Sparkle for Twilight: Blog Update! This week has been fantastic for many reasons. Number one because my Twilight Beauty order arrived in the mail. Number two, yesterday was the last day I had to wear false eyelashes (Re: Thanks Kellan and your hotness). Number three, west coast best friend, aka Westie, finally caved and agreed to read Twilight! And number four--are you ready? It's official--Taylor, Rob and Kristen are going to be at the VMAs.
I'm. Going. To. Be. At. The. VMAs!

Well correctly, I will be at the aforementioned Taylor Swift performance (as if that wasn't good enough!), and also by consequence I have tickets to the pre-show where I'll be sitting (or is it standing?) along the red carpet as all the guests arrive.

Oh my gracious. Just the thought of the possibility Kristen, Rob, or Taylor will be live, in person, and present for me to see with my own made-up eyes sent me hyperventilating with joy as I broke this delicious news to Bestie who is the one that bestowed us with these tickets in the first place.

The only thing is they aren't allowing us to bring cameras or even take our cell phones when we go to Taylor Swift's dress rehearsal that afternoon, so therefore I will not have my camera or cell phone with me later when I'm at the pre-show arrivals. But I have a photographic memory and if by chance I do get to see them I will mentally document (with pad and paper if I must) any uncaught gestures or stolen glances between them and I will dutily report back!

Now about the Twilight Lip Venom...

I got the package and in such built-up anticipation, I ripped it open before I even got back inside. I don't know why I got so excited, but it's always a good day when you get new lip gloss, and this was times 100 because it's Twilight related. I think the only thing that would top makeup and Twilight would be if someone created a Twilight-inspired sweetshop and then buttercream cupcakes would beat makeup any day.

First of all, I didn't know that inside the tube, there was this little scroll of an insert with a New Moon still on it. Even though it's just a tiny piece of paper that's black and white, that alone almost makes it worth the purchase. How many more days till New Moon again?!

I just noticed that at the bottom it says keep out of direct sunlight. Is that supposed to be a joke?

Let me preface this review by saying I'm a makeup horder and avid applier of cosmetics, so I'm not just going to be like AHH! TWILIGHT! THIS IS AWESOME! I use the good stuff so here's my opinion on the thing (the Luna Twilight lip glosses I also ordered won't be shipping till late September so that review will be for another time).

Size
The thing that stood out first to me is that the bottle is tiny. Apparently it is the same size as the original DuWop Lip Venom so if you are familar with that vial, you wouldn't have been surprised. I don't usually buy lip plumpers because that's not something I really need, so that was new to me.

The glass vial is 2 and a half inches tall, and without the cap, the part that holds the lip color is just shy of 2 inches. Then again, it is a stain and not a gloss, so a little goes a long way.


Price
A lot of people on the Sephora website complained that for $16 US dollars, this is a rip-off, but I'm okay with the price considering lip colors these days run upwards of $20, and you'll be lucky to find one that's even $18, let alone $16, outside of the drugstore. Again it's a stain, so it should last longer than swathing gloss on your lips.

(By the way, this isn't in the Sephora stores yet. I actually called them the next morning after Twilight Beauty launched, and a rep told me they wouldn't get the venoms till late September, and funnily she said a person had called her not five minutes before me asking the same thing.)
Color
When applied, the color of the actual stain or "blood" part of the Lip Venom is a sheer, but strong sheen of ruby red with an undertone of magenta. It also has flecks of ruby shimmer that sparkle like Dorothy's shoes, but it's fine shimmer, not chunky glitter. However, the shimmer glittery part doesn't seem to be a factor when it is applied because it doesn't really come out on your lips. I reckon the stain color makes your lips look a bit like you just ate one of those pure sugar cherry ice pops, but in a nice way.



I think the shimmer is mostly apparent in the bottle to makes the product look aesthetically appealing (not that anything that has "Twilight" on it isn't already appealing).


Taste and Scent
The Lip Venom bursts of cinnamon. It totally tastes like Red Hots. The "bite" part of it is spicy. The tingling it does to your lips only lasts about a couple minutes before it wears off, but I'm not actually sure it makes your lips plump or not. Maybe it subliminally convinces you they do because your lips are all peppery and ruby-colored by then.

I went to Starbucks with Bestie like usual, and told her to close her eyes and hold out her hand. I surprised her with an extra Lip Venom I ordered for her as a gift between friends and she went all OMG! with excitement like I did when I got the mail earlier that day. She's the only other person that would scream in delight of new makeup and Twilight so it was well worth it. She sent me this email when she went home (pay no mind to her calling me "sir" because we call everyone "sir" and "lady" disregarding their actual sex, just for fun):

sir this stuff feels slightly like venom on my lips like edward had plunged his poison into my veins.

She didn't know it was going to be tingly. I quite like the hotness though, it's refreshing like you just used cinnamon mouthwash.
Application
Here's where it gets a little tricky. The liquid is actually very runny, and you need to shake it vigorously, and I mean vigorously, to get it incorporated enough so that when you take out the brush, there are beads of color that you can actually run on your lips. Sometimes I had to shake, apply a swipe of the color, then recap and shake again to get more pigment. Otherwise, what you get is just a swipe of clear "venom" and no color.

It's difficult to blend evenly on your lips using just the brush because not enough of the "blood" pigment gets caught on the brush. I end up using a finger to help it along. Also, this might be harder to explain, but the "blood" pigment goes onto your lips in beads, so that's the other reason why a spare pinky finger is needed to blend the color into your lips. Once you do get the intensity and color you want, the stain is fairly long-lasting. I ate a meal and some of the color was still on, so I'd say you can get a 2-3 hours in without reapplying. (I topped the stain with a coat of lip balm like I do with all stains since they aren't moisturizing like lipsticks or lip glosses).
Overall
Overall, if you're a makeup lover and a lover of Twilight, I don't think you'll regret buying this novelty item. It's like peacock feather headbands and rhinestone barrettes, you don't need them, you probably won't wear them, but you inexplicably want them just to have them.

The Twilight Lip Venom is definitely not making my must-use-daily list, but it's very fun to play with and add to both your makeup case and Twilight collection. When you do get the color on, it definitely does look pretty lush and gives you the sudden urge to put on black glittery eyeshadow even if it's still daylight hours. (The MAC Beauty Marked Eye Shadow looks purple online, but its actually black and has flecks of plum-red shimmer that's not noticeable when applied, just in case you do want black eyeshadow info).

I'm a sucker for lip stains, and while the Twilight Lip Venom isn't fast and easy to apply, it still gives a nice end result with a little effort. If you like the color of it a lot, but want one that's easier to apply for everyday use, I suggest Benefit's BeneTint. The colors are very similar and the bottle is way bigger.


I prefer lip stains that come in marker form though, and since YSL discontinued their marker stains, my current favorite is coincidentally from a line called Bella Il Fiore. I came across their stuff before I was even aware of Twilight and I love their Double Agent Lip Tint in Subtle Berry (also a steal at $13).


You know, I often have pangs to fulfill my secret desire of becoming a makeup artist, but then I have a vision of my father and his response to that. "Hey Dad, thanks for the quarter mil for my ivy league education. Forget grad school, I'm off to beauty school!" I wonder if Twilight Beauty is seeking making artists...

Till then I'll just have to settle for talking about makeup and hair by creating tangents related to Twilight. I hope this review is somewhat helpful, but I know everyone is different since makeup is personal. I'd love to hear your thoughts!