I love their name and I love their products. NYX is yet another one of my favorite affordable lines of makeup products with amazing quality. I've tried a few of their eyeshadows and eyebrow products, which had always been a part of my daily makeup routine. nyxcosmetics.com recently had a 50% off sale on all their lip items, so I decided to try their new and highly-raved lip creams, with a couple grabs of their powder blushes as well.
LIP CREAMS
Lately I've been more curious with lip creams/lip stains over lipsticks which was why I was so excited to try the new NYX Soft Matte and Xtreme Shine lip creams. I purchased one bright pink color in the matte cream (Candy Land), and a pop cool-tone pink in the glossy cream (Istanbul). I didn't expect the two colors to end up looking so similar to each other after application. Unfortunately, my overall impression of both these lip creams is a disappointment--I feel mean saying this but it almost felt like playing with 'toy' makeup or children's paint.
Firstly, the scent for both lip creams were overwhelmingly noticeable and smelled like a 'cheap' product. And second, the application process was difficult as the brush tip is quite stiff, creating visible stroke lines on my lips. Lastly, the thickness of the lip cream actually highlights the fine lines on my lips instead of smoothing them out. So unless your lips are perfectly even and free of creases, this product is not worth trying. I do like its great color payoff and the wide range of colors they have available. If I had to choose one, I'd prefer the Xtreme Shine over the Soft Matte lip cream simply because it has a little more glam and doesn't dry out my lips as much as the other. I believe NYX could improve their lip cream in the future, but for now it's just not a hype for me.
Firstly, the scent for both lip creams were overwhelmingly noticeable and smelled like a 'cheap' product. And second, the application process was difficult as the brush tip is quite stiff, creating visible stroke lines on my lips. Lastly, the thickness of the lip cream actually highlights the fine lines on my lips instead of smoothing them out. So unless your lips are perfectly even and free of creases, this product is not worth trying. I do like its great color payoff and the wide range of colors they have available. If I had to choose one, I'd prefer the Xtreme Shine over the Soft Matte lip cream simply because it has a little more glam and doesn't dry out my lips as much as the other. I believe NYX could improve their lip cream in the future, but for now it's just not a hype for me.
Soft Matte Lip Cream in Instanbul (left) - $6 and Xtreme Shine Lip Cream in Candy Land (right) - $6
- Pros
- high pigmentation - great color payoff
- wide variety of colors available
- Cons
- highly noticeable scent - smells like really sweet cotton candy or 'Play-Doh' clay
- doesn't adhere to lips well if you have already applied lip balm
- brush/wand is stiff, does not bend or flex - visible stroke lines
- thick cream, feels heavy and non-hydrating
- dries into your ridges and shows creases
- transfers and smudges outside of lip line
POWDER BLUSH
Now, the NYX Powder Blushers were a great purchase. I ordered the a matte light orange color (Coral Dream) and a matte tan color (Taupe). Amazing product. I'm so impressed with their color payoff, soft texture, and staying power. I'd typically avoid 'coral' colors since 'orange' is already too similar to my yellow beige skin tone. But surprisingly, this Coral Dream shade blends out to a warm peachy flush with my skin and looks quite natural on me than other true pink shades.
Additionally, you might wonder how a taupe color could be a 'blush', but it gives just enough tan and warmth to create dimension without having to add too much color to your overall makeup look. This taupe blush powder can be used to contour the sides of your nose, cheeks, temples, and jaw line while still drawing the focus to your eyeshadow or lips. I'd strongly recommend the NYX Powder Blush to everyone as it is a definite hype for me--I wish I had more!
NYX Powder Blush in Coral Dream (top) and in Taupe (bottom) - $5
- Pros
- affordable product for great quality - bang for your buck
- color pigmentation and payoff is accurate
- soft powder, very blend-able
- long lasting wear, matte for natural finish
- taupe shade is perfect for adding some dimension without over-doing colors
- Cons
- color previews online do not depict accurate color swatch
- some lighter colors with shimmers may not be as pigmented for darker skin tones
I hope this has been helpful! NYX Cosmetics is an innovative makeup company that's always improving their products and creating new ones with great quality and affordability for us to explore. Do check out their website at nyxcosmetics.com for more products and colors*!
*I noticed the colors displayed on the website do not always look the same in person. I do suggest reading the descriptions carefully to compare matte vs. shimmer, cool vs. warm, etc.
