Beauty report: Ilia Satin Cream Lip Crayon

Weightless.

Name: Ilia Satin Cream Lip Crayons
Stars: 4/5
Price: $35
What it does: An ultra-nourishing, satin-finish lip crayon
with buildable colour intensity and a weightless feel.
Key ingredients: Jojoba and rosehip oil and healing organic botanicals.
Available from: mecca.com.au

How it feels/smells/looks

The mechanical twist-up crayon requires no sharpening and is a perfect medium size to theoretically swipe across the lips once for a full coat; not too large that would make application on thinner lips difficult, nor so small that application on fuller lips would be laborious. Colour pay-off begins somewhat sheer, but can be built over two or three phases to achieve a semi-opaque density. The product delivers on its promise in that regard, as it is not intended to deliver full-coverage colour, so if that’s what you’re after, there are plenty of other lip crayons on the market to meet your demands.

Why I like it

‘Walk This Way’ will be getting a lot of love in my kit this summer, as it’s a perfect natural nude hue with just a touch of peach. The product’s sheer yet buildable consistency means that this colour will flatter virtually everyone – not too vivid or bright to overpower fair skin tones and also not so opaque that the lighter tone will register chalky or ashy on deep rich complexions.

Areas for improvement

The product has launched with a really solid edit of six globally flattering colours, catering to all complexions. It would be nice to see Ilia introduce some more shades to the line – perhaps some variations on brights – as the formula’s thinner, semi-matte texture lends well to a lip stain effect, with bold-hued matte lip tints being very on-trend RN.

Final comments

The shade ‘Red Balloons’ is a perfect ‘first’ red lippy, for those seeking to dip their toes into the shade without committing to the upkeep and intensity of a full-blown true red.