Essence Liquid Lipstick Review

It's been two months since I last wrote a beauty review here or my blog, so I thought it would be time to finally write another one! Today I'll be talking about essence's liquid lipsticks. Liquid lipsticks have been all the rage for about a year now, with Bourjois and Anastasia Beverly Hills taking the centre stage, but I just couldn't justify spending my precious money on them, knowing I probably wouldn't wear them very often. I only tested out the ones available in my online store (it's in the job description), but that doesn't mean I didn't or don't want to try more. I mean, I'm a makeup addict after all!

I got really excited when I saw that essence was coming out with what it looked like a budget version of Bourjois liquid lipsticks, and luckily, I got my hands on two lovely, bold shades - 04 show off! and 06 make a statement. But before you get too excited, I need to let you know that these are not proper liquid lipsticks. At least not in my book. They aren't long-lasting and don't stain your lips, which are the two main characteristics of liquid lipsticks, so I think pigmented thick glosses would be a more appropriate way to describe them. 

As mentioned, they are very pigmented. One swipe is more than enough. In fact, I would keep away from adding extra layers and rubbing your lips together too much, as the product doesn't really settle and tends to move around and gather in certain areas when there's too much of it on your lips.

The gloss isn't too sticky and has a comfortable waxy smooth finish, but as with all heavy lip formulas, it tends to wear off unevenly, with the product disappearing from the middle of your lips first and leaving a line inside the edges. I don't see it as a huge problem, though, because the fact that it doesn't stain your lips means that you can quickly touch it up. When it comes to staying power, I would say it's average, lasting a couple of hours before the gloss wears off. 

Packaging is not something I normally pay a lot of attention to, but I just have to mention it this time. I think it's freakin' amazing. Not only is it functional, showing through the actual shade of the product, but it's also inceredibly sleek for such a cheap product. Essence have really been stepping up their game recently when it comes to their lip products, don't you think so?