Savvy by DB Long Lasting Matte Lipsticks

If you like highly pigmented, matte, budget-friendly lipsticks, run - don't walk - to your nearest Priceline and check out the Long Lasting Matte Lipstick range from Savvy by DB! I can't find any information about these online from DB or Priceline's website, but it appears that these might be limited edition.

Initially, I picked up Morocco back in April in order to qualify for Priceline's Beauty Bag. I had never tried anything from Savvy before and since I'm loving matte lips at the moment (and I feel incredibly compelled to buy cosmetics named after places I've been to!), I thought I'd give one of them a try. I didn't get around to wearing it until a couple of weeks ago -- I was absolutely blown away. They are richly pigmented, achieve full opacity in one swipe, and are one of the most comfortable matte lipstick formulas I've tried. Since then, I've stopped in nearly every Priceline I've come across to try and pick up more! It seems that I'm not the only one loving them because many of the displays were completely out of stock.

The specs: they are 2.8g/0.098oz and come in slim tubes with the names on top of the cap; the bottom of the tube gives you a glimpse at the colour. These small details make for easy storage, either upside down so you can see the shades or right way up to show the names.

Paris is a light beige, which will be a nude shade for light to medium skintones.
Tokyo is a pale, cool-toned pink.
Maui is a warm coral.
San Fran is a bold medium pink.
Vegas is a bright, strawberry red.
Morocco is a deep, cooler-toned red.

While they all have matte finishes, Tokyo, Maui, and San Fran appear to have a hint of fine silver glitter particles. However, they are not obvious nor do they feel gritty when worn on the lips. The matte finish on all of these lipsticks is not completely flat and could arguably be classified as demi-matte rather than matte. I'm not too sure of any budget-friendly lipsticks that don't have a high shine/cream/shimmer/glitter finish though, so for me, these do fill a much appreciated niche.

I purchased these for $6.99 each from Priceline.

On my quest to find the perfect shade of turquoise eyeliner, I narrowed the field down to two opponents.

Swatches of Savvy by DB (left) and Essence (right)

Both pencils present with similar qualities:

Retractable pencil - no sharpening required

"Long lasting"

Similar in style to far more expensive brands, e.g. Stila, Chanel and Lancome

Appeared to be waterproof in the absence of such claims

Subtle fallout

Turquoise

Essence's Tu-Tu-Turquoise is the cheaper of the two (retails for $2.95 AUS) and in an ocean of blue, Tu-Tu-Turqoise hovers at the top. Application was easy -- the colour appeared almost immediately with a glimmer of sparkle. This formula stays as promised, however, fallout occurs during application; be prepared to clean up a few flecks of colour before walking out the door.

Savvy by DB (retails for $6.99 AUS) is a deeper and darker turquoise shade, it's more like the deep end of the ocean. Application was just as simple, yet took a little longer. The pencil needed to be warmed in order to get the colour party started. As with Tu-Tu-Turquoise, Savvy by DB's Turquoise also requires clean up. Don't worry about a dance party in your crease either, once applied Turquoise falls in line.

Which turquoise pencil came out swinging?

Points go to Essence for affordability and availability; it's also my personal favourite. For a more sophisticated turquoise eye, Savvy by DB is the pencil for you; Australian ladies can find this shade at their local Priceline. For the International set, Stila's Peacock appears to be a close, albeit more expensive, dupe.