Lipstick. Few things in the beauty industry have the power to make me feel either completely in charge of my life or like I probably should never have been handed the wheel to begin with. Add to this challenge my personal proviso that lipstick must be both non-toxic AND high-performing, and this clean beauty switch gets a little more interesting. Let's go over my favorite finds so far.
Let me begin by saying that I prioritize various things in a lipstick. Color payoff, weight on the lips, level of shine, hydration levels, wear time, texture, shade selection... The list goes on. Sometimes I am happy to sacrifice one of these things to gain another, and sometimes I want a little bit of everything. In this post, I'll highlight my favorite and least favorite things about each lipstick listed, and I'll share my current favorite shade. Happy reading!
1. ILIA Beauty: Color Block High Impact Lipstick
Favorite Shade: Amberlight. Described by the company as "French nude". I have no idea what this means, but I know that it's my perfect, everyday, wear-with-anything nude, and that works for me.
Favorite Feature: Everything. This is my go-to lipstick and it delivers on all my top priorities. The different shade options are GORGEOUS, its opacity is the ultimate blend of softness and boldness, it wears and fades beautifully throughout the day (without leaving any harsh lines or gaps in the color), and its texture feels lovely and comfortable to wear.
What's Lacking: I honestly have no complaints with this lipstick. I wish there were about 87 more shades to play with, but as ILIA currently offers 15 different color options, I probably shouldn't be greedy.
Formulated Without: Parabens, phthalates, sulfates, GMOs, synthetic fragrances, gluten, and talc, and their products are never tested on animals. Contains beeswax.
Local Vendor: Shop Good—North Park and Del Mar
2. Kosas Cosmetics: Weightless Lip Color
Favorite Shade: Phoenix. A warm, fiery red that makes me feel both powerful and classy.
Favorite Feature: The texture. I've never worn a formula like this, and I'm obsessed with it. It's comfortable, truly weightless, and nourishing.
What's Lacking: I wish this formula had an expanded color range. Most of their colors lean a bit too pink for me (I'm partial to brown and terracotta undertones), but I absolutely adore the ones that work with my insecurities surrounding pink lipstick.
Formulated Without: Parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, propylene glycol, phenoxyethanol, and synthetic fragrance, and their products are never tested on animals. Contains beeswax.
Local Vendor: Credo—UTC Mall in La Jolla
Shopping Link: https://kosas.com/products/phoenix
3. ILIA Beauty: Tinted Lip Conditioner
Favorite Shade: Nobody's Baby. Nude, again—I'm a creature of habit. This sheer shade feels like my lips, but a little sexier.
Favorite Feature: The formula, hands down. It's like my favorite lipstick and my favorite chapstick had a baby, but in a sophisticated way that doesn't make me feel like a 12 year old. I also love how soft the color payoff is, leaving just a glowy kiss of color.
What's Lacking: Wearing gracefully. Minimal wear time is kind of a given with a tinted lip conditioner, but I more so have an issue with how it wears. The formula mostly sinks into the lips over time, but sometimes it does that creepy thing where it bunches up in the corners of the mouth. I notice this the most when I'm talking a lot, and, being a hairstylist, I run into this reality quite often. This means that I do get paranoid about wearing this lipstick while I work, which is a significant downside.
Formulated Without: Parabens, phthalates, sulfates, GMOs, synthetic fragrances, gluten, and talc, and their products are never tested on animals. Contains beeswax.
Local Vendor: Shop Good—North Park and Del Mar
Shopping Link: https://iliabeauty.com/collections/lip/products/nobodys-baby
4. Lawless Beauty: Soft Matte Liquid Lipstick
Favorite Shade: Leo. A bright, peachy nude that a coworker once described as: "Angelic but also fierce. Like, you look very soft and natural, but with a bold lip." This is a statement I have not stopped enjoying since it was originally made, and it's made me love this summery shade ten times more.
Favorite Feature: Wear time and color range! I was so excited to find a non-toxic liquid lipstick with such a fabulous color range. While I will always love a lipstick that gracefully fades away over time, owning a bold lip that will last for hours is an excellent option to have. It is also quite easy to remove, which I don't believe I have ever found in a liquid lip before.
What's Lacking: Worry-free wear. Eventually (especially after a tall glass of cold-brew coffee), this lipstick may begin to feel sticky and tacky around the center. Any time I feel this with a lipstick I get concerned that it will lead to the aforementioned creepy bunching, but after some testing, I believe this is largely a pointless hang-up. I have only experienced problematic bunching when wearing an inadvisably thick layer of lipstick; thus, my caution to you would be to apply responsibly.
Formulated Without: Parabens, sulfates, phthalates, polyethylene/PEGs, fragrance/parfum, tricolsan, silicones, and phenoxyethanol, and their products are never tested on animals. Please see the Lawless website for all excluded ingredients—their advertised list is quite extensive.
Local Vendor: None that I know of—check Sephora locations
That's all, folks!
Thank you so much for checking out what I have to say about clean beauty and feel free to leave comments and questions below. Have you tried out any of these lipstick formulas, or do you have a favorite that I don't know about? Let me know! I love to hear what does and doesn't work for y'all. Until next time!
Xoxo,
Ellery
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