Tried and tested: Liquid lipsticks, highlighters and eye make-up removers
Dubai social-media maestra Huda Kattan has tethered almost 16 million Instagram followers with her distinctly Kardashi-fied beauty advice. Her three-year-old brand is best known for false lashes, but this lipstick is definitely worth checking out too. The finish is true matte and antioxidant oils keep lips looking naturally plumped.
Vinyl Cream wears like nail enamel, such is its shine and colour intensity. I love the look;it is super-glamorous and outlasts a typical gloss. Thankfully this lipstick feels more comfortable than varnishing your lips. The diamond-tipped wand makes precise application easy, especially if you like a defined Cupid’s bow.
‘Everlasting’ is a nice choice for dry lips or everyday wear. This lipstick is rich in plant oils, which makes it a little messy to apply. Once set it lasts for hours without fading, even if you have a drink.
NARS promotes its new Velvet Lip Glide with a model dressed like a hipster from The Get Down, her suede and velvet echoing its radiant-matte finish. The colour range is beautiful, particularly the nude shades, and its filmy texture give it a second-skin feel. It endures without drying and is a cinch to apply evenly.
This is a Damask rose-water based cleanser, so fragrant enough to risk irritating the most sensitive part of the face. There is soothing cucumber extract in the formula too, but not as much. As a makeup remover it is quite effective, though thoroughly sloughing off waterproof formulas proved challenging.
Blue Plasma is one of Dr Perricone’s hero products and reportedly Alexa Chung’s cleanser of choice. This is a gentle, fragrance-free gel that can be applied with a cotton pad and does not require rinsing. It leaves no drying residue and suits all skin types.
From the makers of the bargain ‘Kind to Eyes’ remover comes something tough enough to clear looks from this season’s glitter-makeup trend.This Vitamin E-enriched formula removes the most elaborate of smoky-eye makeup, glitter and waterproof mascara with minimal effort.
Another gentle makeup remover that is also a bargain. This fragrance-free lotion is especially good for dry eyes. The oil-rich base makes short work of long-wearing shadows but this one is less effective on waterproof mascara.
Perricone describes this product as “makeup-infused skincare” and it does contain peptides and great antioxidants- Vitamin C and E- but only in teeny-tiny amounts. It is skincare-infused makeup, not the obverse. The icy-pink shade does flatter fair-to-medium skin but I wouldn’t, as the brand does, call it universal.
This is a sheer liquid with fine-milled pigments in a choice of champagne, golden bronze and pink-pearl shades. It is extremely natural looking and can be blended with moisturiser to give skin an all-over glow on no-makeup days. The formula is fragrance and alcohol-free. .
Matte highlighter is an oxymoron everywhere but Benefit, where it is an attempt to make pink cream look natural. Pink cream looks like cupcake icing: pretty, sure, but not subtle. This formula is indeed shimmer-free, but because the only highlighting comes from contrast with its colour, it is hardly worth wearing on fair skin. The effect may appeal to you if you want to brighten your medium complexion without luminous particles.
This highlighter only comes in champagne, which looks most natural on warm complexions. The formula is enhanced with cooling and hydrating extracts and blends beautifully. This would be more hygienically packaged in a tube or bottle but is an otherwise lovely product. The jar is fitted with a mesh dispenser for an even distribution of shimmer particles in every application.
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