New in beauty I tried in September

A little round up of mini reviews of all the makeup products I tried in September.

Kicking things off with Jones Road Beauty. Who, I’ve been wanting to try for a good twelve months plus. Mostly because Bobbi’s focus on balm-like products intrigued me (reviews online have been mixed), but being familiar with her namesake brand, and how often things are designed to serve a purpose, I figured there was more than meets the eye.

Firstly, I want to start by saying how much I love the Blush brush. Concise application right on the apple and contour of my cheek, right where I want it.

The blushers kind of blew me away. I gave up using powder products for the most part, because a huge part of how I like makeup to look and sit on my skin is for it to mesh, and be one with my complexion. Powders often have something of a mattifying effect. Sitting on top of, rather than blending into, the cheek. These are none of that. Powder that is lightweight yet pigmented, but still leaves a heavily moisturised, nourished face looking somewhat glossy. Giving that very natural flush. I tried two powders; the best blush in ‘sandy’ and the bronzer in ‘dusty rose’. Despite the naming conventions, I used both in the same way. Liberally applied across the cheeks and nose to add a bit of colour to my face. You’ll be able to see the shade variation between the two from the swatches on my olive complexion. I love both for a natural flush. There’s not discoverable difference between the formula (just the pan size, from what I can tell). You get a little bit of kick up if you are vigorous in swirling your brush in the pan, but the formula doesn’t feel too powdery or chalky. All in all, a love.

I also tried the Lippie Stick, which is essentially a tinted lip balm. The formulation is unusual; quick thick, beeswaxy, ever so slightly stiff. Lips need to be smooth and not flakey on application as otherwise the pigment gets caught in patches on the lips. Very comfortable to wear, and a good alternative to lipstick on a no-makeup “makeup” day when you need that polish, but want to reach for products that feel truly effortless.

Queen Musia is a fairly new to me makeup brand, so when I got asked if I’d like to try a few products, it got me curious. Mostly because the lipstick shade line up had me intrigued as to whether there was one which would rival my love of MERIT Beauty’s ‘Tiger’.

But let’s start by reviewing the 2053 Mascara, which in addition to promising astronomical length and volume, also offers growth properties (which I suspect is down to the addition of castor oil in the formulation). I actually quite like this, but, I do find that the rather wet formula and very bushy brush mean that I have a hard time getting a clean application. I’m almost always tidying up after the fact; mascara dotted all over the upper portion of my eyelid. It’s quite a wet formula, so it means you do need to wait a second before going in with a second coat. The formula leaves lashes looking fluffy, and reasonably natural. Plus there’s no smudging or flaking, even after 8+ hours of wear. Something which makes me happy to overlook the slightly messy application.

The smash hit, is their Matte Creme Lipstick, which based on my research is Queen Musia’s cult product. And I get the hype. The shade ‘Ada’ is listed on their home page as the perfect autumnal shade, and I have to say… the second I applied it I could see the vision. It immediately made me think of the role that my beloved ‘Tiger’ from MERIT plays in my beauty repertoire. I’ve done a side-by-side swatch on my arm as ‘Ada’ on the lips reads like a peachy brown. Something with a bit of grit. Less obvious than your typical coral. So I was surprised to see that it pulls more pink in the swatch than anticipated. Outside of the actual colour swatch, I was delighted by the formula. It’s a matte, but has a creamy finish; my lips didn’t feel like the Sahara desert. Instead, pigmented colour washed over them, which was creamy, comfortable, and had a lingering presence for hours. Firmly placed in my regular rotation of lipsticks.

Laura Mercier is a long standing favourite beauty brand of mine. Every spring I rediscover their Tinted Moisturiser, which truly deserves more hype than it gets (a reminder that we seem to put new and noteworthy on a pedestal). I received a handful of products from their Caviar Collection which has been relaunched with new formulations, colours, and packaging.

Starting with the Caviar Stick Eyeshadow, which has been reformulated. I haven’t put this to the test, but I have heard that once this sets, it doesn’t budge (something that appears massively as someone with oily eyelids). I received ‘Rosegold’, which I actually have the original version of, so naturally, had to compare. The main difference I can tell between the two, is that the reformulation seems to have more visible glitter particles, as well as delivering more of a metallic sheen. Easy to apply; I’ll always start with a eyeshadow base for longevity, draw this all over the mobile lid and the blend with the finger. These are a tried and true staple of Laura Mercier for good reason – something I will always come back to.

I can be a little fussy with mascaras, but have enjoyed the new Caviar Extravagant Mascara which lengthens above all else and also holds a decent curl. Not one that blew me away, but then, I’ve set the bar high. This is a pretty solid option if you’re looking for a higher end mascara that will give you fluffy lengthened lashes.

Final Laura Mercier product that was a “new in” is their Caviar Smoothing Matte Refillable Lipstick. I should preface this by saying that I’m never seeking out a truly matte lipstick finish. My lips are dry enough as is (worsened by eczema and dermatitis), so I’m always on the search for lippies that have an inherently nourishing quality. I found that sadly, this was just a little too mattifying for my lips. I have the shade ‘Blush Chenille’; your typical cool toned rose pink. Colour payoff was great, and I love the luxe packaging but I think a shade like Peach Cashmere or Brown Suede might have been more up my alley. There is a slightly scent to these, it reminds me a little of vanilla on the nose, though I didn’t find it overly offensive.

Any notable beauty releases that you’ve tried this month?