Max Factor Giant Pen Sticks Launch Monday!

 

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So, the day is finally almost here, and I thought I'd save my favourites of the new Max Factor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks till last, so here they are; Designer Blossom and Passionate Red:

As in the previous pairings, there's one sheerer (Designer Blossom) and one more opaque shade, in this case, Passionate Red.

Now, whilst Designer Blossom is rather sheerer, it isn't lacking in pigment, and can be blotted down into a rather nice stain, which is my preferred way to use it. Passionate Red is a deeper, more dramatic shade, with hints of golden shimmer.  On the lips:

As you can probably see, Designer Blossom has more of a glossy sheen, whereas Passionate Red is more of a satin, last time for both is about average, you'll need to reapply to get a glossy effect, but Designer Blossom has more of a staining effect on the lips than Passionate Red, so there's very little "red ring of doom" effect in wear.

Overall, I've been quite impressed with the Giant Pen stick collection, they're unflavoured big lip pencils (the name is a bit misleading, I think - they're not "giant", and they're definitely not pens!), in a nice range of colours for both the colour-shy, and the fans of vibrant shades.  And, at £6.99 each, you can afford to buy (more or less) the entire range for the cost of one shade from Tom Ford.  Well, if you don't buy yourself a sharpener at the same time, you can, anyway!  Here's a last look at all the shades together, both on the lips and not:

Sheer shades at the top, opaque shades at the bottom.  My picks are very definitely both of the reds, with Vibrant Pink and Subtle Coral edging their way in too.  Whilst I wouldn't wear Princess Pink outside the house if you paid me a million dollars, it's a brave shade for a collection from Max Factor who aren't particularly known to be that edgy, and I know a lot of people will love it

Which are your picks?  There's a 3-4-2 offer on at Boots right now, btw ....

The Fine Print: Advertorial post: Max Factor paid for the space on the blog, but not the opinions held within.
 
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Max Factor Giant Pen Sticks Launch April First!

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In my post before last, I mentioned that Max Factor were launching their Giant Pen Sticks, and I gave you a little preview of two of the shades; Vibrant Pink and Hot Chocolate.  I'm back this week to show you two more, namely Princess Pink and Subtle Coral. 

First a reminder of all the shades:

I spoke to Caroline Barnes recently, who was very excited about the range of shades, commenting on how it was an "extremely 'fashion-forward' collection for Max Factor", and how the range of shades, as selected by Mel Arter was suitable for a range of skin-tones and looks.  

With that in mind, here's a closer looks at what might be the single-most "fashion-forward" shade: Princess Pink, alongside what is probably the easiest shade of the collection to wear, Subtle Coral:

  
Subtle Coral is a sheer pink-coral, and Princess Pink is an milky, almost fluoro pink, with an extremely white base.  A little too bright to be a proper pastel, it's saturated, and comes complete with a blue micro-shimmer.  Here's how they look on skin:

And here's a blurry close-up that hopefully shows off that shimmer better:

And on the lips:

Same day, same lighting, same position - look what happens to my skin!

As you can see, Subtle Coral gives just a whisper of sheeny colour to the lips, whereas Princess Pink is more opaque, and you can blot it down to a stain.

In fact, Princess Pink is a bit too "fashion-forward" for this particular beauty blogger, I tried to take a picture of my full face wearing it, but ended up having to filter the heck out of it (oh, and I got photobombed too) to stop me looking dead:

Seriously, you should have seen the "before" pic ...

 

That said, Princess Pink is a colour a lot of people are going to love, in particular those with a much deeper skintone than me ... Subtle Coral, however whilst not nearly as "fun" to wear, is a useful neutral addition to a lipstick wardrobe, and it's one I've had a lot of wear out of already ...

Later this week, I'll show you what I think are the two stars of the collection, Designer Blossom, and Passionate Red.  Yes, I've saved the best (the reds - I'm ever a sucker for a red) till last - and there are no scary pictures of me and MrLippie for you, either ...  Max Factor Giant Pen Sticks will be available in Boots from 1st April.  Will you be picking any up?

The Fine Print: This is a sponsored post.  Get Lippie's editorial policy is only to accept sponsorship from products which would have featured whether or not sponsorship was on offer.  This product passed that test.  
 
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Max Factor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks Launch Soon

 

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I've had this glass of pretties on my desk for a while now, and, as they launch in a couple of weeks, I figured (I'm nice like that) it was time to tell you about them.  There's a slew of  "podgy" products about at the moment, but Max Factor Giant Pen Sticks in the Colour Elixir range - launching on April 1st at Boots - are slightly different, being more akin to a pencil lipstick, than a self-propelling pencil of balm.  You'll need a sharpener, for a start ...

There are six colours to choose from, all selected by Max Factor makeup artist Mel Arter. Mel; famous for her inspired and edgy makeup looks, has been inspired this time around by the latest catwalk trends, and she says:
 

“Right now we’re seeing the biggest colour comeback in cosmetics since the 80s – it’s a backlash against the recession as people ditch the minimal trend by adding a cheerful splash of colour. There was a real sporty element to the collections for SS/13. Brights on the lips are a huge nod to that. Specifically pink as it is such an informal and fun colour. 

"The texture should be waxy and the shape informal. My favourite Giant Pen Stick is Vibrant Pink 15 - a sophisticated fluoro-pink which is the perfect expression of that trend. Teamed with your favourite eyeliner inside the waterline, gives the statement lip more attitude. Minimal and cool.  Hot Chocolate pushes neutral lips forward for the coming season. It gives the right amount of colour and finish to a nude make-up. Your lips look tonal but alive. This shade compliments a nude make-up beautifully.”

 

It's a compact range of two pinks, two reds, a nude, and a, as the name implies, a rather subtle coral shade, but let's have a closer look at the two shades Mel Arter mentions above, Vibrant Pink, and Hot Chocolate:

And here's them on my lips:

Think Mel is bang on with her talk of the eighties for Vibrant Pink - I had an entire outfit this colour in 1988! I'll be showing you the rest of the range in more detail in another post, and I'll also be telling you all about my upcoming Giant Pen Stick "colour consultation" with another of my Max Factor makeup artist heroes, Caroline Barnes soon too.

Looking forward to the Giant Pen Stick Launch on April 1st?  I am! 

The Fine Print: This is a sponsored post.  Get Lippie only accepts sponsored content if it's a product that would be featured on the site ordinarily, this product passed that test.  Thanks for reading.

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Just Cavalli - Bite Me

No one who writes a blog called Get Lippie could possibly resist a campaign called Bite Me ...! Did you guess what the teaser was for the other day?  It was, of course, for the latest fragrance from Roberto Cavalli: Just Cavalli which features notes of bitter orange, tiare, alongside woods, and is, apparently, the "scent of youth and seduction".  Being neither a youth, nor a seductress, I can't possibly vouch for that, but it's a cute and funny campaign!

Gotta love a bit of pink snakeskin - I certainly do!  The ad campaign features Georgia May Jagger, and the beautiful print ads have been shot by Mario Sorrenti.

There's a playful Just Cavalli Bite Me Facebook app too, where you can "bite" your friends for the chance to win Just Cavalli prizes. I've already bitten MrLippie (well, you know, it is Valentine's Day very soon, and I can't afford to be buying him a wedding present, we make do in this household ...) so, will it be love at first bite for you ...?

 Roberto Cavalli Just Cavalli will be available at all good fragrance retailers very soon.




The Fine Print: Sponsored Post.  I'll send you a postcard from my honeymoon ...
 
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Teaser ...

This features a few locations I'm going to on my honeymoon, but can you figure out what it's for?



More will be revealed soon ....



The Fine Print: This is a sponsored post.  Honeymoons, sadly, don't pay for themselves ... ;)

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British Gas Safe & Secure Trial

This is a non-beauty-related post, and I'm making no apologies.  As part of an official partnership with British Gas Smarter Living this year, I'm here today to talk about my 6 month trial of their Safe & Secure home security system, and this is my first blog post in an occasional series.

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Having lived in shared and rented accommodation for years, home security hasn’t always been a high priority of mine, but after a harrowing experience in a flat last year, being offered a chance to review a security system such as “Safe & Secure” by British Gas has been a bit of a godsend.

For a time last winter, I was unable to leave my home unattended at any point. Owing to a rogue landlord, we had to have our friends and family flat-sit during the day, and have friends over at the weekends so we could go and do our shopping.  Needless to say, we soon got out of that situation, but I’m aware that if Safe and Secure had existed back then, our lives – and those of our friends – would have been a lot easier!

Safe and Secure enables you to leave your home in total assurance that if anything goes wrong, you’ll be made aware of it, and be able to take action.  Controlled via either the internet, or via an app on your smartphone, it’s simple enough for even this technophobe beauty-blogger to be able to figure out. You can protect your doors, your windows, have a smoke detector, get motion detectors, control key electrical equipment via a “smart plug”, and monitor just who is in your home at any time.  Handy for control freaks (me), and nosy people (also me) alike.

I’m not going to lie, there’s been some hiccups along the way recently, but British Gas have been made aware of where they’ve gone wrong (nearly getting my security system stolen because their courier company – since fired - screwed up, is the most amusing, however infuriating it was at the time), and they’ve promised me that they’ll make no more mistakes.  That said, I’ve made some mistakes too, and I’m certain that my neighbours haven’t quite forgiven me for the day my siren went off five times in an hour because I’d overlooked something very simple indeed, but these are stories for another time. I look forward to finding out how well everything works over the coming months.

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You can find out more about my journey with British Gas, Safe & Secure and Smarter Living if you click this link. 

The Fine Print:  I'm an official spokesperson of the  British Gas "Don't Take Our Word For It" campaign.  

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