Photos by Danes Capuyon
I love lipstick. I feel like it’s the one thing that I can put on and feel confident with even if I have nothing else on my face. It just pulls my entire look together. It can take me from trash-bag-that-just-woke-up-and-rolled-out-of-bed-ungracefully to trash-bag-that-just-woke-up-and-rolled-out-of-bed-ungracefully with attitude. So if it fades after a long day, I feel my power draining, too. So even if my standards for men are stupidly low, my standards for lipstick are a little up there.
And I especially love matte lipstick. It’s just so sophisticated and charming. Glossy lips are a look for sure but it takes a lot of commitment from me to want to keep a very transferable lippie on my face–especially with how messy I eat.
The hunt for the perfect lipstick never ends. There are some that come close to perfect but just lack in a few qualities. Maybe they’re full-color but they just crack like crazy. Maybe they stay on all day but they feel uncomfortable. It’s a struggle. Then God answered my prayers in the form of a Korea-formulated, locally-sold lipstick.
Introducing SHE Cosmetics.Â
SHE Cosmetics is a line of five lipsticks, all the brainchild of actress Kris Bernal. Formulated in Korea and sold here, the actress spent so much time painstakingly researching her ingredients, formula, and a company that would create the lipstick to her exact specifications–down to color, feel, and packaging. And was it worth that almost year-long wait? You betcha.
Kris Bernal and I share a similar love for lipstick. “Without wearing lipstick, feel ko hubad ako!” She admits with a laugh.
First, before I get to my Poblacion story, let me talk about these lipsticks. Because they’re slowly becoming a new fave to me, a girl who owns way too many lipsticks for her own good (my current collection stands at about 100–it’s a problem, I know, I’m sorry Marie Kondo).
Full color? Yes. Definitely a yes. One swipe and I was in Heaven. Kris said that these lipsticks were formulated in Korea because she hunted near and far for a company to perfect the color, look, and feel she dreamt of when thinking up SHE. They go on so full color and so opaque that I rarely have to layer them up. It doesn’t dry down right away so don’t touch your lips so much but even when it sets, it’s still comfortable and it doesn’t feel like your lips will crack or peel. And it has this minty feel on the lips–so refreshing.
Okay–story time. I really wanted to put these to the test and what better way than to wear them while heartbroken in Poblacion? Eating food, drinking alcohol, and crying are always activities that challenge lipsticks so I thought to try it out. And when I say I was amazed, I mean it.
Freshly applied (in red lighting, LOL, refer to picture below for true color in natural light)
Freshly applied in natural light (one coat, btw–wow!)
At the end of the night–slightly faded but still there!
Now, these lipsticks don’t claim to be long-wearing or to last through everything. And I saw and felt that throughout the night for sure! The longer the night went, the less I felt like I was wearing lipstick, and I know it didn’t all stay on. But, here’s the thing, it’s soooo pigmented and comfortable that it sort of leaves behind a color anyway even if it does transfer! The red stayed on anyway. And while it wasn’t perfectly on all night long, I didn’t have to worry that my lips were just going to be an outline of red and then an oily, naked mess in the middle.
The people I was with were in awe, as well, watching me eat a noodle dish, shovel duck tacos in my mouth, and sip cocktails and my red lips were still intact. I didn’t touch up at all. It was kind of amazing.
 
Look at that pigment, doe
It leaves behind this flattering color, not quite a stain because you can still feel a thin layer of lipstick still there. It doesn’t crumble off or crack. It made me feel like I didn’t have to worry about having uneven lips at all. And I cried in this lipstick. And my cries are kind of legendary in that they strip off almost all my makeup if I’m not prepared. It’s one of my new faves.
Kris looks gorgeous in these lippies, too <3
I tried the other colors too on other days and they all perform similarly! They all linger behind on the lips, not in the same consistency as when freshly-applied, but so so comfortable and light and like you can trust that it won’t leave you looking like you weren’t wearing any lipstick at all.
I tried them on different days, different wear times, different activities, and they all really impressed me. Whether it was karaoke with friends (where it stayed on the whole time) to ramen with family (faded a little but still left behind color), it was something that made me feel at ease–like I could concentrate on bonding rather than if my lip makeup was still on!
Even though it’s a five-color range, it seems to me there’s a color that suits everybody. If you’re more of a bold lip kinda gal (like myself and Kris!), Go Girl! and She’s On Fire (my personal favorite) are the ones for you. For those who love nudes, Off She Goes and She Luvin’ It are perfect. And for the more wildcard shade that millenials are kinda going nuts for, So She-ic might be your jam (it’s this kinda perfect deep orange-y nude that I have fallen head over heels in love with).
https://www.instagram.com/p/Btmty1SF-eu/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtKjV8SF2o6/
SHE is said to “celebrate women, their courage, and their beauty.” Kris Bernal put it together for the everyday woman, to empower everyone who swiped it on, thus naming it “SHE” rather than after herself. “It’s for her,” she says. “For women who have dreams. For everyone, for all women.”
SHE Cosmetics
FB: https://www.facebook.com/shecosmeticsPH/
IG:Â https://www.instagram.com/shecosmeticsph/
Posh Nails branches: Tomas Morato, SM Megamall, SM Mall of Asia, SM San Lazaro, Vista Mall, Nuciti Central Mall
Shoppee:Â https://shopee.ph/order.shecosmetics
