Enter The Glass Room With OCC Makeup’s New Lip Tar Stained Gloss
Even the richest, most saturated lip gloss tends to be, well, sheer. It’s a constant source of frustration for those who appreciate the mirror-like sheen of gloss but can’t fathom life without the full coverage and the color intensity offered by lipstick. The genial minds at Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics have developed a product that aims to satisfy the needs of lip gloss fans and lipstick aficionados alike: the new OCC Makeup Lip Tar: Stained Gloss.
Inspired by stained glass windows made of vibrant panels that were still transparent, OCC created a new version of its Lip Tar (itself a beauty cult favorite). The idea, then, was to combine the opacity and pigment saturation of the original Lip Tar formula with an ultra-glossy, slick-as-can-be finish so that, ultimately, a somewhat see-through, glassy look would be created — without the color being overly diluted in the process.
Because I’m a lipstick fanatic — in part due to the fact that I find glosses so frustratingly sheer and I do love a bright pout — and because I’m such an avid fan of OCC’s Lip Tar, I was beyond intrigued by the idea of the OCC Lip Tar: Stained Gloss. The introductory OCC Lip Tar: Stained Gloss collection counts on six shades, each retailing for $18 at OCCMakeup.com and Sephora.com. The shades in the collection are:
Jealous: A glassy cherry red with warm undertones reminiscent of a cherry lollipop
New Wave: A glassy neon pink
Voyeur: A yellow glaze that creates a peach tone
Meta: A vermillion shade with a vinyl-like sheen
Androgyne: A psychedelic kumquat-meets-tangerine orange
Rhythm Box: A mulberry-esque, purple-y burgundy
Thus far, I’ve tried two of the six shades: Jealous and New Wave. Both capture the vivacity of the summer season, while their tones tap into 1980s pop culture (think neon spandex, leg warmers, and mesh armbands; carnival-worthy beaded necklaces; and the outlandish and oh-so-fun outfits donned by Boy George and the Culture Club, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, and Olivia Newton John). And, as promised, both have this glass-like sheen that makes them reminiscent of frozen popsicles, rendering them all the more suited for a summer makeup bag.
To apply these, you want to use the same technique you’d utilize with the OCC Lip Tars — squeeze a dab of color out of the Stained Gloss tube and onto the bristles of the accompanying lip brush then carefully glide the color onto lips, making sure to contour your pout as desired and reapply as needed.
As with the original Lip Tars, these contain hemp oil, castor, oil, and peppermint oil to cool, soothe, soften and moisturize lips but, interestingly enough, the peppermint oil seems much more potent in this iteration — so much so that you can smell it when you apply the glossy liquid color onto your lips and you can feel the tingling and cooling effect of the botanical extract.
Overall, I enjoyed the glossy finish of these shades, but I did find they weren’t as long-lasting as the original OCC Lip Tars. The pigments never seemed to fully adhere to my pout so that, within an hour or two, the bright and semi-transparent color I had admired in the mirror had all but vanished, leaving behind a lip stain that, although pretty, didn’t pack the color wallop I so desired. Also, while I appreciate the glassy finish, I love the creaminess of the original Lip Tars (which these lack). Still, they far outperform most glosses I’ve ever tried in terms of their pigment saturation, which should really be celebrated. If OCC simply tinkers with the formula a bit to make these Stained Glosses longer-lasting, they won’t be able to keep these on shelves!
Take a look at these swatches of the Jealous and New Wave shades:
As you can see, the New Wave color is an extraordinarily bright pink that makes its name all the more fitting. I almost immediately thought of the movie poster for the ’80s classic Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, of the hi-top Converse Chuck Taylors in fluorescent pink I owned in grade school, of the Jem cartoons I watched as a kid.
Check out how it looks when you first apply it:
Next, check out how the Jealous shade looks like on lips. As you’ll see, the color has warm, almost orange-y undertones but it’s still this lovely Maraschino red color:
Overall, I think the colors are pretty and these do have a nice glossy sheen to them but, again, I do wish they were longer-lasting. I’m personally sticking to the original Lip Tar formula but, like I said, I prefer their creamy consistency, their satin finish and their overall color saturation.
