#002

Bite Beauty #002 The Lip Pencil ($18.00 for 0.05 oz.) is a light-medium pink with strong, warm undertones and a semi-matte finish. It had good pigmentation in one stroke, and it applied decently for all-over color on my lips. The texture was thin, smooth without being truly creamy or emollient, and I found the best way to smooth and even out the color was to press and lightly rub my lips together. This shade lasted for five hours on its own and was non-drying but some color seemed to clump in my lip lines. Bite Beauty recommends wearing this particular liner with Sugarcane; I think it would work well with Sorbet (slightly darker, pinker), Meringue (lighter, warmer), Sugarcane (lighter), and Fig (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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