Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Lipstick & Lipliner in Ex-Girlfriend

Hello, Beautiful!

When Urban Decay first announced they were collaborating with Gwen Stefani, the 12 year old in me exploded with joy. I used to idolize her; I wanted to be her! Of course I ordered the eyeshadow palette as soon as it came out. Then I saw the Ex-Girlfriend lipstick that was coming soon (we received samples with the palette) and I knew I had to have it. As soon as it launched, I bought the Ex-Girlfriend lipstick and the Ex-Girlfriend lip liner.

I had seen swatches upon swatches from famous Instagramers who already received press samples of all the shades, and Ex-Girlfriend looked like the PERFECT pinky nude combo. I ripped open my Sephora package as soon as it arrived and couldn't wait to get these on my lips.... and thats when my balloon popped and all my excitement escaped and I felt deflated. I'll explain why throughout this post....

First, I ordered mine from Sephora - but you can get it at Urban Decay's website and I'm sure eventually it will be at Nordstrom, Ulta, Macy's, etc.

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani 
Lipstick and Lip Liner
Shade: Ex-Girlfriend

Here is what the packaging looks like; the same pretty packaging from the shadow palette. I absolutely LOVE the white and gold (that's a theme at my desk at work).

Let's start with the Ex-Girlfriend Lipstick....

It looks beautiful in the package and the lipstick tube itself is pretty.

I kind of wish the lipstick tube was also white and gold instead of black and gold, but I like it all the same. One thing I will say is it feels cheap; very lightweight and inexpensive feeling. I was expecting more, especially with how sturdy and well put together the Gwen Stefani shadow palette is.

Even the shade name sticker on the bottom is very plain and just seems like it was rushed or very little thought went into the process.

But I can look past any packaging flaws if the product itself is beautiful, and just look at this lipstick.... it certainly is a beauty!

It looks like a perfect everyday pinky nude shade; exactly what I was hoping for!

There is some slight shimmer in the lipstick but I don't really see it translate to the lips other than shine; I don't see or feel any shimmer on the lips.

This shade is a sheer shade - which I don't totally hate, because it's buildable - but at the same time, I think this shade fully opaque would be near perfection! I'm not sure which lipstick formula from Urban Decay this is... I'm assuming their Sheer Revolution Lipsticks, but I can't be certain because it's not mentioned on the box like the Lip Liner is mentioned as the 24/7 Glide-On Lip Liner.

As you can see in the swatch pic, it is very glossy and you can see it looks patchy due to being sheer and going over it with a few passes.

On the lips, it's very sheer and can be built up just slightly more than what you see below. Keep in mind these lip swatch pics are some of my worst - not just the fact my lips are super dry (from being sick), but also the light and angles and my foundation was a wreck all around my lips. But you'll still get the shade idea....

I guess if you look really, really, really close you might see a hint of shimmer but it is faint.

Now let's move onto the lip liner....

This is one of Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-On Lip Pencils, which I do like those formulas so I was really excited about this lip pencil; I could see myself pairing it with a number of lipsticks I already own.

 

As you can see, it looks like a gorgeous pinky nude shade....

And then I swatched it... and it turned more brown.... an almost orange undertone pink brown... certainly not what I expected.

Again, I apologize for the EXTREMELY bad lip swatch and my horribly dry lips, but I wanted to show you what the lip liner looked like on its own.....

The swatch actually looks a bit lighter than in person.

Here are what the lip liner and lipstick look like swatched next to each other.... you can see the lipstick has a much more pink tone than the lip liner. They certainly do compliment one another though, and don't get me wrong, they're pretty.... but you'll see what I mean....

Here is what the lipstick looks like over top the liner. I have to say, again, it looks darker in person than in this pic. In person my lips definitely take on a brown hue. In the lip swatch pic below, I can see more pink tones but not in person. The studio lights are doing this duo some favors.

So to re-cap:

FINAL THOUGHTS...

Even though the lip liner made everything darker than expected, I don't regret the purchase and can still use these. I love the lipstick on its own and over other liners I own. I sort of like the combo above, but I'm not a fan of brown lips so if any lip color even goes slightly brown on me I'm instantly not a fan. I think I have to warm up to it.

As for staying power, the lip liner is a long wear product - the lipstick is not. But together I get decent wear - depending on how much I'm drinking/eating.

I know this shade was sold out at Sephora, and it makes sense since the other 3 shades are bold/vivid shades - leaving this to be the only nude/everyday shade option - which I think a lot of people would prefer.

Let me know if you picked up either of these products and in what shade!

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this product? Have you tried this, or would you consider adding this to your beauty wish list? Discuss in the comments below!

xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Palette - swatches & review

Hello, Beautiful!

With a new palette being released all the time, from just about every makeup brand out there, it's hard to get excited (repeatedly) over each and every one. However, I was REALLY excited about the Urban Decay and Gwen Stefani collaboration palette!

I've been a fan of Gwen Stefani since her No Doubt days (I wanted to be Gwen when I was younger and had the song Spiderwebs playing on my answering machine when I had my own phone line in my bedroom). So I knew I HAD to get this palette. After seeing pics online, I was thrilled. I know many people were disappointed by the number of neutral shades, but I saw a lot of potential with the palette. Plus, I love neutrals and this palette seemed very cohesive.

This palette is MUCH prettier in person than in all the pics you may have previously seen online. Even my pics don't do this palette justice.  At the time I wrote this post, it was sold out but it should come back in stock. It is limited edition though, so if you're interested in this palette you don't want to wait if you see it back in stock.

Check out all the product info, along with my full review, after the pics!

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani palette Info & Review

Cost: $58.00
Availability: Available on the Urban Decay website, at Sephora, and at select other retailers (Ulta, Macys).

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Kisses!

PRODUCT DETAILS & CLAIMS...

Urban Decay partnered with Gwen Stefani to create the ultimate eyeshadow collection filled with 15 of her can't-live-without shades. Gwen designed and developed the palette, spending countless hours and making every detail just right.

There are 12 new shades in this palette and 3 are current Urban Decay shadows.

Each shadow pan is 0.04 oz

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Palette

This palette is really sturdy and feels well made. When you open it up (as you can see in the pic above), it does have a hinge so you can prop it open and actually use the large mirror that is included. I like that about this palette and put it to good use on my most recent trip to Pennsylvania.

The outside of the palette is really interesting.... a gold border surrounds a white background with black polka dots. A metal Urban Decay | Gwen Stefani plaque is on top of that. There is dimension to the palette front, which I like.

The back of the palette is gold with the Urban Decay palette info sticker. Excuse all the finger prints... I was excited to swatch this palette and didn't take time to properly prep it for photos.

On the bottom right corner of the mirror there is a little message printed that says "Magic's In The Makeup".



Here are all the gorgeous shades included in this palette. You get 15 full sized eyeshadows.

Here are close up pics of each shade, and their swatches.... going row by row.

The top row has shades Blonde, Bathwater, Skimp, Steady and Punk.

Blonde is a pale beige with a pink iridescent shift. 

Bathwater is a pale beige with gold pearl.

Skimp is a pale nude satin.

Steady is a medium rose with metallic gold shift.

Punk is a reddish brown matte.

The middle row has shades Baby, Anaheim, Stark, Zone, Serious.

Baby is a cool metallic rose.

Anaheim is a light taupe-brown matte.

Stark is a nude-pink matte.

Zone is a medium brown matte.

Serious is a smoky gray with iridescent floating pearl.

The bottom row has shades Pop, Harajuku, Danger, 1987 and Blackout.

Pop is a pale coral with iridescent sparkle.

Harajuku is a metallic blue-pink with iridescent micro-shimmer.

Danger is a deep metallic royal blue with blue micro-sparkle.

1987 is a bright metallic yellow-gold.

Blackout is the blackest black matte.

FINAL THOUGHTS...

This palette far exceeds my expectations and I couldn't be more pleased with it. It's a very cohesive palette too; you could take just this palette with you and have all you need to create a wide range of looks.

Probably the only let-down shade for me was the shade Serious -- and it's not even that much of a let down. In the pan it looks like a beautiful gray with sparkle, but it doesn't translate to the lid that way. It more so just looks like a satin finish gray, which is still okay for me because I love gray shades.

My favorite shades (so far) are Baby, Punk, Pop, Blackout, Anaheim, Zone and Steady. But I really do like them all... well with the exception of Harajuku (it's just not a pink shade that appeals to me, but maybe I can make it work).

If you love neutral shades and like the Urban Decay shadow formula, you need this palette in your life. If you're a fan of Gwen Stefani, you need this palette in your life. The only reason I'd say to stay away from this palette is if you don't enjoy neutrals. Other than that, I couldn't recommend this one more. It's just a beauty inside and out!

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this palette? Have you tried this, or would you consider adding this to your beauty wish list? Discuss in the comments below!

xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine