Mary Kay Celebrates Beauty that Counts with limited edition lipstick and lipgloss because One Woman Can

Mary Kay is a name not unfamiliar to many people. Its familiar to me, but much to my surprise, I have never in all my years come across a Mary Kay representative. Rather, I’ve never had anyone approach me to sell me the products, have you? So its probably not surprising that I have not yet tried anything from the popular direct selling brand.

However, I have in recent times had people tell me to give some of their products a go. Mascara is one of them, as is their lipgloss and lipstick. I’m also told their eyeshadows are very impressive at a wallet friendly price tag, so that’s another item I’m quite interested in. Have you tried them?

But I digress, because what we’re on about today is the Mary Kay Beauty that Counts limited edition Nourishine Plus lip gloss in “Celebrate” and the Creme Lipstick in “One Woman Can” – although what I really wanted to say is “LOOK AT THE PRETTY SWIRLS!” I am put in mind of Raspberry Ripple ice cream.

The Nourishine Plus lip gloss in Celebrate is a limited edition shade. What it is is a creamy pale pink gloss swirled through with golden shimmer, as you see in the tube. The tube is small and compact and the applicator is a doe foot sponge applicator.

You maybe wondering what the colour is, and it is exactly as I decribed – a creamy pale pink with golden shimmer. Another interesting thing you may be wondering about is whether the swirls will be disturbed once you use the gloss for the first time. Well, the answer is no. I believe its actually a doublewalled construction so the pretty swirls are preserved. I tried using the applicator to stir up the inside, and also to dig against the sides of the tube, but none of the swirls were disturbed.

The limited edition “One Woman Can” Creme lipstick looks like raspberry jam to me, for some obscure reason. It is a shimmer pink swirled with a creamy berry that has no shimmer. If you tilt it one way, you can apply just the shimmer pink. If you tilt it another, you can get just the berry.

If you blend it, you get a pretty shimmer berry. However, I have to warn you that if you use it directly from the bullet as I did, you may find that it applies on lips in 2 shades. In my case, the outer part of my lips were lighter than the inner part of my lips. If you then press your lips together, it will blend it somewhat. Sort of an interesting ombre lip look with just 1 swipe.

Mary Kay Beauty that Counts Left: Creme Lipstick in One Woman Can; Right: Nourishine Lipgloss in Celebrate

You can see from the swatches on my arm that the lipstick does apply as a duo tone. The shimmer side is a pink while the non shimmer side is a berry. The lipgloss is a creamy light pink with golden shimmer. Come closer and you should be able to see it in the picture.

I must say, I was quite impressed by the quality. The Creme lipstick felt comfortable on my lips and is fairly pigmented and creamy. It wasn’t drying and I liked how lightweight it was. It really belies the small pricetag and with this one, RM3 will be donated from every sale of this lipstick and lipgloss to the Pusat Kebajikan HOPE Worldwide Kuala Lumpur.

This is a global initiative, in case you are wondering. In the USA, $1 is donated to a charity there and this will begin on 16 May 2013 and run till 31 December 2013. So this means that if you buy either of these products (or both) you will do a wee bit of good

As for the Nourishine Lipgloss, I am your world’s pickiest lipgloss user so I really wanted to know if I’d like this gloss. Well, I did, to a degree. Its not too sticky, and it isn’t too goopy either. Perhaps I wasn’t too thrilled about this because I didn’t like how the colour looked on me. Here’s what the lip swatches look like.

Left: Nourishine Lipgloss in Celebrate | Right: Creme Lipstick in One Woman Can

If you like pale pink lip glosses that give a “nude” finish, then you may like this one. The golden shimmer is not too noticeable and the gloss gives a lovely shine to the lips. The colour however, makes me look too pale so its not something I’d go for. Perhaps, if it was a more vibrant colour, I would like it better.

The lipstick is, as you can see, a berry shade on my lips. It is slightly lighter around the edges where the shimmer pink shade is, but I pressed my lips together a few times and got the colour blended. Interestingly, I can imagine that the colour will change slightly as you use up the tube, because the swirls will be different.

I layered the lipgloss over the lipstick in this picture to show you how it’ll look.

I dotted the Celebrate lipgloss in the middle of the lips after applying One Woman Can lipstick, and then lightly press my lips together to spread and blend the gloss. It adds a shine to the lips and lightens up the lip colour.

Other items worn: Maybelline Color Tattoo Bad to the Bronze, Bobbi Brown Apricot blush

Personally, I’d say I’m impressed with the lipstick and I would be keen to see how other colours fare. The lipgloss, I’d hold off judgement till I get a colour I like. Texture wise, its not bad, but colourwise, it didn’t suit me. Its not to say it won’t suit you though

In a nutshell

The Mary Kay Celebrate Nourishine Lipgloss and One Woman Can Creme Lipstick are limited edition items for the Mary Kay Beauty that Counts programme. With every purchase of these 2 items, Mary Kay will donate RM3 to raise funds to aid the Pusat Kebajikan HOPE Worldwide Kuala Lumpur to provide underprivileged patients with medical care. This is a global initiative with different charities benefiting from this programme. I like the texture and colour of the Creme Lipstick. It felt comfortable on my lips and did not dry out nor feel sticky. Colour was fairly pigmented and the swirls make for an interesting lip colour combination as you go along. The Nourishine Lipgloss feels a little thick and it is quite nice and glossy without being too sticky. However, the pale pink shade does not suit me and so I was less enamoured with it. Otherwise, I think they’re both light on the wallet, and go towards a good cause, plus you help a Mary Kay representative make a sale

Pros: Affordable, Creme lipstick was creamy and pigmented and comfortable on lips without being drying, Nourishine Lipgloss was not too sticky or goopy and had a nice shine and gloss

Cons: Unless you know a Mary Kay representative, their products aren’t easy to find

Who will like this: Anyone who likes a berry-pink lip colour, Anyone who like creamy pale pink lipglosses

Have you tried any Mary Kay makeup that you think is worth trying? Would you wear either of these colours?

I must say I’m quite pleasantly surprised by this foray into Mary Kay makeup. I am usually quite sceptical about makeup sold through direct sales (I’ve tried a few brands over the years) but this one surprised me and made me interested to try more from the brand. I’d say that’s a good thing!

Paris B

Mary Kay Beauty that Counts Creme Lipstick in One Woman Can and Nourishine LipGloss in Celebrate Price: RM50 each Availability: Mary Kay Beauty Consultants. Find one at www.marykay.com.my Limited Edition: Yes