Battle of the Oranges

I am in love with orange lipstick. Sometimes I wonder why, considering with my pink cheeks and cool-toned skin it should be a huge no-no. But I do! And I have realised I have far too many, so I decided to do a little head-to-head battle to narrow down my favourite.

The Competitors

L to R: Australis Colour Inject Mineral Lipstick in Electro, Ulta3 Lipstick in Firecracker, Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Audacious, Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Mischievous, Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous, Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Charm, Face of Australia Glossy Lip Crayon in Peach Parfait, Essence 50s Girls Reloaded Lipstick in I'm Sailing

As above. My Essence lipstick on the right broke in the tube :( I just can't bear to throw it out just yet.

The Competition

It's a tough one. I know. They all bring different finishes, shades, and variety in pigmentation. Here are some swatches to show you how they perform:

This is indoor lighting and flash. The flash swatches are slightly more true to life (as they don't have a blue tone to them), but make the finishes look shinier than they are. I'll go through each individually below.

Australis Colour Inject Lipstick in "Electro":

These lipsticks get a lot of love in Australia, and it's no wonder! Electro is a red-leaning orange that is super pigmented and feel comfortable on the lips. It is very bright and definitely stands out from the rest of the oranges. This is one of the first oranges I got (in fact, I bought it right after the Ulta3 one before realising the colours are so similar) and it is definitely a go-to. However, the colour can be a bit too bright, which means I mostly wear it to parties or when I'm in plain clothes.

Ulta3 Lipstick in "Firecracker":

My very first orange. Also a red-leaning orange, it is slightly less pigmented than Electro and also slightly (only slightly!) less red. I was really annoyed when I realised they were so similar, but Firecracker is actually much more wearable. The formula of the Ulta3 lipsticks is great, they are worth much more than $4 each. It stays nicely on the lips and doesn't feel like it 'slips' around. I even like the smell of them. Is that weird?

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in "Audacious":
Oh man, these babies are my love. If you follow my Instagram (which you should), you would have seen I own way too many of the Revlon Colourburst/Just Bitten Kissable Balms, which is evident even in this small selection. Audacious is, again, a red-leaning orange, but has a completely matte finish. These feel amazing on the lips, they are creamy and soft, and also dry down after a while, minimising their transferability. The only problem I have with this colour is it catches the dry pieces of skin on my lips and settles into lines after a while, eventually looking very unattractive indeed. I counteract this by scrubbing my lips and trying to apply lip balm at the beginning of my routine, so by the time I apply lipstick I can blot it off and my lips will be nice and soft. They are fairly drying on the lips but I am so in love with the colour and finish that it doesn't stop me buying more of these. Definitely one of my favourites.

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in "Mischievous":

This balm is, unfortunately, even worse application-wise than Audacious. It applies quite patchily and catches the dry parts of my lips. Again, I scrub my lips like crazy and soak them in Paw Paw Ointment to try reduce this effect. The colour is insane though. I absolutely love it. It is the most yellow-leaning orange of the bunch (the flash swatch above is very true to life). I love these so, but they are not an easy formula (well, the light colours at least, this isn't true for other colours in the line). If you want an easy, quick orange lip, this isn't your best choice.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in "Rendezvous":

Revlon just keep throwing curve balls because this is the complete opposite of Mischievous for me. Applies like an angel on my lips, opaque and really 'sticks' to them (I don't know a better way of saying it. It stays there are doesn't feel like it's going to come straight off or get on my teeth or my chin or something crazy). It isn't sparkly like the Revlon Lacquer Balms, instead just has a slight sheen. It also stains your lips, which I love, as it means as it starts to fade it isn't immediately obvious, as you have the slight 'stain' underneath. The only issue I have with the Just Bitten Kissable line is the scent, which is meant to be peppermint. The Matte and Lacquer balms are peppermint too but it is a really nice, faint pepperminty smell. These are also peppermint, but much stronger, and it smells, almost... gluey? Or something? I can't put my finger on it. It just isn't as nice as the Matte and Lacquer ones in terms of smell, but in no way turns me off of them. The formula is to die for, which makes it all worth it. The colour of this is just the perfect orange too, not too bright or red-leaning, and I can see this becoming a favourite in my collection.

Face of Australia Glossy Lip Crayon in "Peach Parfait":

I got this in the crazy Kmart sale earlier this year when they were clearing out all their stock. I actually got it and about 5 others from the line. This lip crayon swatches so nicely, but unfortunately this colour doesn't translate to the lips. It is very very sheer, and somewhat patchy. This might be good for those looking for just a wash of colour on their lips. This line is also very moisturising, with a glossy finish as the name suggests. However, I don't like how it 'sits' on top of your lips as it feels like it is just going to smudge everywhere in 5 minutes. Some of the other Glossy Lip Crayons I prefer much more than this one. I don't reach for it a lot, but I am also a fan of crazy pigment and matte finishes. So I am really the exact wrong person to buy this!

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in "Charm":

This one is fairly new to my collection, and I'm not actually sure if I should have included it. It is orange-leaning in tone, but is actually a nude stain. I got it as a 'I'm feeling lazy but want something on my lips' colour. It's nice enough, it's just... kind of boring. It makes my lips a slightly lighter, slightly more nude version of themselves.It's also a light enough colour I haven't really noticed the 'staining' effect, but, again, it's only a new one. The jury's still out on this one.

Essence 50s Girls Reloaded Lipstick in "I'm Sailing":

I got this from a friend, I think it might have been a limited edition colour? To be honest, the packaging is my favourite part of the product. It is simply gorgeous and I don't think I've ever seen a white tube of lipstick before. Ahh I love it. The bullet is also broken, which is unfortunate. It's a nice peachy-nudey orange, which is quite sheer, but stays on well. I barely ever reach for it. I just like admiring the packaging.

The Results

Did I make it obvious? I don't think so. My favourite is.... 

Rendezvous!

You can't go past a colour that is wearable daily, in easy-to-use crayon packaging, with decent lasting power and great pigmentation.

Each competitor fills a little niche in my collection, and I don't regret buying any of them. However, my love affair with Revlon Balms continues, no surprises there!

I was planning on doing lip swatches as well (which really would have made this a crazy long post), but my lips were crying with pain from the wind today, and I still haven't gotten a decent camera that can get in-focus close-ups (it's coming, I promise!) So I'll leave you with a swatch of just Rendezvous, the best one I could get:

Yep, crappy quality. I'm so sorry. I promise I'll improve.

So that's it! Let me know what you think about this post. Should I do more battles? Different lipstick colours? Different products? Let me know what you think, either in the comments here, or on Instagram (@jemsbeautyau) or Twitter (@jemmakp).

Thanks for reading if you've gotten this far, you rock!