Bright Lips, Bright City — Check Out These Vivid FACE Stockholm Lipsticks

Bright lips have been in vogue for several seasons now and, much to my delight, the trend will continue through the fall season (though the lipscape will also include vampy plum and mulberry hues, creamy nudes, and classic reds). Still, there’s something about hot pink and sizzling coral lips that feels highly evocative of summertime so, before the warm weather comes to a screeching halt, reach for the bubbliest, perkiest, most va-va-va-voom shades of fuchsia, magenta, honeysuckle pink, coral, and fluorescent pink you can find.

That was definitely my mindset when I tried the FACE Stockholm V.I.P. and Summer lipsticks (each available for $22 at FACEstockholm.com), two of the shades that the Swedish cosmetics company recommended for Summer 2013.

The V.I.P. shade is a creamy lip color in a medium-toned bubblegum pink shade with a sprinkle of lilac and metallic pink shimmer to give the hue a bit of an iridescent finish. Right away, I pictured Barbie’s Glam Convertible (yes, she’s clearly traded up in the wheels department since my days of playing with dolls) and, then, I pictured Paris Hilton wearing a dress in this very color (since after all, doesn’t the gal aspire to be a living and breathing Barbie?). The lipstick offers a decent amount of coverage and it has a nice satin finish, so that the shimmer isn’t overpowering and it doesn’t make lips look like they were struck by a glitterbomb. And again, the iridescent element is key here since it’s part of what makes the color feel unique.

The Summer shade, meanwhile, is more of a reddish hue though its berry-esque tonality makes it approximate a deep pink. This creamy shade offers full coverage and has a creamy and positively delicious texture, plus the satin finish makes it glisten just the right amount. Every time I see the shade, I’m reminded of fresh raspberries and cherry popsicles.

Check out swatches of the two lipstick hues below:

Below, you’ll find some shots of me wearing the FACE Stockholm Summer lipstick.

And here I am rocking the V.I.P. shade:

Now, my one gripe with these lipsticks is that they don’t last for very long at all. Though the formula feels nice on lips and isn’t drying by any means, the color never seems to fully adhere to your pout. I found that the color tended to migrate to the outer corners of the mouth, concentrating on the crevices of the bottom lip, running and feathering entirely too much. If you want to make sure the color stays in place, then, I’d recommend using a lip primer (or even dabbing some foundation on lips) before applying the lipstick and, to further lock it in, you can add a bit of lip pencil atop the lipstick color (sounds counterintuitive but it works). FACE Stockholm’s Lip Liners come in shades very similar to those of these lipsticks so you can always find the right counterpart and smooth a bit of that lip pencil above your lipstick. Otherwise, just make sure to reapply every so often!