EOS Visibly Soft Lip Balm Sphere review

Hello everybody, a while ago, I was strolling around kohl's and came across a new version of the EOS lip balm sphere called visibly soft. Instead of being one solid color, the visibly soft line is packaged in a sphere that's a swirl of color.

It shocked me because I didn't hear anything about this release at all- not on my favorite beauty blogger's page nor in magazines. Seeing that it promises to give an "immediately softer" lip I had to fight the urge to buy them and finally during labor day weekend I picked it up with my 20% off coupon at Bed Bath and Beyond.

There are two versions of the visibly soft collection:  vanilla mint with blue swirls and coconut milk with pink swirls which I bought. I not much of a fan of vanilla and I've previously tried a vanilla scented lip balm and didn't like it so I chose coconut milk.

The one I bought was sealed up in a nice cardboard package. On the back there is an expiration date that's imprinted on the cardboard. Side note: they also sell them without the cardboard packaging and just wrapped in plastic.

What I noticed is that compared to my very first EOS lip balm, lemon drop, the quality of the round case that surrounds that lip balm has considerably drop. When I got my first lip balm, just holding the round sphere with its soft cushion on the outside was so delightful. When I placed my finger on the thumb convexed area, it was completely flat and lined up with the ridges exactly. When I bought my second EOS lip balm, I already saw a decrease in the quality of the packaging.

Subsequently, the newly released EOS visibly soft lip balm has an even lower quality. As you can see on the left, the edges on the thumb convexed area does not line up correctly when it's clicked in place. It almost feels like I am borrowing the cap from a different lip balm and does not fit exactly. While the older version on the right is more perfectly lined up, when you are actually holding it, you can feel the area is not smooth and the top half is jutting out. Still even though the older version is not as high quality as the very first EOS that I bought, it's still remarkably better than the newer ones produced now.


As I was still hyped up with this new visibly soft lip sphere to add to my collection, once I got home I ripped open the package and swiped it on my lips. To my disappointment, there was no significant change. The formula was a bit softer and bit more emollient. That's it. It goes on clear and gives your lips a tiny bit of a waxy shine.  My first thought on the scent was that it smelled sweet. If this wasn't labeled coconut milk, I wouldn't think coconut but knowing that it should be scented like coconut, it does faintly smell like coconut and is an enjoyable scent. You still needed to reapply every 2-3 hours like the original version. This is still one of those daily lip balm and not those heavy duty ones that you pull out in winter to relieve your chapped lips.

I looked up the ingredients to the old version and randomly chose honeydew to see what was the difference in formulation compared to the new visibly soft version was and was surprised to find that there was basically no change in the ingredients aside for the addition of vitamin C and  polyglyceryl-3 diisostearate (which I had no idea what it is but EWG told me it's a conditioning agent) that was way down on the ingredient list.

So unless you are a collector, I do not think it is necessary to purchase the new visibly soft version if you already have other EOS lip spheres.

On the moisturizing scale it would be a 6 out of 10 which is one point higher than the original version. If you need something more moisturizing, I would definitely go with the visibly soft line over the original one while the original formula is perfect for the summer time. Out of all the EOS lip balm I have, if I have to choose my favorite one, it would still be the lemon drop one. I feel that the lemon drop one is the most moisturizing, emollient, and cushiony one out of the entire lip sphere line and it has a nice lemon creme biscuit scent that I am totally in love with.

What do you think about the new EOS visibly soft lip balm compared to the original formula? For those who tried the vanilla mint version, how did you like that one?

 Thanks for reading,

VanillaDreamCream

Stippling Brush Blind Test on Get it Beauty 2014

Top 5 Stippling Brush rated on episode 4 of Get It Beauty 2014

This was the first blind test that I actually felt was a blind test. Each brand normally has a distinctive package that you can't cover up with a sticker. For example a dior eye palette has that 4 shades on each corner of a square and a color in the center. For this stippling brush blind test, by covering up the brand on the handle, I could not tell the difference between each brush. They looked all the same.

I really wanted them to rate Samantha Chapman's real technique stippling brush but keeping in mind that this show takes place in korea, they probably do not have access to the real technique brand.

The Top 5 stippling brush chosen on Get It Beauty is listed below

From left to right: VDL Duo Fiber Face Brush, Mac 187 Duo Fiber Face Brush, Espoir Highlighter brush, Etude House Pro  Skill 102 Transparent Gloss Brush, Skinfood Premium Touch Pearl Brush

1st place VDL Duo Fiber Face Brush  $20

online:3

expert:2

better girls:1

• applied foundation thinly
• bristles has an extra coating so it doesn't lose stiffness and stays soft

2nd place Mac 187 Duo Fiber Face Brush $60

online:1

expert:1

better girls:2

• feels really soft
• By using only stippling a few strokes, foundation is applied smoothly and quickly
• this is the original brush that had so many companies copy it

3rd place Espoir Highlighter brush $27

online:4

expert:5

better girls:3

• better for powder products
• sheds a little
• very soft

4th place Etude House Pro  Skill 102 Transparent Gloss Brush $10

online:2

expert:3

better:4

• didn't cover all pores
• stiff bristles
• there's a glossy coating on bristles that allows it to apply a smoother foundation

5th place Skinfood Premium Touch Pearl Brush $8

online: 5

expert:4

better girls:5

• some hair shedding
• good for foundation and shimmering blush

These are also other tips from episode 4 of Get It Beauty

During the spring, it's inevitable to encounter pollen and pollution in the air. These dust particles contains lost of acid and heavy metal particles like mercury, lead, cadmium, that clog up pores, penetrate the skin and acidify causing aging.

Techniques to clean the face:
sparkling water-bubbles goes deep into skin clean deeply
combine water and sparking water in 1:1 ratio. remove makeup with a foam cleanser first then soak face for 10-20 seconds in a bowl the sparking water combination.  Pat  dry face.

Bean flour and egg yolk cleansing
Lecithin and vitamins in the egg yolk will nourish skin. The bean flour will exfoliate and wash away all the fine dust.
mix 1 tsp of bean flour and 1 egg yolk. spread an even layer over skin and then gently massage face for 30 sec to exfoliate. Then wash off with lukewarm water

spinach water- beta carotene in spinach is good for dry and sensitive skin caused by the fine dust. After blanching spinach in water, allow to cool thoroughly and pat the liquid on face.

salt-exfoliate skin and sulfur in salt helps detoxify skin.
Simply add some salt to your normal cleansing cream and gently massage face. Put saline solution on a cotton ball and wipe away dirt from skin.

I haven't tried any of the cleansing and nourishing method above so I have no idea how it works but I just leave it here so that when I have free time and a bit daring, I can try out these methods. These tips were all taken from episode 4 of Get It Beauty.

Thanks for reading,
VanillaDreamCream

credits to Cosmetics Love from youtube for the brand name of stippling brushes because I would have never figured it out