Remember when I said lip liners were entirely superfluous products in my make-up bag? Yeah, that was 2.5 years ago now, and nearly all of the lip liners shown in that post have since been decluttered. Until a few weeks ago, my lip liner stash consisted of a red and a universal transparent liner, and I found myself hankering after something else - a neutral nude shade to define the contours of my lips for a more perfected everyday look.
What I've been noticing more lately about my lips is that my natural lip line is not very well defined; the pigment of my lips gets sort of fainter and uneven towards the contours of my lips, and on top of that, I have freckles exactly on my lip line (especially top lip) which make it look even more messy. I don't mind it most of the time, especially when I'm wearing a sheer lip (either a gloss or tinted balm) - but when I opt for a more pigmented lipstick in a shade deeper than a very pale nude, the haziness of my lip line becomes very obvious and the overall look is sort of unfinished. I sometimes use concealer around my lips to help with that, but I thought lip liner could be a quicker option with the benefit of prolonging the wear on my lip products and preventing them from bleeding outside my lips.
To cut my long story short, I decided to pull the trigger on NYX Slide On Glide On Waterproof Lip Liner in Nude Suede Shoes ($7.99 for 0.04 oz) after hearing it recommended numerous times by Emily Noel on YouTube. I liked my NYX Slide On eyeliner pencils in the past (reviewed here - those two dried out though and had to be thrown out!), so I thought this product was worth trying out, even though the price is quite up there compared to other drugstore lip liner options.
The NYX Slide On Lip Liner is a simple non retractable pencil that easily sharpens with my Urban Decay Grindhouse. The formula is similar to that of the eye Slide-ons, meaning gel-like, very soft, creamy, smooth and highly pigmented. It's one of those newer generation lip pencils that glide on the lips without tugging, and are easy to blend out before they set. The finish is completely matte, no shimmer whatsoever, and I can't detect any scent to the product. On my lips, it doesn't feel too too drying, but I'd also say it's not entirely budge-proof: it will partially come off on cups or during a meal, but it certainly enhances the wear time of more emollient or glossy products layered over the top.
L-R: NYX Nude Suede Shoes, Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Warm Me Up, Ilia Beauty Lipstick in The Brides, Bite High Pigment Lip Pencil in Sable
Now, is the shade Nude Suede Shoes my perfect natural nude? Uhm, not really - but it's still a lot better than other 'nude' lip liners I've had in the past. On me, it pulls a beigy brown shade that sits somewhere between darker nude and a My Lips But Better in terms of depth. I believe that on people with warmer (and deeper) skintones, it would be that ideal muted pink nude for everyday. As you may be able to tell, with my coloring, NYX Nude Suede Shoes is more of that trendy Kylie Jenner lip - I don't necessarily hate it but it's slightly out of my comfort zone. Compared to my favorite darker nude lipsticks, Nude Suede Shoes is definitely warmer and more brown.
NYX Slide On Lip Liner in Nude Suede Shoes worn all over bare lips on NW15 skintone.
That doesn't disqualify it though as a layering option. Sure, it doesn't pair well with very cool/ mauve nudes and MLBBs in my stash, but it does work with the two lipsticks from the right side of my swatch (ILIA The Brides - sneaky peaky of their Fall 2016 release - and a now completely used up Bite Sable High Pigment Lip Pencil), and a lot of my sheer nude options, especially when used with a lighter hand and softly blended in. It's also a lip liner you could absolutely wear on its own, but as you may be able to see in the mug shot, currently my poor dry lips can't take that matte finish without something creamier/ more emollient layered over the top.
I've also realized why I really have such a love/ hate relationship with lip liners. When I give myself a more defined and filled in lip contour (I'm not talking about over lining here! Just evening out my natural lip line), my lips instantly look A LOT bigger. And I'm not used to seeing myself with such full lips - even without lining they're kinda on the big side, and with the liner, I feel like my face is dominated by those fat pouty lips. I'm guessing you guys are probably rolling your eyes at me right now, but for whatever reason, I haven't been able to fully embrace that look on me (also, some people have commented my lips have gotten even bigger/ more swollen in pregnancy). I don't know though - maybe it's time to just go with it and experiment with playing up my lips instead of the eyes? We shall see.
Back to the NYX Nude Suede Shoes, I think it's a really good drugstore lip liner and I would safely recommend it - just be aware that if your coloring is similar to mine, it's not going to be a real nude on you. I actually picked up another drugstore lip liner in the same order that's a lot more of a cool mauve shade, so I shall experiment (and review) that one next. Do you guys wear lip liners? Is it an indispensible part of your make-up routine or something you only pull out for special occasions?