The L'Oreal Couleur Riche Caresse Aqua Lip Lacquer is a new product that has hit the shelves for Spring 2013! I got the color #184 Rose On and On. The color in the packaging looks like a sweet rose baby-pink with a tad bit of sparkle. The applicator looks like an arrow head. The formula has a slight floral smell and when first applied the formula feels slightly watery and glides on very quickly and easily. I applied two coats and after the color set for at least 5 minutes it became a little "tacky". The initial lighter pink color blooms to a slightly more rose-color that is absolutely lovely.
As stated previously the product becomes a little "tacky" or "sticky" on the lips after about 5 minutes. I believe this is due to the polymer that is in the formula that keeps the gloss so shiny on the lips for so long (more on that in a moment). The following picture is two coats that I have been wearing for 2 and a half hours. I also drank an Icee out of a straw on my way home from the store!
I believe that these products are exact duplicates of the Yves Saint Laurent Glossy Stains. YSL is owned by L'oreal after all! I have tried many of the colors of the YSL Glossy Stains at Sephora and have noticed many similarities. The two products have virtually the same floral scent when applied. Both products feel slightly "tacky" after 5 minutes of wear and they wear for many hours after application. Both products even have similar colors (I will be looking for exact dupes soon)!
The YSL Glossy Stains contain a polymer that is the same polymer that is used in gel-coatings of pills or vitamins (ever seen the shiny outside of a fish oil supplement?). This polymer is what keeps that glossy shine on your lips for hours after application and what makes the lip color last so long. And it is obviously safe for ingestion since we swallow these gel pills all of the time! To me, once I found out about the polymers in the YSL Glossy Stains the stickiness feeling of the gloss made sense! It feels exactly like I have a gel capsule on my lips if I rub them together!
My advice would be to apply and leave your lips alone and don't rub them together if stickiness bothers you at all. This stickiness in both the YSL and the L'Oreal products is what makes them so shiny and so long-wearing and beautiful. If stickiness doesn't bother you, rub away and the product stays gorgeous!
Summary: Please get to your local drugstore and pick up one or more of these lacquers as soon as you can before your favorite color sells out! If you like the YSL glossy stains you will love these because they are the same product just in different packaging. There is a slight floral scent and taste to these lacquers only if you hold your tongue on them. They are tacky and shiny enough to hold on your lips for hours. The color and shine are beautiful and long-lasting and long-wearing. The L'oreal Couleur Riche Caresse Aqua Lip Lacquers are a huge win in my book, and only around $8 vs. the $32 YSL dupes!
Tell me if you like them too!
~Claire~
