coral my life: lipsticks on the go

I consider myself not a lipstick person, even though I love the look of a mouth that is decorated with a gorgeous colour of lipstick. My boyfriend would probably laugh out loud when I say something like this, because I have at least 70 or more lipsticks in my possession.

However, I admire the women who look good in almost every shade of lipstick. The best example I can think of is Scarlett Johansson: red, pink, wine, orange, nude or pale, Scarlett's mouth looks good in all shades.

I even read that Scarlett was the one to inspire Katy Perry to sing 'I kissed a girl'...those are not my ambitions...but could I borrow her mouth for a single day?

It is just that it seems hard for me to nail down the right shade that brightens your eyes and illuminates the skin while wearing it. That is the reason I always reach for one of my MLBB (my lips but better) lippies, as they are the equivalent of a pair of jeans: confortable and a classic.

But sometimes a jeans can be a bit predictable and boring, and lipstickwise I want to have something similar as a cute dress or a cool tuxedo suit. So I tested out a million of bright colours (nah, just 30 or so) and found out that a pinky coral is a colour that would be workable for me.

Such as Nars Niagara! A pinky coral that adds a bit of extra zest to my look.




Nars Niagara has some good reviews on makeupalley.com. Check them out if you wish.

I was also interested in a drugstore variety. Rimmel London had some good advertisements with one of their new (additional) spokesmodels: Sophie Ellis Bextor, another lady who can wear almost any shade in the world on her lips, and makes it look good.

Honestly, I didn't think I would be sucked in into the product if Kate Moss would model the lipsticks. I like Kate Moss, but more as a clothes-model... I do not think she has the face for selling makeup: she often wears the same look in public (smokey eyes, neutral lips) and is not really experimental. Sophie loves to experiment with makeup and looks stunning doing so.

OK, enough talk about models and famous people. Let's compare the lipsticks! (Rimmel on the left; Nars on the right).

A picture of the lipsticks in their full size. They contain both the same amount of product.

The Nars is more muted than the Rimmel. Rimmel has a brighter appearance. Also, Rimmel can be qualified as a pinkish coral, and Nars as a corally Pink (thus Rimmel has a coral base with some pink, Nars has a Pink base with some coral ;D)

The swatches:

The pigment of the Rimmel is more dense. Nars is more of a lighter lipstick.

Rimmel wins in the moisture-department. Nars is on the other hand the winner in long-lasting wear, which probably has to do with its slightly dryer texture.

I would pick Nars Niagare for daytime. I also think the colour suits me a bit better than the Rimmel Coral Queen. But that is just a personal thing. Rimmel Coral Queen is more of a nightowl who want to be bright and merry! Again, that is just my personal, lipstick-scared personality talking, LOL. If you are used to wearing brights and working it...the Nars will probably be a bit tame to you.

Ah, the price: Nars is $24 in the US, the Europeans have to pay a bit more (22 euro on HQhair or even 27 euro at the local shop). Rimmel is about 9 euro, and rimmel has often a discount and I bought mine for 7 euro; not sure about the US, but I have heard that they are even cheaper ovethere. Anyway, Rimmel is cheaper for the same amount of product (check the pics again, I showed the whole product).

Nars Niagara is for sale at amazon.com, sephora or nars online, and when living in Europe you have to take the more expensive option at hqhair.com (0r try to look for it on ebay).

Rimmel is available at drugstores thoughout Europe and the US. You can probably find it on ebay as well.

So, what are your favourite bold colours when wearing lipstick? A sultry red, a sophisticated vamp or do you even dare to work the YSL fall 2008 look with black lips?