Bar a brief affair with dark, vampy lips when I was in my teens and my current obsession with pink lipstick, I've always been a nude girl at heart. When I first started blogging the trend was for those blank out, dead looking nudes like Barry M 101 and GOSH Darling. They were were dry, cakey and unflattering yet we still bought them in droves and thought we looked like the bees knees! Hindsight is a wonderful thing!
Thankfully though the nude lip has moved on and whilst you can still pick up a concealer like nude if that's your thing, you can now find a multitude of nude lip shades, with warmer and more flattering undertones, to suit all skin tones, and all tastes.
I have quite a few in my collection now but you know me, I'm always looking to try something new and a bit different, so just before Christmas I picked up a lip kit from one of the most talked about brands of the moment, Illamasqua.
I don't own a lot of Illamasqua products compared to some other brands out there but I really like the ones that I do have, and I also love the ethics behind the company. I love both their powder and their cream blushers, I love their nail polishes, and I'm a big fan of some of their cream eye products. I've got to be honest and say though, the only thing that I've ever been disappointed with was one of their lipsticks. On reflection I think it was the colour and the texture that were to blame, Sonnet is described as a matte peachy nude, and looking back it was one of those nudes that just didn't flatter my skin tone, and I wasn't a huge fan of the matte finish at the time. Every brand deserves a second chance and the perfect way to try three different lip products at once was to get my hands of one their Christmas kits.
Released as part of the Extinct collection, the Illamasqua Extinct Go Nude Lip Kit was a limited edition for the festive season and retailed at £40 which was a pretty decent saving compared to buying the 3 products inside individually. The products come in a beautiful magnetic fastening box which features a metallic, holographic butterfly design.
Open the box and you're greeted by more metallic, holographic loveliness, and three full sized lip products, in three different formulations and in 3 different, flattering shades of nude.
Illamasqua Glamore Lipstick - Starkers - 4g
As I said before my previous Illamasqua lipstick experience wasn't the best, the colour wasn't that flattering, and I wasn't really a fan of the matte finish. The lipstick in this kit though is one of Illamasqua's Glamore Lipsticks which has more of a satin finish.
The shade that you get is Starkers, which is officially described as a soft flesh pink tone. Compared to a lot of nudes from back in the day, Starkers has a lot of warmth to it, it isn't too brown though, and instead it's a nice balance between peach, brown, and pink, and I think that it's a colour that would suit a lot of different skin tones.
As you can see the pigmentation is excellent, it applies easily without dragging and whilst it's not the most moisturising lipstick I've ever worn, it feels pleasant on the lips and it wears well, and fades evenly.
All in all this is a decent formulation it wears well, and the colour is a nice wearable nude, that doesn't make you look ill lol. Illamasqua Glamore Lipstick in Starkers retails at £19.50 for an 8g tube.
Illamasqua Lip Lure - Bloom - 2.5ml
One of the biggest trend in lips at the moment, has to the liquid lipstick. Thanks to a certain reality TV star, liquid lipsticks are the thing to have in your make up bag. Whilst the real trend at the moment is for a matte liquid lip, the Illamasqua Lip Lure that you get in this kit actually has more of a semi gloss like finish
The shade that you get is Bloom, which is described as a pink nude, it definitely has a lot more pink in it then Starkers does, and in fact I would probably describe it as more of a neutral, warm pink, than an out and out nude.
Although this product is very pigmented, the precise shape of the sponge applicator makes it super easy to both outline and fill in your lips.
As I say this product is described as having a semi gloss finish, it's very pigmented and it feels quite wet on the lips, and it definitely behaves more like a lipgloss than a conventional lipstick, but it doesn't have the shine of a gloss, and because of the pigmentation it lasts a lot longer on the lips than a normal lipgloss would.
I've got to be honest and say that matte liquid lipsticks scare me a little, I've seen a few online that look really, really drying and as someone who has dry lips already, the idea of lipstick and crusty lips is not a good one. If you feel like I do then maybe the Illamasqua Lip Lure formulation is a one to try. You get the convenience and the pigmentation of a liquid lipstick but with none of the parched, matte look, and feel. Illamasqua Lip Lure in Bloom retails at £19.50 for a 2.5ml tube.
Illamasqua Lip Colouring Pencil - Woo - 1.4g
Lip pencils are one of those things that go in and out of fashion - I'm sure like me you know or knew somebody that insisted on wearing a dark liner with a pale lipstick. Terrifying and unfortunately a trend that never seems to die with some people. It's frightening and unfortunately I think it's put some people off lip liner for life! I must admit I don't always use lip liner, but when I do use I can never understand why I don't use it all the time.
Done right lip liner can make all of the difference, if you have uneven lips like I do, then you can create your own even lip line in an instant and if you're clever you can even give yourself a fuller pout without a needle in sight. It's all about getting the colour right though, so go for a clear / silicone pencil or go for a one that goes with a few different lipsticks. This particular kit comes with an Illamasqua Lip Colouring Pencil in the shade Woo which is described as a soft nude. Again it isn'\t a concealer nude shade, it has a lot of brown in it, a bit of peach and a bit of pink. Personally I wouldn't use it alongside the Lip Lure which I think it a bit too pink but with careful blending and application you could definitely use it alongside Starkers which is just a touch lighter.
This is a nice soft pencil with good staying power. It isn't too soft though so it is easy to sharpen and it's easy to create a nice and defined line.
Obviously you can use it with any lipstick to line, define and reshape the lips, but like you can see below I've actually been using this pencil to fill in all of my lips. Not only does this give you another colour option, but you can also use it underneath either a sheer gloss (Benefit Hoola works really will with this one) or underneath another lipstick to make you lip colour last even longer.
Despite the bad press that they've had over the years, I really think that the lip liner does still have a place in our beauty routines. Get a good, wearable shade like this one and you can use it reshape and even up your lips, and you can also use it to get the most out of the other products in your lip wardrobe. Illamasqua Lip Colouring Pencil in Woo retails at £16 for 1.4g of product.
I think that kits like this give you a great opportunity to try out some new things, and I'm pretty pleased that I took a chance on this one. I've really enjoyed using all of the products in this kit, and I've enjoyed experimenting with different textures and different shades of nude. My best discovery is without a doubt the Lip Lure, I loved the colour, and the almost buttery, cushiony texture, and I definitely prefer the semi gloss finish, to some of the matte liquid lipsticks that I've seen elsewhere, Throw in the fact the Illamasqua are a ethical and animal friendly brand, and this kit really was a winner in more ways that one.
I have to say this though, after searching online I can't find this specific kit anywhere :( It was a Christmas kit and it looks as though the stock has gone for good. Don't worry though you can still buy all of the products individually all be it for a little bit more money, from various retailers including the I
llamasqua website,
Selfridges,
Debenhams, and
Beauty Bay.
However, I did mention in my previous post that I would be holding a little giveaway to celebrate my 10th blogging birthday, so if you want to get your hands on your own, and now very hard to find Illamasqua Extinct Go Nude Lip Kit than all you need to do is fill in the entry form below before the 18th March.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
This giveaway will be open worldwide, and you must be a follower of my blog in order to enter, I will be checking so please make sure that you fulfil all of the entry criteria x If you have any questions please leave me a comment and good luck x
