Early last month KaeQ announced that they were offering an “oopsie” shade for sale in limited quantities- originally meant to be a batch of Sea Grape, they ended up adding too much of a pigment and ended up with something entirely different!
I snatched it up in a heartbeat because 1. I love oopsie colors, and 2. it reminded me of my HG Burt’s Bees lip crayon in Niagara Overlook, which my dog had coincidentally eaten earlier that day (because she’s a filthy enabler and I can’t remember to close my purse.)
Swatches, review, & comparison under the cut!
Unfortunately I don’t have shipping dates anymore, but everything arrived promptly and safely!
I did had to contact customer service about my order- after the first use I noticed that the tube wouldn’t roll back down. Nicole replied to my email very quickly, let me know that this is a common gripe with the slimline tubes, and gave me some pointers on what I could do to try and fix it. In the end I opted to just roll it up a little at the time, because I didn’t want to risk damaging anything since I wouldn’t be able to order a replacement.
Photos taken in overcast daylight, because it won’t stop freaking raining!
October Octopus: A bright pinky-coral.
This definitely pulls a little warmer in real life (thanks, clouds) and is a little on the pinker side for me. It’s super creamy, maybe almost too creamy- when I apply this shade warm, it feels like I’m almost getting too much pigment on my lips and it bunches up a little bit. Upside, it’s easy to smooth everything out by just rubbing my lips together, so that’s a plus! It’s definitely a shade I’d prefer to apply cold, and would probably benefit from being applied with a lip brush.
I love this color and it wears really well over time- I chug water like no body’s business at work, and it holds up really well (but does transfer onto cups.) I can’t really speak for how it weathers against eating, because I’m constantly rubbing napkins all over my face between bites.
I did want to see how it compared to Niagara Overlook though, just to see how close it was- so I went and bought a new one, because there’s no such thing as too many lip products, right?
October Octopus on top, Niagara Overlook on the bottom. I wanted to compare it to Sea Grape as well, but my sample is sadly MIA :(
I’d say they’re cousins- definitely in the same color family, but not really twins! Niagara falls always applies a little sheer for me the first few uses, but typically applies just as opaque for me. I’d say they’re both creamy, but Niagara Overlook is definitely lighter on the lips and I don’t feel like I end up using a ton of extra product on average.
At the end of the day I’m pleased with my purchase and happy to have both of these colors in my collection!
Bummed about the shutting down of Kae Q. I should have grabbed that full size of Dragonfruit when I had the chance. :( And snapdragon, and mango, w h y do I make poor choices????
I was gonna grab the new CotM in the morning only to find the drama llama attacked at imam. Ugh. Gonna wear my dragonfruit sample to work tomorrow in mourning.
I’m super excited to finally try out this brand! I’ve been eying KaeQ’s lip products for a while so I’m happy to be able to scratch them off the “bucket list” so to speak.
Swatches & Review under the cut!
KaeQ is based in Florida and run by Nicole, who makes all of her products with local ingredients! This is my first order from her, so I decided to pick up six samples to start with! All samples come in these cute little clam shells, and Nicole includes some doe-foot applicators in sample purchases to make application easier.
I placed my order on September 11, received a shipping notification on September 23, and my package arrived on September 26 from Florida to Washington.
I didn’t have to contact customer service with any problems- but they did contact me! I had originally included a sample of Camito in my order, but when Nicole was packing my order she realized that the inventory count was off and that she was out. She offered to issue me a refund or replace it with a different color, so I opted to pick up Rose Apple instead. She was very prompt and friendly, and had my order finished within a few hours!
(KaeQ is currently closed for a restock- post will be edited to include links and product descriptions when they reopen!)
And now the swatches! All photos were taken in indirect sunlight- but today being your typical slightly cloud Washington day, the lighting varies a little bit. Some very slight editing has been done to lip swatches so that they can look true to color instead of being washed out by funky cloud-lighting.
Rose Apple: sheer light pink.
This was the sheerest of the colors I ordered, and I actually really like that! I love sheer lip products because they can give me a nice, subtle pop of color when I’m at work without being overwhelming. I can see myself getting a lot of use out of this one! It applied easily, didn’t stain, and had a very glossy texture and appearance.
Sea Grape:
More opaque than Rose Apple, this is another color I’ll get a lot of use from! I got great coverage from it, but I feel like it’s not quite as opaque as some of the other colors. It was very soft on my lips, and reminded me a lot of my Nyx Soft Matte Lip Creams.
Dragonfruit: freaking neon fuchsia
Holy crap, this is probably the most neon product in my collection. It’s super bright and super fun, and I think it’s the perfect color to pull out for a pick-me-up on a rainy day! This color was super opaque and also super creamy. It was the only color to leave a noticeable (and very pretty) stain.
Mamey:
I love this color! It’s a wonderfully soft coral-orange kind of color- a nice kick of color that isn’t too loud. Also super opaque and creamy. I love how this one swatches, but I’m still on the fence about whether or not it suits me.
Herbology:
The August CoTM! I’ve always looked at it as a fun take on those brown-y greige colors that are so popular right now. I had high hopes for this one because it looked like a nice warm, rosie, dusty brown, but it ended up being my least favorite of the bunch. The color looked promising when I did arm swatches, but pulled super grey on my lips :( I still think the color is beautiful, even if it doesn’t suit me.
I’ve seen some people mix it with other KaeQ colors, so I think I might give it a whirl in the future.
Mulberry:
This was my risky pick! It’s a gorgeous rusty red-brown, but I’m on the fence on whether or not it suits me because it’s so much darker than any of my other lip products! That, and I’m generally kind of shy about reds to begin with. This one also had a creamy texture, but was also the only one I would describe as patchy. Maybe it would be easier applying from a tube, but I had some trouble getting an even color with the doe-foot.
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That’s it! This was a wonderful first experience with a new company, and I’ll definitely be going back for more (and probably picking up a fullsize of Rose Apple & Sea Grape in the future!)
kaeq is a miami-based etsy shop that creates hypercolor lipsticks and balms to make your mouth stand out. thanks so much for the RAD suggestion, manifiori <3
I'm not normally one for posting selfies to tumblr, but kaeq's beso balms arrived in the mail today, and I am one for shouting about my talented friends. It's date night anyway, a good excuse to play with makeup!
Pictured: Guava, Mamey, and Mamey-layered-over-Guava. Burts' Bees wishes they were this smooth and highly pigmented.
