Sugar Rush is the new sister brand of Tarte Cosmetics which at least, took me by surprise. I had no idea this was in the works until one day my Instagram feed was blowing up with “new brand alert!” Sugar Rush is targeted at a younger demographic with their campaign boasting “everything $25 and under.” You can find their products on the Tarte website or at Ulta. Marketing wise, this brand seems like a smart move. Adolescents don’t have over $30 to shell out at a time and the aesthetic is definitely Instagram worthy. What more could beginners in the beauty community want?

I’m all for this brand although, one aspect confuses me. Their packaging seems to be a little inconsistent. Take these lip oils I’m about to get into. There are three different shades: Dragon Fruit (magenta), Fresh Pressed (nude) and Cherry Slush (red) all retailing for $15 each. They are a part of the Sugar Rush line yet they say Tarte on them. That’s kind of diminishing the purpose of starting a new brand, no? I mean in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t affect much. However, if Tarte plans on expanding Sugar Rush (which I’m sure they do) wouldn’t it make sense to market things as the correct brand? I don’t know, just a thought. Anyway, now that I’ve analyzed my little heart out, let’s get to the actual review.

Packaging:

The packaging is adorable in my opinion. The mismatched bright colors definitely give off a youthful and playful vibe. The random plastic part at the bottom of the tube is pretty useless besides its aesthetic quality. It adds a cute touch but, I’ll probably remove it once I can’t tell which shade is which.

Product:

The product itself is outstanding. Both shades have the perfect amount of pigment in them, leaving the lips with a gorgeous glossy sheen. Dragon Fruit is a dark magenta color which looks great with certain eye looks or a bare face. My favorite time to apply this shade is when I actually have minimal makeup or no makeup on at all. It really draws attention to the lips but, in a subtle way. Fresh Pressed looks good with literally anything. Because this shade is a very light nude, it basically resembles a clear gloss on the lips. Both lip oils are a gorgeous, juicy dream. If you want a more subdued look, one swipe is plenty. However, if you’re all about the plump, two to three coats will really get you there. The product itself is on the thicker side which I personally prefer. I’ve never tried another lip oil before so I’m not sure if that’s typical but, it’s overall pretty similar to a thick lip gloss. They definitely feel hydrating on the lips and last a decent amount of time. Obviously if you eat though, they’re going to slide right off. Finally, both flavors smell and taste like a raspberry creamsicle. Kathleen Lights would argue push pops which I can also agree with.

Price: $15

The price is decent. Do I wish they were cheaper? Of course. Can I justify spending $15 on a lip oil? Apparently, since I bought two. The NYX #thisiseverything lip oils are $6 each and have more product, which seems to be reasonably priced to me. Granted, I’ve never actually tried them so, they could be awful. Despite Sugar Rush’s motto, they are still considered a prestige (more expensive) brand at Ulta. This means that the items will usually be excluded from Ulta’s coupons. These lip oils remind me of Fenty Beauty’s Gloss Bomb line which, if you’re comparing the two, Fenty’s lip glosses are $3 more. Formula wise they are definitely two different products. However, at least you know Sugar Rush’s price for these lip oils aren’t outrageously overboard for a prestige brand. Still overpriced? Of course, but that’s the entire makeup industry for you.

Performance:

Final Thoughts:

I really do love these lip oils. I keep both in my purse at all times because I have a soft spot for options. If you’re not sure which one you’ll like the most, I feel like you can’t go wrong with Fresh Pressed since it’s a basic nude. I’ll probably eventually cave and end up buying Cherry Slush as well, because my self control is nonexistent.