Trying out 3CE's Velvet Lip Tints (first impressions and lip swatches)

Hallo, hallo, everyone!

How are you?

I hope you're doing well. As for me, I'm feeling accomplished. I finally went through my inboxes and brought them to 20 unread emails a piece, did my laundry, read a little bit of a new book, and got some paperwork in order to be faxed in the next few hours.

Yes, people still use the fax machine.

Emotionally... Well, as with any process, there are ups and downs. I was slightly down (and a little nauseous) today, but my mood shifted when I realised that this post was the last on my to-do list for today!

As you read from the title, I'm trying out 3CE's Velvet Lip Lints. You can watch the video or continue reading for my first impressions and lip swatches (as well as for more info on the products themselves). I picked these up from YesStyle when they were 60% off the original price...and I wasn't the only one haha! I was going to buy all of them, but four of them made it to the final round.

And it's those four we're going to look at today.

THE PRODUCT

Taken from the product images on YesStyle.com, this lip tint "uses an oil-infused formula to deliver vivd colors and velvety matte texture. It encases lips with a layer of oil, allowing the pigment to spread evenly for soft, plump lips." Very, very true. The formula didn't skip around when I tried it!

When trying it on, I noticed that the formula is incredibly comfortable especially for a matte product. This is due to "spherical elastomers [that] construct a rich yet light primer-like formula that smoothly fills in your lips' ridges and adheres seamlessly, leaving a soft and matte finish."

I found that the formula makes it easy to do gradient lips since it melts easily into your lips but doesn't dry out, making blending easy. Granted, it is a velvet matte formula, but it is the velvetiest matte formula that I've tried.

Let me clarify: This product is honestly the velvetiest product that I've tried EVER. It doesn't dry out to a dry pillowy finish but instead stays moist and pillowy on the lips. I love that the color doesn't separate considering there is oil in the formulation.

THE SHADES

When I bought these, only four were available for purchase. As I'm clicking back and forth from the site and writing this post, it shows that 8 are currently in stock as of (25 April 2020). Not even joking, I'm tempted to buy more...

The following pictures, aside from the name of the product being added to them, are straight from the camera!

NEAR AND DEAR

Of all of the shades, I think 3CE and I see eye to eye on how it performs on my lips and skin tone. Near and Dear is described as a "barely-there makeup look in sweet and gentle mauve pink." Totally agree with them on this! It was certainly barely there for me, and I find that it would work well as an inner lip hue that could be mixed with a darker outer shade.

SAVE ME

The site says that this is a "refreshing and bright peach color," but I found it to be a bit like orange Kool Aid on my lips when I tried it in the video. In the picture, however, I see that it's more of a coral-y shade on me. Either way, it's a fun and wearable bright orange shade. I have other oranges that are bright, but they're so bold that they require an occasion to wear them. I like that this one is a little more subdued and easier to wear.

CHILDLIKE

This came off as a mostly orange than red lip tint on me. 3CE's describes it as a "bold, pure and timeless orange red." Okay, another description we see eye to eye on. (If you watch the video, you can see me fall in love with this shade.)

BEST EVER

Okay, 3CE, we don't see eye to eye on this one. They describe this as a "blooming femme-fatale color between pink and red." What I see is a blue-toned femme fatale red -- my favourite type of red.

Initial Thoughts

Check out my initial thoughts on all of the shades as I try them out on screen below! If you want to avoid all of the ASMR-y bits, skip to 2:12. At the end of the day and after dinner, I found that Best Ever barely faded. In the places it did fade, there was still a tint leftover. You can see how my lips look in the last minute of my video.

And, seriously, at the end of the day I'm in love with all of the shades I purchased and can't wait to play around with them some more. And I might be purchasing some more after flipping back and forth from the site and here as I wrote this post... Hehe. Maybe I'll find my true MLBB shade this time around since Near and Dear is a little too light in my opinion.

That's another point: finding your MLBB shade with this line of lippies from 3CE won't be hard. Why? Because the formula is so forgiving and blends in seamlessly with your lips. Not only that, the shades seem to be universally flattering no matter what shade you pick.

Hey, now -- I know you're looking at me because of the Kool Aid shade. To be honest, that shade grew on me, and I'm excited to play with it!

Alright, guys, that's it. Whether you choose to go with the bolder shades in this collection or the nuder ones, either way, you can't go wrong. If you try this out, let know which shade you got! Be sure to use my rewards code SAMIJOIE at checkout to get a little discount and help out the blog a little bit.

What should I try next?

SJ