Chit Chat: It's an exciting day in Australia - Sephora Opens!

The day has finally come.

It's an exciting day in Australia for all of us beauty blogger today. Yup, it's official that as of an hour ago *cue the party music*... SEPHORA HAS OPENED IN AUSTRALIA (SYDNEY)!

You can go visit Sephora Aus' facebook if you want to see more photos from the grand opening - https://www.facebook.com/SephoraAus.

Unfortunately I won't be able to attend due to work commitments, however based on the photos posted online I can tell that it's going to be a crazy day for all those involved. 

In the meantime, I will be patiently waiting the reactions of many beauty lovers to the price of the goods. I've heard mixed feedback about whether or not Sephora is matching all brands prices or purely Sephora branded items. But based on ThePlasticDiaries.com, it seems they are price matching all items (obviously the small different is to cater for exchange rate fluctuations).

While I patiently wait, I have my items listed out and the best bf in the world on standby who will be picking them up for me when I request (he's travelled with me to the US before where he has had to visit about 25 different Sephora stores, so he's well trained in where everything is haha). Thank you Mr Best-Bf-Ever. =).

Are any of you guys planning on visiting the store? Let me know what you've picked up!

Love Cindy aka Skindzmakeup