Lip stains used to be known as the most drying lip colors available in the market. Sure theyre long-wearing and convenient, but since they were mostly liquid, they don't offer a lot of hydration to the lips. But times are different now. Lip colors (and cosmetics in general) won't succeed in the market if they don't give us exactly what we want - and a litte bit more.

Cue in the L'Oreal Paris Shine Caresse Lip Stain (P595). It promises to provide long-wearing color with the shine of a gloss and the feel of a lip balm. They came out in 2012 and become hugely popular because of the 30% water and 60% oil formulation, as it's so much more hydrating while feeling weightless at the same time. 

I have here three new shades from a new line called Pearly Shine: Flora, Luna, and Ruby. I don't have the original Shine Caresse products with me, but based on swatches online, the Pearly Shine looks like it's more sheer and sparkly than the first formula.

Here's a quick rundown on these intriguing stains!

Yup, it's Shiseido Week again! I've been debating with myself whether I should do one whole post on the brand's Spring collection, but everything deserved their own features - that's how much I like them. :) I hope you can explore with me this week as I discuss the latest products from my favorite cosmetics brand in the world!

Let me begin with the Shiseido Lacquer Gloss in Plum Wine RS306 (P1,250). This is a super shiny, balm-thin lip gloss that feels slinky and plush on my lips. It's so thin, it almost feels like a watery lip balm! It's also fairly moisturizing that I don't need to prime my lips anymore.

Texture aside, the color is just right. It's not completely opaque - it's designed to be semi-sheer - so it allows the natural color of my lips to show through. I have even-toned lips so this isn't a problem, but if you have uneven coloration then it's best to wear this on top of a lip liner or lipstick. Either way, you'll be getting a beautiful, uber glossy finish that'll make your lips look full and sexy.

Why do I draw and paint? It's a long list of reasons but it boils down to that feeling of joy of having created something from nothing. I take photos and write for this blog, but my work here is derivative. That doesn't mean it's unimportant or meaningless, but it's just not the same as making something with my hands. So I draw lines and sometimes I color them.

It also keeps me sane. I place a lot of pressure on myself to excel in what I do and be bigger, better. Sometimes, I want to escape from that. Painting for me has no agenda other than to please myself. Although, if in the future I can turn this into a commercial undertaking, then that'd be awesome too! I should know, there are few things more rewarding than earning something from doing things you love.

Buuut let's get back to makeup. I just want to share an FOTD and review of some Canmake products! Like I said in my earlier post I think Canmake cosmetics are beyond cute and offer pretty good quality for the (drugstore) price. I didn't truly understand that, however, until I wore the Canmake Glow Fleur Cheeks and Candy Wrap Lip Gloss together some weeks back.

Ta-dah! I loved this look. Even better, I did it in under ten minutes! I used a Maybelline Color Tattoo cream eyeshadow in Bad to the Bronze and then a brown Essence eyeliner. I think the cheeks and the lip gloss stole the show though. They really made my complexion look amazing!

The Canmake Glow Fleur Cheeks #5 looks like something from a toy store but this is nicely pigmented with a beautiful glowy finish. The four colors mix together perfectly to create a cotton candy pink that just melts on top of my cheeks. Such a pretty blush!

Sue me, I have a lot of eyeshadows yet to be written about! They will always be my greatest weakness, along with lipsticks. Now I know many of you ain't a fan of wearing a lot of eye makeup but I hope you'll consider this palette from The Body Shop. It's part of their Spring 2014 Collection along with a pink version, two new glosses, and hair chalk!

I've seen the pink Shimmer Cubes, which are cute, but I think the Shimmer Cubes Palette 30 (P1,295) here is more wearable for Asian skin. They are quite shimmery but I think that the finish isn't all that distracting. Shimmery neutrals are appropriate for any occasion as long as you don't splash it thickly over your eye area.

Let's get started! I've tried TBS Shimmer Cubes a loooooong time ago and was thoroughly unimpressed by the pigmentation. But that was before. Now, the colors are super pigmented! You won't even need to wear a primer to make the colors solid. In fact I'd recommend applying the colors wet instead. They'll stick and won't crease too much, even after three hours.

Top, L-R: Dusty Fawn, Rich Espresso | Bottom, L-R: Burnished Gold, Warm Copper

What do you usually do on Saturday mornings? I either read a book or play a video game. I try not to do anything work-related or even blog-related on weekends, but I want to write about these glosses before my themed week officially ends. ^_^ I think they're quite good!

This Stila Lip Glaze Set (P1,750) was part of the brand's Holiday 2013 Collection. It was such an awesome deal, that all told each lip gloss just cost P195. I'm not sure if this is still available, but I would wager that it is since limited ed holiday stuff are usually on counters until late January.

I gave one set as a gift and kept the other two lol. Here's a quick rundown of the pros and cons!

What I love about the product

• Surprisingly pigmented, with a super smooth glossy finish. I get medium coverage with most of the shades I have here. It's not crazy opaque but the jelly effect is quite nice.
• The gloss isn't drying. You can also get away with wearing lip balm underneath (it won't affect the texture, that is).

The pliable synthetic brush has a squarish shape that helps you do a more precise application

One of the reasons I enjoy doing themed weeks is I get to dig through my baul to look for things to feature. Sometimes, I forget to write about a certain release (due to the volume of stuff I receive), so there's always something interesting to find. For Lip Gloss Week, it's the Avon Ultra Glazewear Lipgloss (P299). I think I've had this since August 2013!

I remember casually swatching this a couple of times, but forgot about it because I was testing out the Avon Vitaluscious Lipstick. Anyway. The Ultra Glazewear is a fairly pigmented collection of glosses that come in rich, eye-catching colors. I like that it's not sticky, but it does feel a bit thick on the lips. 

It flakes minimally as it dries. You can get away with a wearing a lip balm underneath, so go for it if you have dry lips. :) Staying power is average at three hours. It has a gentle caramel scent that doesn't smell cheap to me.

Here be the swatches!

This kinda sounds like cheating, but technically, it isn't. So. Ha! I decided to talk about the e.l.f Lip Stain in Fashionista (P250) for my third post this Lip Gloss Week. It's an interesting hybrid of stain and moisturizing lip gloss. You get the pigmentation and staying power of a lipstick, and the plumping shine of gloss.

Applying the e.l.f Lip Stain is a two-step process. First, shade your lips with the highly pigmented color. Wait for it to dry completely. Then, apply the moisturizing gloss on top. Sounds simple right? Just remember to use a small amount of color for your first layer. Too much and it streaks! Don't wear lip balm underneath, too. You won't get an opaque layer of color.

Majorly distracted today because of a cold/ allergy I've had for weeks! I'll spare you the gross details but let's just say I need to see a doctor soon. It's really affecting my life. Well, now that's out of the way, I feel slightly better. It's difficult to come up with a coherent thought when you have to blow your nose every five minutes, you know!

Anyway, to continue Lip Gloss Week, I have here the MAC Lipglass in Ready To Roam. This was part of the Fall 2012 Styleseeker Collection. It's no longer available but I still wanna review it if only to talk about the formula and show you how good a red lip gloss can look.

And it looks more than good - it's fabulous. Red as a lip color is traditionally ruled by matte lipstick, but a glossy red, when done right, has its own powerful charms. It looks modern and chic even with just the barest of makeup.

Lip glosses have come a long way from being sheer, gluey, and generally annoying. With new ingredients and technology, even the most affordable brand can come up with a gloss worth switching up your lipsticks for. I thought I'd talk about some of the interesting glosses I have this week. I'll begin with the most intriguing of them all: the Maybelline Lip Polish (P350).

I believe this came out in the Philippines recently. It's popular with YouTube vloggers, and is known as "Color Elixir" in other parts of the world. What makes this special is how it mixes the high-shine glassiness of lip gloss, pigmentation of an average lipstick, and the moisture of lip balm. All that without being sticky!

Think of a lipstick with a very wet texture and that's pretty much how the Maybelline Lip Polish feels like when freshly applied. It'll dry up in an hour and will become tacky then, but I love how that dried-up layer of color sticks on my lips. It feels almost like one of those long-wearing lipsticks that hardens and sets.

Charming. The gloss mold is lipstick-shaped.

And this is fairly long-wearing, for a gloss.

I'm sure you've seen other beauty bloggers posting about this already! Two reasons, really: Lancome Philippines has an ongoing contest for your guys AND these glosses are pretty rad. I don't wear a lot of lip gloss since I find that most of them sticky and drying. But the Lancome Gloss In Love (P1,295) is a game changer!

They feel like butter on the lips - very creamy, a wee bit thick, but there is no stickiness or greasiness. It doesn't feel like your lips are sweating inside (if you know what I mean). They are also extremely, well, glossy. Juicy-looking. They definitely make my lips look plumper and dare I say sexier!

See? The lasting power is pretty nice, at two to three hours without eating. The gloss doesn't feel flaky once it's completely dry; indeed, I don't even need to wear lip balm underneath. It's moisturizing enough by itself. I also love the slightly curved wand as it helps the gloss sink into the lips better. Make sure to wiggle the wand all over to avoid spidery wrinkled-looking lips!

I just wish that all the glosses are as pigmented as the one I'm wearing up there (#385) but I suppose fairer ladies will love the paler shades. Check out Sabs' swatches here, the lighter colors look great on her fair skin!

Here are my own swatches. ^_^ What's your favorite?

They are impossible to miss in Beauty Bar: the iconic bee, the yellow tubes of lip balm goodness. Burt's Bees has made a mark in the beauty industry as an all-natural skincare brand, but they recently released new color cosmetics. For the lips, still! I can't wait to see the day when BB has foundations and blush at least! That should be awesome, no?

Anyhoo, take a look at some of the newest products from Burt's Bees.

First up is the Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm (P650). This comes in different shades, but the one I have here is Caramel Daisy! The tinted balm glides and feels like butter on the lips. I've tried the plain balm before and wasn't very impressed because of the hard texture, but the Tinted Lip Balm is definitely an improved version. It keeps my lips hydrated and not waxy-feeling. It has a faint jelly bean scent to boot!

I already told you what my top five lipsticks were, so I thought it's finally time to show lip glosses some love! I don't often wear glosses as much as lipsticks, actually, but when I do I make sure they're worth the hair trap. Oh you know what I mean. Glosses are a bane on windy days but these are the ones that I find too pretty to resist.

L-R: Majolica Majorca Honey Pump Gloss Neo, Shu Uemura Gloss Unlimited in Corona Orange, VMV Hypoallergenics Lip Glitter Gloss in Cherry Pink, Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Pink Pop, Benefit Ultra Plush Lip Gloss in Hoola

Here's why I love 'em! 

Majolica Majorca Honey Pump Gloss Neo. Glosses are by nature flighty things. They get wiped off easily just by drinking and eating. But the Honey Pump Gloss Neo is one of the longest-lasting glosses I've tried. I can eat and still have some gloss left over. I also love how it makes the lips look fuller without being overly thick.

Do you love Benefit's famous Box O' Powders - CORALista, Hervana, Bella Bamba, and Hoola, to name a few? Well, if you're a fan of those shades then you just might love their new Ultra Plush Lip Glosses (price TBA) inspired by their blushes. This new gloss is coming out on July worldwide (it's not yet out even in the US!), but since I got hold of one early I thought I'd do a review!

Okay, so! I've tried quite a few lip glosses in the past - high-end, low-end, thin like lipstick, thick like glue - but this is nothing like I've used before. (Maybe I should get out more? Hihi.) Anyway, I don't know what "ultra plush" means but this lip gloss must be it!

Feel and scent. It's super thin on the lips, like liquid lip balm if you can imagine that.

What is your ideal lip product, the kind that you will actually use everyday? Many of us love shine, moisture, and beautiful color on our lips. That kind of effect usually involves three layers of product to pull off - balm, lipstick, then gloss. However, with the new Avon Shine Attract Lipstick, you can skip all of that and just go straight to pretty lips!

Before I proceed with my glowing review, lemme just say that these lipsticks are not the kind you expect to stay on all day. They dry up on the lips within three hours, although the bolder colors leave a nice stain. If you're okay with re-applying (like me) then I think you'll love this. But if not, there are other equally affordable brands that can give you better lasting power.

What I do love about these lipsticks is the fact thay they give me a nice, glossy color while moisturizing my lips at the same time. They also don't feel like anything once you have them on. Well okay, at most they feel like a thin, slinky lip balm. The moisture lasts until it dries, around three hours from application.

Some people may be discouraged that, upon getting the product, they find out that they're not as pigmented or even as normal lipsticks. So, I made a video on how to apply it correctly! WATCH.

Done? Now here are the swatches.

Anne Curtis is the hottest celebrity right now. After seeing her in person last week, I understand why! Up close, she looks exactly like she does on celluloid and print - drop-dead gorgeous, with an ultra-slim bod. Someone commented that she looks like a live Barbie doll and I gotta say that's not too far off the mark! #starstruck

Anne's looks aside, I really appreciated that she seems genuinely happy and excited to be there. It seems to be a good fit, Avon lipsticks and Anne Curtis. Anne is famous for her trademark red shiny lips while Avon makes some of the best lipsticks around (at least for me) - call it destiny, predetermination, natural selection!

So, what's the deal with the Avon Shine Attract Lipsticks?

When Blair Waldorf got married to her not-so-fairytale prince, everyone wanted to know one thing: what is her lip gloss? She was wearing a deep pink that set off her romantic, slightly smoked-out eyes beautifully. We've seen a lot of pinks before, but this one is a real knockout.

Everyone initially assumed it was a Chanel Glossimer since Blair is using a Chanel compact, after all. But some people have been saying that it was actually the Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Pink Pop (P450), and they make a good case for it!

The packaging is exactly the same, but then again Chanel Glossimers look like this Revlon product too.