#014

Bite Beauty #014 The Lip Pencil ($18.00 for 0.05 oz.) is a brighter, medium-dark plum with cooler undertones and a semi-matte finish. It had semi-opaque pigmentation that covered the lips with even color. The consistency was slightly soft, firm without being painful, and was forgiving enough that I was able to fill in most of my lips. It wore well for five and a half hours, and it was a touch drying toward the end. Bite Beauty recommends wearing this particular shade with Sake; I think it would work well with
Gin Fizz (brighter, lighter, cooler), Dragonfruit (brighter, deeper), Eggplant (darker), or Mauvember (darker) -- see comparison swatches.

The Lip Pencil formula is supposed to have "perfect, allover, opaque lip coverage" with a lightweight feel. I think the formula worked exceptionally well for lining the edges of the lips and keeping color on longer and more within the lines (e.g. a lipstick feathers on its own wouldn't feather when layered over one of the lip pencils). Some shades worked well for filling in the lips for all over color, but some applied more unevenly or were less comfortable to fill in with. The consistency was soft, just barely creamy--almost more velvety than creamy--and oddly spreadable, as I found the best way to "even" out the coverage was to press my lips together, and while there was a touch of tackiness, the color almost always appeared more even after that than if I kept trying to maneuver and push the color around with the pencil itself. They do feel lightweight, and they lasted anywhere from five to six hours on their own. They weren't spectacularly long-wearing as a standalone lip product, but they extended the wear of lipsticks by two to four hours.

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview, which is a detailed review of the range as a whole.

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