LPN Loves: Natural Lip Guru, Bite Beauty

Coming home felt like Christmas – first, because seeing my family is such a gift (seriously, it had been a year and I was so homesick) and second, because I had boxes upon boxes of wonderful products waiting for some LPN love. First on the docket are EDIBLE, ANTI-AGING & RADIANT lip products. I first heard about Bite Beauty when my bestie in NYC emailed me a link that this natural “lip lab” store was opening up in her neighbourhood. I immediately began my research on Bite Beauty, finding not only are they fabulously natural, but also Canadian (they’re based in ol’ Toronto). Who said that your lipstick has to be chemical to be colourful, long lasting and effective? Whoever “they” were, hadn’t heard of Bite.

The products are pictured on a beauty set my grandmother made and painted years ago. :-)

Why is Bite Beauty Different

Us ladies are absorbing and eating our lip products as we go through our day. The average woman puts on their lip product 5 times a day… I, on the other hand, estimate I do it 100 (ok, perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, but it is certainly more than 5). With that in mind, I was so excited to get my hands on Bite Beauty and test it for both its efficacy and “natural-ness”. Bite lip products boast ingredients such as resveratrol (the anti-aging antioxidant found in the skin of grapes), jojoba seed oil (the hydrating specialist), shea butter (soft lips, here you come), pomegranate (antioxidant powerhouse) and manuka honey (healing & antibacterial phenomenon).

Bite Beauty also has a unique Lip Lab, a place where they make customized colours – check out some of their latest creations here. If you’re based (or visiting) New York, check out their lip lab at 174 Prince Street in Soho. It takes about 7 minutes to make your very own bespoke creation!

Ingredients: What You Won’t Find

While the products aren’t 100% natural and pure (they do have synthetic dyes – food grade), they’re pretty low on the toxicity scale. I often create my own product reports using ingredient lists and the Environmental Working Group’s Cosmetics Database (an amazing tool for any natural beauty expert or natural beauty in training), so to give you an idea of their safety, check out the rankings below in the posts.

But before we do that, we can say Bite Beauty is without (hurrah!):

  •  Parabens
  • Sulfates
  • Synthetic Fragrances
  • Synthetic Dyes
  • Petrochemicals
  • Phthalates
  • GMOs
  • Triclosan

Bite Beauty Honey Lip Lacquer

Bite’s Honey Lip Laquer (pictured in Valencia) was gorgeous, and my favourite of the three I tried. Made with Manuka honey, it is super shiny and long-lasting. It managed to stay on while I spent the time hydrating (aka drinking water) and going about the day “as usual”. While the honey makes it a sticky, it also gives it staying power and that makes me a happy camper (maybe I can lower my daily applications – ha!). With 99% natural ingredients and food-grade pigments, I was in love. Valencia was a perfect colour for my skin type (fair and freckled). Now on my wish list is the bright pink Cienna. The colour pallet for this product is fabulous – find them all at Sephora for $24 USD.

Honey Lip Lacquer EWG Ranking: 4 (Low/Med)  – the ranking is swayed up based on the synthetic (food grade) dyes in the ingredients

Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipstick

Creamy lipstick – now we’re talking. This one was my mom’s favourite (it’s fun to be home and get mom’s input on things – she was a big part of my inspiration for this blog). The colour I tried (and pictured) was Fig, a perfect rosy neutral. The lipstick went on smooth and stayed that way. The colour lasted, but also didn’t stain (i.e. when I wipe it off with a tissue, the pigment isn’t embedded in the cracks in my lips – I was happy about that). In terms of wear length, it was as long as a conventional lipstick. With Vitamin E & C and their signature resveratrol, it’s anti-aging in a tube.  Each tube retails for $24, and you can find the enormous colour pallet at Sephora.

Luminous Creme Lipstick EWG Ranking: 3 (Low/Med) – again, the ranking is pushed up slightly because of the synthetic (food grade) dyes in the ingredients.

Bite Beauty Lush Fruit Lip Gloss

Yum. Bite’s Lush Fruit Lip Gloss tastes and smells, just, yum. And to boot? The colour packs a high-pigment punch. The lip gloss is packed with fruit oils and pure pigments: strawberry, blackcurrant, raspberry, coconut, mango, apricot and avocado to  name a few. The olive oil helps it shine, while the pigments keep things sharp and dramatic, and as with all their lip products, a healthy dose of resveratrol for anti-aging. I tend to be swayed to the lighter colours (pictured is what I chose, “Raisin” and next on my wish list is “Peach”) but their colour pallet ranges from rich red to pretty plums and pinks. You can find the Lush Fruit Lip Glosses for $22 at Sephora.

Lush Fruit Lip Gloss EWG Ranking: 2/3 (Low) ingredients bumping up the ranking include glyceryl rosinate and polyhyroxytearate.

On the Skin

To give you an idea of what the colours look like, below are some swatches of the Bite products I tried. From top to bottom, Lush Fruit Lip Gloss, Honey Lip Laquer and Luminous Creme Lipstick.

 

I’m more than satisfied with their products – I love.
So, I’m looking forward to getting my hands on more of the collection this summer, and will keep you posted on colour successes.

Have you tried Bite? Which are your favourite products and/or colours?

If you haven’t, enjoy your new lip love affair.

X

K