Lipstick Queen is one of my favorite lipstick brands. It isn’t the only brand that I wear but it’s one that is heavily represented in my lipstick wardrobe and on my blog. I won’t reveal the total number of tubes from the brand, but I’ll say that there are at least three shades that I bought repeatedly, some even more than twice.
I’m not sure what attracts me in these lipsticks the most: I like their names, I enjoy strange colors, and their formula (especially the one they use for their sheer lipsticks) works great for my lips. So, whenever I would come across the next release, I’d get curious and often end up buying it, even though my lipsticks collection is running over the space I designated to it, similar to my perfumes wardrobe.
I have a bad feeling that I might need to start looking for another favorite. First, at some point, I suddenly realized that I haven’t heard for a while about any new quirky names/collections from the brand. Then there was a slew of their products on sale at different outlets (I took advantage of some of those). Then I noticed prices going back up for several of those lipsticks that I keep an eye on planning to replenish once the lipstick in use is done. And then I went to the Lipstick Queen brand’s site to discover that it shrank to a couple of pages: no online shopping, no information about the new and existing products – just a store finder. It looks like the company that bought Lipstick Queen in 2011 lost interest in the brand soon after the original owner had left it in 2017.
I decided to tell you about two lipsticks I added to my collection last – while those are still available, if anyone wants to play.
I saw some sites calling Lipstick Queen’s Queen Bee a “lip treatment.” I’m not sure: I bought it as a lipstick, but as well I can imagine that I’m “treating” my lips because it doesn’t provide too much color anyway. As much as I love the idea of a golden lipstick (and have probably a couple more tubes from different brands to attest to that), my skin is too fair for it to wear on its own other than for those hot days when a real lipstick would feel too heavy, but one would like to add some shimmer to lips. Hawaii is a perfect place to wear Queen Bee (and to take a picture of it). Otherwise, it goes well on matte colored lipstick if I want to brighten it a little.
If to borrow terminology from photography, while Queen Bee is a like a warm filter that can be applied to one’s lips, Ice Queen is a cool filter. It also provides shimmer but it’s rather silver-toned. Most likely, I’m influenced by the name and packaging, but with the same sheer coverage I still consider Ice Queen a winter lipstick. Counterintuitively, my lips and complexion “tolerate” this cold shimmer on its own better than the golden one. But I still wear it mostly over darker colors to add festive stardust to my lips during the holidays season.
Poppy King, the creator of Lipstick Queen, was planning her comeback with her third lipstick company and a new line Femme De Poppy. Last year she launched it at Barney’s… It doesn’t look like the new owner, Saks, picked it up. Today the new brand’s site is even less informative than the Lipstick Queen’s one. But I signed up for the updates and look forward to trying whatever Ms. King comes up with next. I’m really rooting for her not only because she created those great lipsticks that both work well for me and amuse me (wearable blue, green, black lipsticks named Hello Sailor, Frog Prince and Black Lace Rabbit with well thought-through packaging), but also I feel like I can relate to her: we’re almost the same age, she has fair skin, and she gets her inspiration from her kitty cat Meowsy. On the other hand, unlike her, I’m absolutely not entrepreneurial. I’ve just ordered and plan to read her first book (not an affiliated link) – Lessons of a Lipstick Queen: Finding and Developing the Great Idea That Can Change Your Life – not that I plan to change my life but I’m curious.
Images: my own
Undina's Looking Glass 
Oh ….. that’s bad news. I am a Frog Prince lover myself. Rats. Just lately it seems that most things I like are disappearing …. hope I don’t jinx them!
Rusty looks very interested in those lipsticks. If he is anything like my felines, you will soon be searching for the barrels under the bed …..
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I had exactly the same thought! Recently there was a chain of such “discoveries” that felt like I could predict what would get discontinued (or closed, if we were to talk about TV) just by realizing the fact that I liked that a lot.
Recently Laura Mercier reformulated their award winning and for years beloved tinted moisturizer, completely butchering the product (it didn’t just got worse – they managed to ruin color stability, and it started oxidizing in tubes! I heard they were recalling it and changing formular. We’ll see).
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Oh yikes, I love Laura Mercier’s tinted moisturizer. I fortunately have a few tubes that will last another six months or so but when I run out…. Rusty is so beautiful! *squish*
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I know! I keep an eye on the product because the closest one that I currently found is 50% more expensive – still tolerable but I don’t like that I had to do it. I’ll share any good news.
Cats are much more photogenic that we, humans :)
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I love Lipstick Queen! The collections are so witty and inventive. I always have a tube of medieval in my handbag and I love all the colour changing ones. I bought Venetian Masquerade last week. Black Lace Rabbit and Goodbye are brilliant alone and for for toning down over bright colours. I do hope the brand continues and I’ll be up for any new projects from Poppy.
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Medieval is one of those that I also like a lot. I should probably get an extra tube while I can. Too bad lipsticks do not hold as well as vintage perfumes.
Let’s hope we’ll all see the return of the Lipstick Queen (I do not mean the brand ;) ).
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Ah this is sad but I hope her new brand works for you as well. I loved the Lipstick Queen packaging and enjoyed your posts about their quirky lipsticks.
Really liked reading about how you make Queen Bee and Ice Queen work for you. Great pics too. I can just see you in Hawaii wearing that shimmer of gold.
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If I go to Hawaii this year, that lipstick goes with me – in a company of Black Lace Rabbit and Hello Sailor lipsticks and Bronze Goddes, OJ Tiare and Yosh Ginger Ciao perfumes (I have quite a wardrobe :) ).
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I am the person who forgets to wear lipstick; so I haven’t tried Lipstick Queen. What a shame that the brand seems to be slipping away. The churn in the beauty industry is kind of insane and if you’re not constantly releasing things I think you get lost in the shuffle.
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I really don’t like that :( Usually, once I found something I like, I keep using it for decades (I still like and wear my first perfume love – it does say something about me ;) ).
If it weren’t for LQ circling the drain, I would start recommending you Frog Prince, Hello Sailor and Medieval: these are ones of the most effortless lipsticks out there: you do not even have to really look in the mirror while applying them: they go sheer but nice on your lips.
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Eeek. I hope Poppy’s new (ad)venture works out! I don’t wear lipstick, usually just a transparent lip balm. Does this stop me from buying lipstick? No, because I keep telling myself THIS shiny object will be the one to catapult me into the Lipstick Wearing Group.
And dear Rusty seems determined to own that one tube which los either now empty or closed; otherwise, J can just picture you spitting out cat hair the next time you wear it 🤣.
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It wasn’t easy to take that picture! Of course, Rusty wanted to play with those (and especially since picture taking is the only time he’s “officially” allowed on the table – not that it stops him at other times but here he’s not afraid to be yelled at ;) ).
I’ll keep you posted if I hear any news: who knows, maybe that next shiny object… ;)
My favorite transparent balm, from Bite, about which I wrote some time ago, was reformulated recently! :( I bought all the mini-tubes I could get my paws on, so I’m covered for another year, I think, but after that I’ll be very sad if they don’t bring it back (which I don’t think they will, greedy bastards!).
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Oh no! What a shame!
It’s always a bit painful when you realize that something you really liked will not be available anymore at some point in near future :(
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I know! And it’s double-painful for me since I prefer things to stay as they are! :)
Well, I’ll be on a lookout for the next great thing… until it gets spoiled.
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Thanks for inducting me into this wacky line with your gift of a couple of shades. Sorry for your loss, but glad about your gain of those latest lipsticks. Or Rusty’s gain, by the looks of it. ;)
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The search continues! I’m yet to make a purple lipstick wearer out of you ;)
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