Essence Stay With Me Longlasting Lipgloss in Berry Me! and Candy Bar Review and Swatches

I've mentioned before that I tend to loathe lipgloss.  I hate it when it feels tacky and sticky, not least because my hair sticks to it like glue, and I despise how it tends to wear away unevenly in no time.  But there are some things about gloss that I like, such as how creamy it can feel, and how the shine makes my lips look full and luscious (not that I really need it, but it's fun anyways!).  Dudes tend to dislike gloss because of its tendency to transfer on contact (*wink wink*), but 1) I don't wear makeup for dudes, so I don't really care what they think, and 2) the only dude whose thoughts I would consider is across the country, so I'm pretty sure he doesn't give a fig.  I was recently inspired to try lipgloss again because of a post from Karen at Makeup and Beauty Blog on Essence's Stay With Me Longlasting lipgloss, whose tiny price tag ($2.29!), availability (at Fred Meyer, which is actually a store we have in Eugene), and pretty colors all appealed to me.  The fact that she said they weren't sticky was a bonus, but the real draw for me was that they're made by Essence, a beauty brand from Germany that I discovered when living in Berlin last summer, and whose products I'd been unable to find here.

Essence Stay With Me lipgloss in Candy Bar (top) and Berry Me! (bottom)

I first tried Berry Me!, which (unsurprisingly) is a lovely berry color.

Thick layer of Berry Me in sunlight

It smells a bit like berries, too, but the smell doesn't last too long (sad for me, because I actually like it, but for those who dislike fragrance, a bonus) and there's no taste.  The first few times I used it I was not pleased.  The applicator is a weird hourglass shape (apparently all the rage these days) rather than the doe-foot or brush other glosses I've used have had, and I initially applied the gloss by swiping the whole wand over my lips.

Candy Bar's applicator

This deposits too much product, and over the course of talking and lip-rubbing it would gather in certain spots and look terribly uneven.  But I was determined to make it work!  After some experimentation, I found that applying a thin layer to my bottom lip with just the tip of the applicator worked well, and filling out the peaks in my upper lip after smooshing finished it off.  You just have to be sure it's a very thin layer so it doesn't migrate!  Applying like so, the gloss lasts more than an hour on me, which, while not long-lasting in the traditional sense, is quite a long time for me.  I also love that the duration doesn't require stickiness, and that the gloss stays smooth and creamy the entire time I'm wearing it.

I went back to Freddy's awhile later and picked up another color, the coral Candy Bar.  In the tube, it doesn't look like anything I would ever be able to wear, but I'd seen lip swatches on Karen and thought it was quite lovely, so I was willing to give it a shot.

So glad I did!  It gives a lovely sheer coral tint to my lips but doesn't compete with or mask my natural lip color, and is great for days when I'm wearing a warmer look (say, something with Hot Mama!).

Thick swatch of Candy Bar in sunlight

I didn't have any kind of coral or peach lip product before I bought this (which is how I justified it to myself at the time), and I'm very glad to have filled the gap!  Now I just "need" a coral lipstick that doesn't make me look ridiculous...

Overview
$2.29 for 0.13 oz, available at Ulta, Fred Meyer, HEB, and online

Pros: Great colors, non-sticky, cheap, semi-long-lasting
Cons: Weird applicator, could be longer-lasting, small size

Quality: 9.5
Effectiveness: 4 (it's supposed to be long-lasting, and it doesn't quite live up to that)
Ease of Use: 3.75 (have to apply in front of a mirror in order to not over-apply and look gloppy, applicator can be tricky)
Senses: 5 (smells like berries!  and doesn't make my lips feel suffocated, always a bonus)
Pigmentation: 4.5
Duration: 4.5
Consistency: 5
Price: 5
Value: 4.5 (it's only 0.13 oz, whereas many lipglosses are closer to the 0.20 mark, but it's so cheap!)
Grade: A-


What do you think of these glosses?  Which one do you prefer?  Have you tried them?