Jill Stuart Patisserie Custard Lip Pot Review & Swatches
The Jill Stuart Patisserie Collection is limited edition collection released for Fall 2012. It’s inspired by a French pastry shop and the packaging, shade names, and scent of the products all bring to mind decadent pastries and desserts.
The Jill Stuart Custard Lip Pots are pretty much spot on for that inspiration as they look like little cups of custard. These were released in five shades and both the colors and product themselves are available for a limited time with this collection.
Take a look!
As with all Jill Stuart products these are housed in gorgeous little jars. Although the difference here is some of Jill Stuart’s elegance is left behind in the packaging and we get a more whimiscal look. The Custard Lip Pots kinda have a Holika Holika vibe to them but they are less cuter and way more elegant. Each “custard” is encased in a clear pot with an off white lid that has a tiny red rhinestone in the center. They do truly remind you of tiny little desserts or even little dollhouse pieces of some sort.
Each of the balms are scented but not flavored with a vanillish fragrance. I’m not really sure how to describe the scent but it’s quite subtle, not overpowering, and is a pleasant enough smell with hints of vanilla and perhaps cake of some sort. No worries though if you’re sensitive as these aren’t flavored.
I’m not sure what you’d want to call them. Tinted lip balm? Tinted lip treatment? Lip creams? It’s really hybrid of a product that acts as a few products in one The consistency reminds me of a densely packed lip cream but has the texture of a heavier lip balm.
Orange Custard
Chocolat Custard
Cherry Custard
Apple Custard
Almond Custard
Almond Custard, Chocolat Custard, Orange Custard, Apple Custard, and Cherry Custard
All the shades are very nude and natural. They kinda remind me of a lip base of sorts which you’d use to lessen the appearance of more pigment lips so a lipstick’s finish is more intense and vibrant. As you know, I don’t pull off nuder lip looks too well so many of the shades gave me a mod finish and I kinda had that evil dead look going on. On much fairer skin than my own I think they’ll make ideal MLBB shades (my lips but better) and enhance the look of paler lips.
I realize they aren’t terribly appealing in a jar packaging and having to apply with fingers and such. Best application is finger application unfortunately so this doesn’t make them travel friendly and of course, bacteria, germs, etc…sadly, we have to overlook these things in beauty sometimes.
For me for the formula wasn’t a terribly big hit. These are a semi-matte finish lip cream of sorts with a bit of tint. I wouldn’t call them sheer but they do have a higher level of pigment that isn’t quite medium coverage. Many of the shades do look very similar once they are on lips or at least they did on my lips so I don’t think you need to indulge in every single shade the way I did.
As I mentioned above, I wasn’t overly impressed with the formula. Creams and matte finishes aren’t my personal loves as I’ve said many times in the past. With a formula that contains apricot oil as well as almond and glucose I thought perhaps they would be more moisturizing than they are. They apply a tad chalky, they look very drying, and they will accentuate drier areas on lips so you’re going to want to apply exfoliate before use and apply a bit of hydrating balm under them for the best look. As the day progresses I feel like they dry out even worst and within an hour in I feel a bit uncomfortable with the formula on my lips. It feels like it’s cracking and starting to look less than smooth.
Needless to say if your lips are dry they won’t be the most flattering lip product nor will they give your lips much needed moisture during the wear. If you already use and are used to semi-matte cream finishes they may just appeal but I personally didn’t love them.
I sadly didn’t feel like I could give these enough love so after a quick swatch with a q-tip I gifted three to my best friend. He’ll make better use and give them the loving home they need.
I did keep Chocolat Custard and Orange Custard for myself. Both shades I really liked as they didn’t give me super pale zombie-like lips and looked very pretty on.
Almond Custard
Orange Custard
Cherry Custard
Overall, you might consider picking one or two of these up if you’re a lover of semi-matte lip creams. The formula won’t appeal to everyone though, I wasn’t so keen myself. I expected more moisture, a slicker feel, and perhaps a little bit more pop.
Sad sigh.
Oh well, we can’t love all the pretty makeup in the world can we?
A friend of mine purchased these for me in Tokyo but the usual suspects will probably get them in stock such as Imomoko.com as well as AlphabeautyUK on E-bay.
They just launched last week in Japan and I suspect they’ll sell out quickly so if you do see them online I urge you to grab them why you can.
Sadly, the Jill Stuart flagship store here in New York does not sell limited releases but if you have a yearning for the brand they do ship within the US and have quite a few pieces from the standard line of cosmetics.