Believe it or not, I don’t just acquire new lipsticks; I also use up old ones. However, finishing a lipstick is a rare enough occurrence for me that when it does happen, I feel the need to brag about it on at least one online platform. And when I finish three in a short period of time, only a full blog post will do. So here’s a little roundup of three lip colors (lip jawns, if you will) that I liked enough to use up! You’ll notice that one isn’t quite done, but I’m confident that it will be empty soon, and I have time to blog right now, so…it is what it is.

L-R: Revlon Glass Shine Lipstick in Beaming Strawberry, Etude House Dear Darling Tint in Red Bean Red, NARS Sheer Lipstick in Dolce Vita.

Swatches, same order:

And my current thoughts on each, in chronological order of purchase:

1. NARS Sheer Lipstick in Dolce Vita (review)

Date purchased: January 2020

Thoughts: I believe this is the fourth tube of Dolce Vita that I’ve gone through in the past eleven years. In its original formula (which I reviewed here), the dusty rose shade was my perfect MLBB, my perfect purse lipstick, my perfect lip-color-that-might-as-well-be-a-balm. But NARS reformulated its lipsticks in 2019 (in retrospect, I should have seen the latest, saddest development coming), and the new Dolce Vita, it turned out, differed markedly from the OG. The color was warmer-toned, which made it less harmonious with my complexion. The formula was thicker, more pigmented, and less moisturizing. Dolce Vita 2.0 wasn’t bad, exactly—I mean, I did finish the whole thing—but it was no longer my go-to, which is why it took me four years, not one or two, to use it up.

Score: 8/10

Repurchase?: No, sadly. I recently bought Bobbi Brown Crushed Lip in Brownie, which is closer in color to the original Dolce Vita but is matte, not shiny. I’m eyeing MAC’s Lustreglass Lipstick in Hug Me, but I’d like to swatch it before buying.

2. Revlon Glass Shine Lipstick in Beaming Strawberry

Date purchased: March 2021

Thoughts: I’ve never encountered a more moisturizing lipstick formula than Revlon Glass Shine, or a shade of pink better suited to bright spring and summer looks than Beaming Strawberry. There’s also a nice memory attached to this particular lipstick—I bought it at a Walmart in Mansfield, Ohio, immediately after receiving my first dose of the COVID vaccine. In an opaque formula, Beaming Strawberry would be a little too warm for me. But because it’s so sheer, it melds beautifully with my lip color to produce a warm-season, vaguely mod version of an MLBB. I love wearing it with pastel eyeliner in particular! Luckily, I have just enough left in the tube to get me through this spring (and maybe even summer).

Grade: 10/10

Repurchase?: I WOULD, if Revlon hadn’t discontinued the entire Glass Shine line just as it went viral on TikTok. Assholes.

3. Etude House Dear Darling Tint in Red Bean Red (review)

Date purchased: December 2021

Thoughts: I bought this lip tint at an Asian beauty store in San Francisco after completing my first semester of masked teaching. Red Bean Red turned out to be the most mask-friendly lip product in my collection, and I kept wearing it long after I stopped masking regularly, a testament to its overall high quality. The formula is more moisturizing than any other lip tint I’ve ever tried, but it still leaves a noticeable lavender stain. The color is perfectly balanced between pink and purple, bright and dusty. I have a couple more wears left in this adorable popsicle container, and I will cherish each one.

Score: 10/10

Repurchase?: I actually looked for Red Bean Red when I was last in San Francisco, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. A quick search suggests that it’s still available from various online sources; however, I might hold off for now. I do have seventy other lip products, after all.

The weather is finally warming up here in Philly, and I’m reveling in vernal color schemes. For a dinner out last night, I put together a mostly magenta look using Red Bean Red, ColourPop eyeshadow in Wake Me (from the Lilac You a Lot palette), About-Face Cheek Freak Blush Balm in Score, Glossier Haloscope in Moonstone, and MAC Strobe Cream in Pinklite. I also wore a vintage top ($3 on South Street!) and a new pair of earrings from Get Made in LA, my favorite earringmonger on Etsy.

Happy spring!