Lip Glosses That Don’t Stick For a ’90s Vibe
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Like it or not, there’s no denying lip glosses are back with a vengeance. After what seems like years of matte lipsticks, it’s oddly refreshing to be able to swipe on a slick of something sweet and head out of the door. But many have reservations about lipgloss – primarily for one reason. The sticky, gloopy feeling is both unpleasant and impractical. As anyone who has ever tried to remove lip gloss from their hair will know.
Luckily, the new breed of lip glosses on the market manages to avoid that sticky situation. All the while retaining that iconic high-shine finish. Here’s our roundup of the very best.
Lip Glosses With An Oil Feature
With one of the strangest product names on the market, the Kiehls Love Oil For Lips is a surprisingly great product. It does feel more like an oil than a gloss, but it gives an impressively glassy reflect. It also comes in a range of stunning tints – with the deep blackcurrant Midnight Orchid being my fave. The Rodin Lip & Cheek Oils have a similarly slippery texture but have a doe foot applicator if that’s more up your street.
An oldie but a goldie is the Bobbi Brown Crushed Oil Infused Gloss. They’re essentially the perfect lip gloss formula – not too thick, not too thin, not too sheer, not too opaque. The shade Slow Jam, in particular, has been a total workhorse for me, offering a just-bitten wash of color plus tons of non-sticky shine.
The Hourglass Lip Treatment Oils are less oily feeling than the above, offering more of a balm vibe. The shade Adorn, a mauvey-pink, is universally flattering. I also find that they do actually have an impact when it comes to lip hydration – plus, they smell as expensive as they are.
A similar formulation that offers more in the way of interesting, trendy colors is the Stila Beauty Boss Lip Glosses. They feel pleasantly thin and moveable on the lips. Shades like Whitespace (a holographic white), Blue Sky (a violet with blue shift), and Empowering (a neon magenta red) are just great fun.
Shine
If you fancy some plumping action with your shine, the Too Faced Tinted Lip Injections are amazing. I’ve never had such a dramatic impact from a plumping gloss, ever. They feel nicely thin and hydrating while still offering tons of shine. I find each of the tints gives a fairly similar effect (a warmer, pinker pout) – but it’s definitely a pretty one.
Speaking of shine, the Essence Shine Shine Shine glosses are perfectly named. If you want a super reflective clear gloss, I really don’t think you can do better than this. It’s unbelievably affordable, too. If you want more shade options, though the Colourpop So Juicy Plumping Glosses are fantastic, and feel similarly soft and slippy (rather than sticky). The ‘90s brown shade Saddle is my top pick of the enormous shade range.
If you prefer a little shimmer in your gloss, never fear. The Kevyn Aucoin Glass Glow Lips offer a dimensional finish that makes lips look super shiny and plump – but they feel almost like a lip balm. Similar (though with a larger shade range and perhaps a little thinner in formulation) is the Fenty Beauty Gloss Bombs. The two new shades, Sweet Mouth (a baby pink) and Hot Chocolit (a dimensional brown nude) are mouthwateringly beautiful.
My final recommendation is for those who cannot stand lip gloss in any form, yet still want to hop aboard the shiny lips trend. In terms of balms, the Tarte Quench Lip Rescues are perhaps the shiniest I’ve ever tried. The shade range is extensive and gorgeous. But the lighter shades (Nude, Rose, and Buff) are the best for achieving a truly glossy-looking pout – hold the gloss.
