January 22, 2014

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb Review & Swatches

This was provided to me by a brand for review and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post but all opinions are my own.

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb Moisture Plumping Lip Tint ($21) were a Fall 2013 release and of course, exciting for me, a huge lover of chubby pencils.

Too Faced takes the popularity and technology of their Lip Injection and infuses it into these satin color lip stain pencils to create full looking lips. According to the description they plump, give a satin finish, a staining effect, and a hint of shine.

Here’s my thoughts.

Oh how I wished I loved these but they are lethal on my lips!

The general idea of Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb sounds great! Shine, color, tint, and even a plumping effect! I read a few reviews across the blogsphere on these and I was always surprised what a great rating they got because I can’t say I experienced the same great results.

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb Pencil

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb swatches

Eastwood Red, Bigger Berry, Coral Pop, Plump It Up Pink, Never Enough Nude

These are a chubby twist up pencil with a bullet shaped tip. I love the tip as it fits the contour of my lip very well and I can use that tip directly on my lips versus products like Tarte Lipsurgence where I’m kinda leaning the tip on its side to apply. Know what I mean? It’s not for everyone especially those sensitive to scented and flavored lip products but I ADORE the taste and smell. It so reminds me of my 80’s childhood because it smells like a plastic doll or something…like maybe a Rose Petals doll or Rainbow Brite or something. It’s sort of strawberry and plastic-y and all delightful!

Unfortunately that’s all I like about the product….

I’m not sensitive and I’ve never had a reaction to the original Too Faced Lip Injection Lipgloss so boy was I surprised how badly I reacted to these. My lips (and even the arm I swatched them on) go into freak out mode when I apply. They are a plumping product but mostly I get a very subtle tingle but within a few minutes my lips start to burn and oddly enough itch. When applied on my arm OMG…oh no! I was scratching myself raw. My arm ended up turning red! So do please beware when using these my sensitive friends. I’m not sensitive and look at the crazy that happened to me imagine really sensitive skin?

Too Faced bigger berry Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb bigger berry

Bigger Berry

Too Faced coral pop Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb coral pop

Coral Pop

Too Faced eastwood red Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb eastwood red

Eastwood Red

Too Faced never enough nude Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb nevfer enough nude

Never Enough Nude

Too Faced plump it up pink Lip Injection Color Bomb

Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb plump it pink

Plump It Up Pink

Now…I have to admit these puzzle me. I don’t get the shine factor at all but they do subtly stain lips after they wear away. They have fairly good pigmentation but not the balmy texture I commonly associate with chubby lip pencils like this. The formula is unique to Too Faced as I can’t say these remind me of anything I’ve tried before from brands like Revlon, Tarte, and Clinique. They have a thinner, drier formula that drags slightly when applied. They don’t provide much moisture on application or during the wear. Wear time varied from shade to shade for me but I got about three to four hours with an extra 30 or so minutes of a staining effect after color wore away. The set is a semi-matte slightly creamy finish without sparkle, shimmer, or shine of any kind. They don’t feel very comfortable on my drier lips due to the plumping ingredients which tingles and slightly burns through the wear. After an hour or two my lips kinda feel itchy and sensitive.

I like the idea of Too Faced Lip Injection Color Bomb but not necessarily the outcome. I’ve tried plenty of color balm pencils in my day so when Too Faced did their own variation I was quite excited but unfortunately these just didn’t work out for me. If you’re sensitive to beware if you do indulge as they are quite strong little guys.

Tried them?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on them!

Do share!

This was provided to me by a brand for review and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post but all opinions are my own.

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

  • Renu

    Oh thank goodness I’m not alone. Burning skin on swatching, redness, itchy lips… thankfully I only tried one shade – Bee Sting – from the “A Few Of My Favourite Things” palette and didn’t invest. Everyone else looks at me like I stepped out of Neptune when I say it doesn’t work for me 🙁

  • Melanie Y.

    I got one of these included in the My Favorite things palette (which I love), and this thing burned my lips too!! I am not sensitive either and have on occasion used other plumping products. But this was beyond a tingle, this straight up burned. I threw mine away.

  • Amy

    I had the same reaction! I got one of these (not these shades, but this lippie) as part of a kit and it was a GORGEOUS peachy sparkly pink. But when I put it on I thought I’d rubbed a jalapeno on my lips. So not cool. I wanted to like it so much! Most plumping products I’ve tried are tingly but not a problem. These, no can do. 🙁

  • EttaJ

    Yikes!! I can’t imagine itchy lips all day. Thank you for sacrificing yourself for us beauty junkies!

  • coco

    Thought I was the only one whose skin reacted to these! Swatched them at Sephora and ended up not buying any… Got home and was glad I didn’t; my skin was an itchy red mess!

    • Isabella Muse

      i swatched them on my arm coco and I think I had a worst reaction on my arm than my mouth! my arm was red and super irritated…I wonder what it is that is causing it!

  • Heather

    I am not sensitive either and my lips literally looked like they had been stung by bees! It was so noticeable that my husband actually asked me what was wrong with my mouth..sadly I through away the packaging so I couldn’t take it back!

  • Lisa

    I didn’t have as bad of reaction as you, but boy did it BURN. I love the buxom lip glosses, so to me tingle is fine….these just felt like my lips were on fire! I returned it!

    • Isabella Muse

      i had the same prob! I like Buxom, love lip venom, I don’t have an issue with plumping products in the least nor am I sensitive but some ingredient in these made my lips super irritated!

  • Heather

    I just bought Never Enough Nude after lusting after it in Ulta for a year. The tingle is a little intense but after 5 minutes it’s all but forgotten. The color isn’t the longest wearing but it is my perfect nude that doesn’t wash out my lips. It can be a little drying but nothing that a little TLC doesn’t fix. If you think you might love it, try it!

  • Sylirael

    Such a shame about the reaction you had! 🙁 I’m always wary of plumping products, as I don’t tend to react well to them either…

    I’m also kind of unimpressed by the names – Clinique’s Chubby Stick ones are cheesy enough, but these are kind of a copy of something cheesy…so…double cheesy? ;-D

  • mkdallas

    I had the exact same skin reaction and I’ve never had a sensitivity to plumping products, even Lip Venom. I had to return the product because my lips looked so red and irritated, it was just gross…not exactly the look I was hoping to achieve, lol.

    • Isabella Muse

      me either, my skin is like a rock doesn’t break out for any reason so I was shocked..I use lip venom all the time, no prob but something in these made me break out into hives haha!

  • Lucina

    Never enough nude looks great on you, Muse! I think you look really good in nudey lip colors 🙂

  • fancie

    These lippies are so pretty but they sound so dangerous! What on earth is in this formula??

  • Majick

    All the colors look pretty enough but I had a reaction to the Lip Injection gloss when it first made an appearance and haven’t tried any other Too Faced plumping products since. I’m sorry everyone is having such reactions to these but I’m also thankful that you Muse always let us know your truth. 🙂

    I’m sure with this many reactions the product will probably become a gift with purchase – LOL. I think that’s what most companies do with their duds. Either that or they will be really cheap on hautelook. JMO

    • Isabella Muse

      i never had a prob with lip injection that’s the really weird thing but these are downright scary Majick! Really killed my lips! Anyone even more sensitive would be in trouble if they used I’d say!

  • Sylvia

    If I remember correctly these lippies contain capsaicin, which is what makes hot peppers hot, and I think these must have a healthy dose. I had a red slightly swollen patch where I swatched this on my hand, and oh my goodness my lips were on fire. I couldn’t take it,and returned the one I bought. The colors are beautiful, but I will be skipping these.

  • Chelsea

    I hates them! I bought 3 colors the day they hit Sephora stores. One of the employees had to go in the back and grab them for me. I was so excited!

    Unfortunately, I thought they were awful. The stinging effect wasn’t bad for me. It was a strong tingle that I was amused with. The color did not last on my lips at all. No staining that I could see. The finish was also too heavy, even when I sheered it out with my fingers. It felt more like a lipstick, not a nice balm stain that I’m used to.

    What was odd was that the tingling I felt only happened with my first application. It was like my lips adapted to it.

  • Ariel

    Aw! It’s so terrible you had such a bad reaction to them. It sounds like it was borderline allergic. In all honesty I was never crazy about these to begin with because ever since they appeared the Too Faced Glamour gloss I wear flipping everyday, I have it in six different shades, has become harder and harder to find. I put my anger aside to try these and found them to be nothing more than Tatre’s lipsurgence but with less control/ease of application and color choices. Bottom line: I don’t care for these at all. Solidarity!

    • Isabella Muse

      off topic have you tried the mirror mirror gloss? that was my fav and also hard to find lately! oh well, I guess it makes room for other products to try 😀