Le Metier de Beaute "Colour Core" Moisture Stain Lipstick in Thailand Swatches, Photos, Review

Up until a few years ago, I avoided almost all lip products. I wasn't interested at all about the radical reds, the soft pinks, the nudes. They don't call out to me like they do now, summoning my hand toward beauty counters for an innocent swatch... I'm sorry, what was I saying? An imaginary sales assistant just rang me up for another lipstick.

Here's why. When I was a tiny child, my mother was a beast about makeup. She decreed that I shouldn't wear it till I was "old enough," though what age that was supposed to be was conveniently left out of our negotiations. Of course I've already had my (secret) run with her compact powders and red lipsticks for ages...

Anyway, years ago we took a family trip to California, and my mother bequeathed to me a Body Shop lip balm so my lips wouldn't crack into a million pieces when we encountered a cold breeze. I absolutely loved that fragrant, purple pot of balmy goodness. I applied it whenever I had the chance, I carried it with me wherever I went, I frequently put my hands in my pockets to feel the round pot. To my seven year old self, I was a Big Girl trusted enough to take charge of her own criminally parched lips. Also, the balm produced a slight tint on my lips, so it actually felt like I had real, unforbidden makeup in my hands.

Of course, I then proceeded to lose said balm when it fell out of my pocket into the abyss that was the toilet bowl. I mourned for its loss, but needed lip protection, so I tugged on my mother's sleeve and asked for some. One swipe of her lip balm caused my lips to swell into astronomical proportions. Imagine a Botox surgeon out to get revenge on a pair of lips; I swear by the time the bloating stopped my upper lip was a hair's breadth away from my nose. It hurt when I moved my mouth, and it took a couple of weeks for the swelling to subside. Since then, I had a deathly fear of putting any product on my lips at all. It wasn't until about a decade after the incident that I tried on some lipstick and found out I wasn't ruined for life. But even now, whenever I feel unusual tingling on my lips (it took a long time for me to accept lip plumpers), I have an urge to chuck the tube.

Le Metier de Beaute Thailand

With that happy revelation, let's turn our attentions to my current lip-safe obsession. Le Metier de Beaute "Colour Core" Moisture Stain Lipstick in Thailand ($32) is one of the newest additions to my ever-expanding lip wardrobe. I was nonchalantly browsing through the LMdB display for a nude-pink lipstick one day, and made the mistake of letting Dustin know, because he then flexed his magical fingers and produced this perfect shade with a flourish, and before I knew it I was happily swiping my monies away.

Interesting tidbit: LMdB lipsticks are named after the country from which they obtain the pigments for the colors.

I don't know what happened between swatching it on my hand and putting it on my lips. What I can tell you is my hand swatch does not accurately capture the pearlescent glow that radiates from this lipstick. In fact, the swatch above looks like any old pink-beige lipstick, right? WRONG.

BAM!

Thailand makes my lips look plump and juicy, without me having to suffer the minty tingle that accompanies lip plumpers. It shines on its own, so you wouldn't need to top it off with a gloss. For those who think glosses are too much, this pearly lip is a good alternative.

LMdB Penelope on eyes, Thailand on lips

Le Metier de Beaute lipsticks are smooth and well pigmented. It only takes one swipe to achieve opaque color, and that involves no tugging whatsoever. Thailand is scent-free and lasts a good 4-5 hours on me. It settles on the lips immediately (unlike Rouge d'Armanis, which tend to "move" around before setting) and sits well as I barely feel its presence. 

I'm looking at the hand swatch and now I want a lip color that looks exactly like that on my lips. What is wrong with me?!