November 12, 2012

Hard Candy All Glossed Up Shockingly Glossy Lip Pencil Review & Swatches

Purchased
I purchased this item.

Hard Candy All Glossed Up Shockingly Glossy Lip Pencil ($6) are a new range of pencil lip colors that were launched with Hard Candy’s Fall 2012 Collection.

Chubby lip pencils particularly balm or tinted gloss formulas are all the rage at the moment so if Hard Candy masters the formula it could prove a potentially nice budget pick!

Take a look!

These are a skinner pencil compared to what you’ll run into today as many brands favor a chubbier version. I personally like the skinnier pencil as it travels easily since it doesn’t take a ton of space. It isn’t twist up so you will have to rely on your own sharpener to get back the precise point after a few applicators as it doesn’t come with one.

I only tried one shade, Baby Doll, and thought it was good but not great. For something called “All Glossed Up Shockingly Glossy Lip Pencil” I expected a lot more shine. You could potentially blame the lack of a glossy finish on the cream finish I selected as Hard Candy does have a few different finishes including metallic and sparkle. However, the name is a little misleading.

I thought the pencil quite good but not great. The formula is a tad dry, again, could be the cream formula. But has an easy, smooth glide across lips. The texture is a creamy lipstick with a cream finish sans glitter or sparkle of any kind. I felt like it accentuated drier areas on my lips but looked find when my lips were exfoliated prior to application. The pencil lacks any scent or flavor. The shade does provide opaque color coverage so you can get a fairly nice pop of color out of this or at least out of the color I choose.

Baby Doll is an MLBB (my lips but better) shade that gives lips a rosy flush of pink. It’s quite a pretty shade but the cream finish prevents me from raving it too much.

I couldn’t compare the formula to anything I’ve tried before such as Revlon, Clinique, or even Urban Decay’s pencils. I think both Revlon and Clinique have cornered the balm department in their pencils where as Urban Decay and Tarte have more of glossy textured pencil. Hard Candy…mmm they have more of a lipstick pencil I’d call it as it doesn’t really offer a natural tint due to the pigmentation.

Overall, this is a fairly nice pencil at this price. I do prefer others I’ve tried though such as Revlon’s which is in the same budget range. I’d like to give some of the other shades I try as I might like them a bit more. I’m blaming some of my dislike on the cream finish as they tend to always look very dry on my lips with a less than smooth finish. It isn’t bad but it didn’t wow me either.

These pencils are available now at Walmart.

Tried ’em?

Do share! I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Purchased
I purchased this item.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • BLee

    Muse, nothing looks dry from here…you look wonderful. And you look awesome in pink, lady! I may have to give them a try.

  • Quinctia

    I wonder if they’re a bit like Nyx’s pencils. I was a bit meh on the one of those I bought. Milani’s got a pencil that is just like UD’s, so that’s probably not similar to this Hard Candy one.

  • OrangeLipstickBlog

    I love all the pink is this picture!!!

    Too bad about this pencil. I’m about to take the plunge and try a Revlon chubby pencil to see if it would work for my mom. She’s a huge fan of the Clinique ones but feels like she uses them up too quickly since they can be kind of sheer. She’s looking for a less expensive option. I was kinda hoping these Hard Candy ones would suffice but I guess not. Let me go fling some money at Revlon…lol!

    • the Muse

      I love the revlon ones, they are more pigmented than clinique’s version ;-D

  • Joanna

    Hi! 🙂 I’ve tried this pencil in the Baby Doll color and I don’t mind it, but I’m also no makeup guru. I just put it on over a nice coral lipliner and it works pretty well. However, I had to go out and buy a sharpener and the one I bought is TOO SMALL. What kind of sharpener did you use on it that fit? I need to know where I can buy one because I do intend to at least finish this lip pencil out…maybe even buy another if I like it well enough.