With this post, the Addiction train has finally come to the end. At least, for now. It’s crazy how much I bought from this counter on my trip and how I still feel like I missed out on some good shades or products. I don’t think it points to a hoarder mentality, necessarily—though of course a hoarder in denial would say that.

Seriously, though, I think I’ve found another favorite brand. Funnily enough, NARS, which is where Ayako used to work with, has been one of my favorite brands even before I got makeup-crazy. 🙂

(Whoap, too bright!)

LOL I am so sorry about the titles, but I just need to put something up there other than the name of the product and the shade. I mean, really. I HAVE TO. This is a cast-off title: Getting Cheeky with It. Get it? Will Smith?

Ahem.

So far, I’ve shown you the lipsticks and the lip crayon. I have only two more full-sized Addiction products to show you, and I got some samples of their tinted moisturizer, I think, to try out. For this post, I want to highlight a beautiful product from Addiction called the Cheek Stick. I got one in Revenge, and it’s safe to say that I regret not hoarding this little baby because it is ah-mah-zing, as Penny from Happy Endings would say.

Revenge is a deep bright pinky coral that looks absolutely delicious for the summer. It is sort of a satin-matte, and has zero shimmer or glitter.

The packaging has a cute pink base, as opposed to the all-black look of their lipsticks. It has the same minimal feel to it, though with a little punch to it. I suppose it’s the same way with the product itself.Cheek Sticks are a hybrid product meant for multitasking. Supposedly, you could use it for the lips, cheeks/face and eyes.

I had my eye on Argan Tree as well for a good creamy contour, but at the time I thought this product was only meant for the cheeks and lips, and I had no idea what kind of world would be OK with poop-colored lips.

Anyway. Revenge, as you can see, is reasonably pigmented and blends out quite well. This is a light swatch, beside a light swatch that I’ve blended out.

How I apply it to my cheeks:

It’s hard not to feel silly, when you’ve got marker-lines drawn on your cheeks, hehe.

And here, I’ve blended it out with a stippling brush. Oooh, pretty.

I like that it sheers out, but not so much that you don’t even see the color on your face anymore. I’ve found that to be true with some cream products. It’s also great that even though these cheek sticks are super pigmented, they are easy to sheer out when you go overboard.

Obviously, you can also build up the color to a brighter, more street-walker level, although I would really rather not.

I guess these, in theory and concept, are similar to the NARS Multiples. I have none of those because all of the ones I’ve seen seem to be way too shimmery for my liking, although I have heard that though those are also considered multi-tasking products, they perform quite poorly on the lips.

What I’m wearing: L’Oreal Lucent Magique Liquid Foundation (N5), The Body Shop Brow & Liner Kit (02), Maquillage Eye Color N (RD 734), shu uemura eye shadow (ME medium brown 885), Addiction Cheek Stick (Revenge), Addiction Lip Crayon (Day Trip)

Here it is on the lips, but I took it on a different, cloudier day, so the light’s a bit different.

First off, it can apply a bit patchily, but the color is quite buildable, without really applying too thickly and gloppy. The color pulls a bit more orange to me than pinky-coral so I much prefer this on my cheeks. The formula seems to be better as a cream blush or cream eyeshadow base than a lipstick, but that’s just my opinion.

What I’m wearing: Wet n Wild Comfort Zone Palette, Revlon ColorStay Minerl Blush in Roseberry, Maybelline The Falsies Mascara

If you are taking a trip to Japan soon, or if you know someone who is, you need to get one of these, stat. They are absolutely amazing. If I got only these products from Addiction, I would have Gold Fish-shaped void in my life, but I would be so happy because these are top-notch.

Addiction Cheek Sticks retail for ¥2940 (with tax), which I think is how much their lipsticks go for as well.

I currently do not know if Addiction tests on animals, and have reached out to their official Twitter page to ask, though I have not gotten an answer. I’ve Googled around a bit and it seems like Addiction’s parent company, Kosé, tests so it’s safe to assume that Addiction tests on animals as well.

Read about my personal cruelty-free pledge here.