Review: Etude House 'Berry Delicious' Color in Liquid Lips and Curl Fix Mascara

My first Etude House review!

I thought that I'd kind of 'grown out' of this brand. I'd tried several of their products back in ye olde days when I still had to order online - mainly bought them because their packaging was cute, but wasn't really blown away by the quality, to put it mildly.

But BERRIES. I can't resist berries! Etude, you've got me, hook, line and sinker.

I'm a sucker for everything strawberry, so I actually started to do a little drawing inspired by this line without the intention of buying anything... and then caved when there was a sale.

As I already have a liquid lipstick in red that I love dearly, I didn't get the main color of this collection of Colors In Liquid Lips. Instead, number PK014 'Berry Cherry To Go' caught my eye. On the official swatches, it looks like a warm pink.

As my old mascara was all dried up, I also got the Curl Fix Mascara I'd been eyeing for a while - in the limited edition packaging, of course.

I was a bit surprised when the order arrived, as the packaging color of the liquid lipstick looks more like a bubblegum pink than the website indicated. If a pink shade has too much 'milky' undertones in it and is too cool-toned, it normally doesn't suit me. (The swatches themselves surprised me positively, though!)

The 'Color in Liquid Lips' range by Etude House has a lot of vibrant shades in their color selection, so I expected nothing less from this limited edition. I heard that the 'Berry Delicious' products spread easier and are more moisturizing than the originals, but as I don't own any of those, I can't confirm it.

I do own a similarly packaged product in the innisfree Real Fluid Rouge, though. While the packaging does look similar, the formulation is actually very different! Where the innisfree Real Fluid Rouge is very, very creamy and resembles a lip oil, the Colors in Liquid Lips act more like a lip tint fused with a (liquid) lipstick finish.

How cute is that packaging, anyway?!

The packaging quality surprised me! I remembered Etude House's products as kind of cheap to the touch back when I last tried them about three years back. The plastic here feels comparably luxurious, the screw lid closes securely and effortlessly and the applicator is easy to work with, too.

... which is good, because this product is intensely pigmented and I really don't want to mess up when applying!

To my relief, the swatch itself has nothing of the 'strawberry milk' look the packaging made me fear. It's close to the official swatches, too, but I wish it was just a bit warmer and lighter - then it would be an exact match! A very bright pink, just shy from going all hot pink thanks to some rosy, warm undertones. I really love the color! It does look a bit darker on my lips than on my skin, though...

No idea why there's a 'cherry' in the product name, though. I'd rather say it's a 'Raspberry To Go'.

One layer of color

The finish is glossy, but the texture is not overly creamy or oily. It does transfer onto cups and the glossy layer will be destroyed by eating, but it does leave behind a pink stain.

Sadly that stain wasn't very regular, especially after eating: stronger on the outer rim of my lips and nearly non-existent on the inner part, which is not a very flattering look. This is a product that needs to be reapplied or at least blended out with some tinted lipbalm after meals. I'm not too picky about long-lasting products, but sensitive about products that fade irregularly. :/

Two layers of color

It's moisturizing at first, but after a few hours me lips did get dry and a bit chapped. I do have terribly dry lips regularly though, so that might just be me.

This is so crazily pigmented! I didn't find it necessary to do more than one layer to get the color I wanted. But what a second layer did help with was the overall finish. I'm able to blend it more evenly if I first apply a very thin layer, tap it in with my fingertips to get a stain, and then go over it a second time.

One layer only~

This color makes me feel very girly, haha.

As for the mascara:

If I'm informed correctly, the only difference between this one and the 'normal' Curl Fix Mascara is the packaging. There's a second color, though, called 'Strawberry Chocolate Fondue'. Really, REALLY wanted that one because of the name (and the color looks like a pretty, warm brown, too) but it was sold out when I was ordering.

How to even use this brush?? Seriously, if anyone knows, tell me!

I rarely wear black mascara, because it looks harsh on me. Especially clunky, heavy lashes aren't my thing. Most of the time I just use the brown Microcara by innisfree (the tiny one that's for under lashes, but I love it for my upper lashes!) but I wanted to try something new.

Without curling! Yay! There's something there!

THIS BABY ACTUALLY GIVES ME LASHES. But still, I'm a bit disappointed.

I've got super droopy lashes that look invisible because they just go out straight or downwards, no matter how much I curl (I've mostly just given up) but this mascara holds them up well for about five to six hours. Which is good compared to many others I've tried in recent years. It does feel kind of heavy, though, and is difficult to apply.

It is a bit of a messy process to get individual lashes instead of clumpy groups - at least for a mascara noob like me. The black liquid is a bit gooey and dries quickly, so you have to work fast to get the individual lashes seperate. I did seperate them up with a clean spooly, that helped a bit! Maybe I'm just not used to this stuff.

I do prefer the Microcara because I'm just not a mascara person (eye rubbing! Smudging! Cleaning that stuff in the evening!) but I do see the appeal of this one when it comes to curled lashes... I have used it on several occasions combined with heavier eyeliner, but I don't like how it makes my lashes look in general - a bit too clunky.

Two layers of the Color in Liquid Lips - this makes them look very plump, doesn't it? :D
By that point in time, my lashes were already a bit droopy (about five hours after applying the mascara)
No smudging, though!

I will be reaching for this lip color more once spring actually feels like spring, I think! At the moment, I'm still in my neutral-coral-red phase - need some real flowers and strawberries outside to go over into pink phase!

As a fazit: I quite like the product overall, but it isn't a favorite of mine. For that, it's too much of an in-between: Not as long-lasting as a true liptint, a bit too drying in the long run despite being neither a tint nor a matte finish - and while the shiny texture is very pretty at first, the stain it leaves behind was a bit too splotchy for my taste. Minor complaints, but I've got other lip products that I adore more.

(BUT WHO CARES, THE PACKAGING IS PRETTY. IT MAKES ME FEEL PRETTY. REVIEW OVER.)

I had so much fun drawing this, too! Though now that I own the product, I know that that's one way too huge macaron in the background. :') The Color In Liquid Lips is quite large (containing 3.5g of product)

Check out my instagram for a little video I made of the drawing process!

I really want to do more of these makeup illustrations without outlines, especially combined with other objects! It's great practice and the end result is automatically cute, no matter how much I mess up. Hah.

Thanks so much for reading! My reviews are wayyyy too long! (just look at the pictures pls...)