Beauty Focus: Charlotte Tilbury K.I.S.S.I.N.G lipsticks

From l to r: Penelope Pink, Bitch Perfect, Stoned Rose, Coachella Coral and Love Bite

It’s no secret that I’ve got a little bit of a soft spot for Charlotte Tilbury beauty. For the most part, I’ve been constantly impressed by the quality of her products – bar a few – and the sleek vintage-style packaging alone was practically all it took to win me over, sight unseen.

Of everything I purchased, there was one thing which really stood out to me – the lipsticks. Mostly, because I’m a sucker for a new tube of lipstick, especially when it looks. this. good; but also because the formula is among one of the better ones I’ve tried. It’s incredibly pigmented, and glides on thick, to the point where you get full opacity with one swipe, and it’s just creamy enough to stop your lips from drying out, without impacting the wear time.

So during a quiet lull over the weekend, I took the opportunity to pick up a few more of these K.I.S.S.I.N.G lipsticks. For those wondering, I’ve been buying most of my Charlotte Tilbury from Beautylish, and have to say that I am continuing to be impressed by the quality of their service. Not only did my order arrive two days after I made the purchase (I put my order through on Saturday afternoon and it arrived Monday morning), but the sweet handwritten note is such a thoughtful touch, that I’m already looking forward to my next Beautylish purchase…

That being said, let’s talk about these lippies real quick – and of course, some swatches just to see how the shades compare.

I picked up Penelope Pink, Bitch Perfect, Coachella Coral and Love Bite. Penelope Pink is a very subtle beige toned nude, and honestly, not quite what I expected from the name (which for some reason always seems to bring to mind Penelope Pitstop…). This definitely has a little bit of that nineties brown lip vibe, while being a lot easier to wear and pull off.

A friend of mine had suggested that I try Bitch Perfect, a pretty nude with pinky-peach undertones. This is a great neutral everyday lip colour, and comes off as quite natural looking. For me, it’s a lighter and more effortless alternative to Stoned Rose (also pictured above).

Coachella Coral is the shade I was most excited for; it’s a punchy pink toned coral, which really brightens up the face and I think would suit most skin tones. Admittedly it’s much more of a summery lip colour, and would be the perfect accompaniment to bronzed and sunkissed skin, so I probably waited a little too long to pick this up. In saying that, I’m hoping to get a bit of wear out of it before it cools down too much in Sydney.

When it came to the reds, I was a little torn between So Marilyn and Love Bite. In the end, I went with Love Bite, as it had more of an orange undertone (whereas So Marilyn is more cool-toned), and I really like the warmth that an orangey-red adds to my face.

For a lipstick with a cream finish, these do an excellent job at really adhering to the lips for hours on end. Most shades in the K.I.S.S.I.N.G collection are on the neutral or warmer end of the scale, which I think really quite suits my olive-toned complexion. I’m hard pressed to find many things to fault about these lipsticks, and if there’s one thing, it would be an expansion on the current selection of shades. While nudes are pretty well covered off, I do think that there are a few gaps when it comes to true pinks and berry hues, the latter of which is a firm favourite of mine for when the weather cools down.

At $32 USD a pop, these aren’t a cheap beauty fix, although they do stand out to me as a more high-end lipstick worth getting your hands on. The packaging looks and feels luxurious (and of course there’s that satisfying ‘click’), the pigmentation and overall formulation is of a high standard, and there’s a great selection of nudes with a few bold lip shades added in for good measure. I’ll probably hold out at least another couple of months before I dive in for the rest of the collection, but Night Crimson really stands out to me as a stunning shade, and perfect for winter, too.

For those of you wanting to get your hands on a little bit of Charlotte Tilbury, it’s available for purchase online at Beautylish, Net-A-Porter, Charlotte Tilbury, Nordstrom, Selfridges and Bergdorf Goodman.