Lilly Singh x Smashbox Bawse Liquid Lipstick

In July I was selected as the winner of Nerdy Librarian Girl’s giveaway and I won a Liquid Lipstick by Smashbox in the shade Bawse. Bawse arrived all the way from Canada last week and it really was love at first sight! Today, I will be talking all about this shade and giving a mini first impressions/review. Let’s get straight into it!

About the product

Smashbox Always On Liquid Lipsticks are designed to be long wearing and water resistant so they stay put and look as fresh as they did upon first application. The liquid matte formula is infused with lip-smoothing Primer Oil for suede soft lip colour. Smashbox teamed up with YouTube megastar Lilly Singh to create her own special shade; Bawse. This no-rules red is fierce, featherweight and should be worn whenever you want to make things happen!

Packaging

The packaging of Bawse is pretty unique as it comes in two boxes. The first houses the lipstick and the second is more like a cover that houses the box and lipstick. The packaging is very neat and sleek. The shade name is printed on one side and Lilly Singh’s signature and the Smashbox logo on the other.

The actual product itself also looks nice and sleek. I like the matte black lid and that you can see which colour you get straight away. I find the cardboard housings more interesting than the packaging of the actual product though. It’s quite simple and maybe Smashbox could have done something special for this shade; given it a red lid or put Lilly’s signature on the lid.

Formula + Application

Bawse is the third liquid lipstick product I’ve tried and the formula applies super smooth and glides over the lips. The pigmentation of this shade is incredible and one swipe over each lip is all you need, you don’t need to dip the applicator back in to get more product. The formula does feel very soft and suede-like as it claims but I don’t quite agree with the 8 hour claim. Yes, you will probably still have product on your lips but it won’t be perfect and look as fresh as it did, unless you don’t eat or drink, which is hard to avoid. I noticed around the 4-5 hour mark the product started to flake on the inner corners of my mouth and feel a bit uncomfortable. I’m sure it’s nothing blotting wouldn’t fix though.

As for the applicator, Smashbox have got it spot on! To put it into perspective, the Smashbox applicator is larger than those of NYX’s Soft Matte Lip Creams and Bourjois’ Rouge Edition Velvets but it is made to fit the shape of your lips. The applicator is tapered at the top to allow you to really get into the corners of your mouth.

Colour

Bawse is definitely a fierce red that pulls no punches. If you like bright, bold shades you will fall in love this one! When I entered the giveaway I thought, “Do I need more red lipsticks?” but the truth is red lipstick is a classic and Bawse is unlike my other reds as it is slightly deeper.

Pros

+ Formula dries down quickly on the lips.

+ Extremely pigmented.

+ Applies easily without any mess.

Cons

– Doesn’t last ‘perfectly’ for 8 hours as claimed.

– Tube packaging is a little uninspiring.

Overall Verdict

If you’re a fan of Lilly Singh, liquid lipsticks or red in general I would encourage you to give this shade a go. I presume it won’t be around forever so get your hands on it while you have the chance! The colour and the formula of this product definitely make up for the slight drying feeling. That factor is not going to deter me from wearing Bawse as it is such a beautiful shade and this is one of those products that makes you feel good (like a boss) when you wear it!

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Are you a fan of Lilly Singh? Have you tried Bawse or any other of Smashbox’s Liquid Lipstick shades?