The glossy lip edit for lip gloss haters

Hi friends!

Lemme tell you, I used to really, really dislike lip gloss. Everything from the stickiness, and the gloopiness, to that horrible white line that would form between your lips after a few hours of wear. As a teen and young adult, I used to wear MAC Lip Glasses – I honestly don’t know how I did it. They must have been the stickiest thing next to Elmer’s Glue! So I quickly gave them up and decided to go with regular lipsticks and/or liquid lipsticks for many years.

Somewhere around 2019 – wouldn’t you know it – lip gloss started making a slow comeback into my collection. It started when I was gifted the DSL Gloss from indie brand The Sexiest Beauty. The formula was lovely and hydrating, and didn’t make my lips completely stick together – hooray! It was then that I realized that gloss formulas had come a long way since the 90’s and 00’s, and perhaps the category was worth another look.

Fast forward several months and now I have a small but well-rounded glossy lip edit that I’d love to share with you today. There’s a little something for everyone here, but this list is especially great for those of us who are normally averse to glosses, as I once was.

Without further delay, let’s take a look at my glossy lip edit! Lip swatches will be shown towards the end of the post.

DISCLAIMER: this post contains some gifted items, but all opinions are 100% my own.

FOR THE MINIMALISTS

THE SEXIEST BEAUTY DSL (DIAMOND SHINE LIPS) GLOSS

As I mentioned above, this was my gateway back into the world of traditional lip gloss. It’s a simple clear gloss with no fancy frills, but the beautiful thickness it has really cushions and hydrates the lips. Instead of a standard doe-foot applicator, this one has a small little brush that’s really easy to fit along the contours of your mouth. Out of all the glosses mentioned here, this is probably the stickiest but it’s in no way overly offensive. You can read more about it and see me wearing it in this earlier post.

 

FOR THE PAMPERERS

WANDER BEAUTY LIP RETREAT OIL IN OASIS

This recently came into my collection after Wander gifted me some products last month. Oh, this has quickly become one of my new lip obsessions! It’s a lip treatment with nourishing ingredients like apricot & avocado oils, niacinamide and vitamin E, amongst other goodies. It feels sooo good! But instead of a traditional oil, it has the shine and feel of a gloss without much, if any, stickiness. I absolutely love the wand here, which is tapered, fuzzy and flexible; it feels like a cushion against your lips – heaven! I have Oasis which is totally clear, but it also comes in three color tints.

Read this Q&A where Wander co-founder Divya Gugnani talks about using Lip Retreat on her lips and cheeks!

FOR THE LUXURY LOVERS

HOURGLASS UNREAL HIGH SHINE VOLUMIZING LIP GLOSS IN SUBLIME

I received a mini of this Hourglass gloss as a gift-with-purchase during one of my (many) trips to Blue Mercury, and from first swipe it was love! This formula is incredibly hydrating and nourishing, and feels closer to a treatment like the Wander Beauty. It does have a minty taste and that tingly sensation that is indicative of most lip plumping products, but I do not find that it plumps my lips at all. I have the shade Sublime, which is a beautiful matte nude pink that would look lovely on so many skin tones. You can read more about it and how it compares to a lower-cost drugstore gloss in this earlier post.

 

FOR THE LONG-WEAR OBSESSED

LANCOME L’ABSOLU LACQUER IN BEIGE SENSATION

If you like the shine of a gloss but want some longevity, then this is the product you need to go for from this list. That’s because it’s not a traditional gloss, but instead an amalgamation of several textures – the high-pigment of a lipstick, the shine of a gloss, and the longevity of a stain. It’s truly an amazing product, and I absolutely love it! When you first apply it you get tons of shine that gently wears down to a stain for long-wear throughout the day. I have the shade Beige Sensation, which is a medium brown-pink. You can read more about it in my full review here.

FOR THE FUN-LOVERS

TOWER 28 BEAUTY SHINE ON JELLY LIP GLOSS IN XOXO AND SPICY 

Tower 28 is a new indie brand that I discovered on Instagram last year, and their ShineOn Jelly Lip Glosses have gotten a lot of attention and praise in the last few months – for good reason! These are beautiful. The texture, the colors, the packaging; everything has been executed perfectly. The formula has a lovely thickness that feels really nourishing, but it’s in no way sticky at all. I have two shades: XOXO, which is a bright fuschia pink, and Spicy, which is a warm red. The color pigmentation is amazing and much bolder than you’d think for a gloss. I totally recommend checking these out!

 

Where do you stand on lip glosses? Love ‘em, hate ‘em, or somewhere in between? I’d love to know!

xo, Erica

 

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