I've had a bee in my bonnet recently about finding a very specific shade of lipstick. You see, things like that happen when makeup artists go through their kit bags and see (or perceive that) something's missing. It becomes a glaring hole that must be filled, come hell or high water. Of course, it means traipsing around all the shops, testing shades until your arms look like they are sun burnt. Why? Because the shade in question, is bright orange.
Admittedly, orange probably wouldn't be the first choice of lipstick for a lot of people but there's something really crisp and fresh about it during the summer months, especially paired with a tan. After much searching, testing, muttering and a rising awareness that I was turning into a weird version of Goldilocks... "Too coral / too red / too bland / too sheer / too autumnal" etc I finally found what I was looking for in Space NK, and it was definitely worth the wait.
Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in Riviera (€28.50) packs a punch and is exactly the kind of orange that I had in my head. It has a matte finish, but it isn't an ordinary matte - it's much more plush than that. When applied, the formula is buttery soft, gliding over lips before drying down to a velvet finish that feels light as air and comfortable (even after a few hours wear), plus, it looks really expensive. More importantly, though, there's no transfer on things like coffee cups once it's settled.
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So, it's thumbs up all round for the colour pay off and application - but what if Riviera isn't your bag? Well, the good news is there are eight other shades in the collection which range from neutrals to red to deep burgundy - so if you like the sound of this but not the colour then fear not.
So, in a nutshell, it looks really expensive, it feels amazing, it lasts for hours, there are plenty of gorgeous shades and it doesn't transfer? We think we might have found the most perfect lipstick line ever.
