Essence and I, we don’t get along. I used to like the brand until they screwed up customer service on their social media. Then came a nut case going after me on Facebook because the eyeliner pot I bought was all dried up and Essence did not want to take responsibility. It’s either this nut case is a hard core fan of Essence cosmetics Malaysia or she is someone working in Essence Malaysia lol. Anyway…

So. I’ve been hearing about the Essence Longlasting Lipliner for quite some time. I am on the lip liner kick a few months ago and it never crossed my mind to even check out Essence. Why spend on a brand that doesn’t care about their customer and customer service right? That’s what I had in mind for years. One crazy afternoon swatching at Watsons without any supervision and that’s it. I went home with these lip liners.

Despite the brand having a permanent placement in selective Watsons stores and they are quite easy to bump into, I always find that their products are either out of stock or they are not fully displayed. I absolutely hate shelves that are neither here or there. The Longlasting Lipliner are quite a new range in Essence and they are a pain to search for. It is always out of stocks. I finally found tons of it at Watsons Damansara Uptown. That afternoon, I bought just 2 lipliner – 08 Girl Next Door and 07 Plum Case. A week later, I took a casual morning stroll at Watsons Kajang and bought another 2 lipliner – 05 Lovely Frappucino and 06 A Girl’s Dream.

I don’t know how many shades they have because like I mentioned, their stocks are neither here or there. There’s always something missing. One thing I have to warn you is that the packaging colour does not reflect the lipliner shade. What you see on the outside is different from the lipliner itself. I went back to repurchase 2 more lipliner because they are really good.

I’ve heard about 05 Lovely Frappucino a lot, but upon swatching all 3 nude shades available (09 Purely Me, 08 Girl Next Door, 05 Lovely Frappucino), I have decided with 08 Girl Next Door as the nude shade are not too light or dark. On my hand that is lol. Upon applying onto my lips, I regretted not getting 05 Lovely Frappucino instead. I looked like I am sick or something. It is too pale on me.

My favourite shade has got to be my all-time go-to mauve shade. 07 Plum Cake is the perfect everyday mauve shade. I am so happy with this shade as I can even wear it on it’s own as replacement to lipstick.

05 Lovely Frappucino is the most confusing shade. On swatch, it is more red brown than a nude brown. That is also the reason why I didn’t want to get it at first. I just don’t do chocolate shade for my lips. However, on my lips it’s a gorgeous nude with a hint of pink in it. Kinda reminds me of Burberry Lip Velvet Peony Rose.

06 A Girl’s Dream is a deep red shade. I thought I needed a red lipliner in my life. I fell in love with it upon swatching, but on my lips it is far more red than I expected. Usually I just top it up with a lip gloss or a sickly nude shade that are not suitable to be worn on it’s own 😀

Now, what are so awesome about these Essence Longlasting Lipliner you asked? I have tried so many lipliner and they are all too waxy, too draggy and too drying on the lips. Some even tend to detach the top skin layer off from the lips and I ended up with huge skin flakes on my lips. Before this, I find that Golden Rose Dream Lips Lipliner that are equally good and affordable although I think they are a tiny bit waxy for my liking. But they are good. When I’ve tried these Essence Longlasting Lipliner, that’s it. I have found the holy grail lipliner that I’ve been looking for.

Normally before I start to do my makeup, I will apply a thin layer of lip balm and blot all that way before using lipliner. These Longlasting Lipliner went on the lips SO SMOOTHLY and non patchy. When you do apply the lipliner on dry lips, you will find that it is slightly waxy on application. That’s what I discovered when I was photographing the above lip swatches. I didn’t know that as I’ve been applying them after I removed the lip balm. It stays on the lips without any tackiness even when I pressed both lips together. It does not dry my lips nor does it flakes the skin. I like that it prolong my lipstick even after food and drinks. Did I also mention that it doesn’t crease or settles into the nasty fine lines on my lips? A RM8.90 lipliner that I would highly recommend 🙂

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored review. I bought the product on my own.