By guest contributor Dee Murray

Plumping is pain. That’s all there is to it.

It’s a pleasant pain really. One, when not achieved by an advertised ‘plumping’ product is jerkingly disappointing.

But please. You need not pout – unless it’s plumper induced. Now, you can buy the best without the fear of pucker disappointment. Below, we’ve ranked 5 lip plumpers … and all we have to say is … May the best burn win …

Perricone MD
Lip Plumper
Price: $35
Available at Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Sephora and online at http://www.perriconemd.com/

What they say:
Perricone MD claims to be scientific serum for age correct, anti-aging. It’s selling points tout making lips appear fuller, minimizing the appearance of fine lines around the mouth and restoring a more youthful look.

What I say:
It looks pretty impressive. That’s for sure. Perricone MD arrives in a pharmaceutical looking box, containing a very chic copper-ish tube. And it even wows with technical speak like contains ‘alpha lipoic acid’ and ‘DMAE.’

But disappointingly, nothing. Not even a tingle. Not even a flicker. Absolutely nothing. Used throughout the day for two solid days, constant checks and kissy faces in the mirror garnered no pucker-perfect profile.

Bottom line: Big price tag, even bigger disappointment. (Come to find out, Dr. Perricone’s a guy. …)

Wet n Wild
Mega Plump
Price: $3.99
To find a retailer near you, check out http://wnwbeauty.com/wheretobuy/index.php

What they say:
This brilliantly sheer lip gloss contains Maxi-Lip™ for full, kissable lips, while Vitamins A, E & aloe vera delivers moisture with just a hint of sheer, shiny color. The more you use it the longer the plump lasts - feel the tingle working!

What I say:
Wet n Wild is awesome. It is the most fun, most colorful and most affordable brand of makeup on the market. I love it. This lip plumper is no exception. The colors are electric, the gloss is shiny, sassy and long-lasting and the tingle is tantalizing!

Upon first application of the gloss, I timed the slight burn/tingle at about 10 minutes before it fizzled to nothingness. But upon second application, it lasted about 25 minutes and I noticed a slight plumpness for about an hour. I wouldn’t call this plumping ‘Mega’ as the name entails, but it was noticeable.

Bottom line: Smart value. Great color choices, nice plumping effects. But ‘mega’ is probably not the most accurate of descriptions.


Sephora
Plumping Lip Gloss
Price: $10
Purchase at Sephora retail stores across country and online at sephora.com

What they say:
Maximum volume paired with a sweet, glossy finish makes Plumping Gloss the perfect choice for pout perfection. Natural pepper and mint extracts stimulates microcirculation, resulting in rosy, full lips, and vitamin E nourishes the lips for irresistibly kissable lips.

What I say:
Sephora’s moderately priced plumper is available in a handful of shades – not the wide-range of colors one would expect from a national brand. The clear plumper, which pairs well under or over your favorite lip gloss generates a sensation, never really reaching maximum heat, but is respectably warm. Visibly, the Sephora gloss didn’t produce results I could see, just results I could feel as I felt a lip shape change. … I couldn’t see it though. That’s kind of confusing, right?

When paired against DuWop’s Lip Venom, I’d choose Lip Venom hands down. But it carries a heftier price tag (about $21). So, for the name-brand conscious, Sephora Lip Plumper is a strong, notable and status-worthy choice.

Bottom line: Great name brand. Moderate price, but not best lip plumping brand in family of products offered by company.

Skin by Monica Olsen
Plump for Sexy Lips
Price Tag: $18.95
Purchase at www.skinbymonica.com

What they say:
Starting out at a brand creating products safe for baby’s skin, Skin by Monica Olsen (Monica’s a former fashion model) , now dives into beauty products for men and women focused on an entire regime of skin-care and health products.

What I say:
Plump for Sexy Lips is fantastic. It brings back memories of lip plumpers in their purest, hottest, most affective form. While a little more pricey than most plumpers, the $18.95 price tag is well worth the visual and mental affects.

Instead of utilizing an annoying tingle, Plump of Sexy Lips brings a cinnamon, spearmint mix into the process and proves there really is a such thing as something hurting ‘so good.’ And its visual effects are noticeable, but not overpowering. It generously plumps, generously tingles and the effects last a few hours. Mentally, it feels like a plumper – the burn, the way it rests on the lips – everything is perfect.

Its only downfall is it’s only available in clear – which is a blessing if you don’t like color, but a curse if you carry a very small purse and can’t jam in any more lip gloss. My only suggestion, if heading to skinbymonica.com to purchase this product is to NOT click on the ‘About Monica’ tab … for some reason, it talks about bowel cleansing … and that’s just … not what the average person wants to read about … especially when buying lip gloss.

Bottom line: Up-and-coming brand, slightly pricey, excellent effects. Only available in clear.

Beauty Benefits
By Wet n Wild
Dual Effects
Price Tag: $5.99
Available at discount retailers nationwide.

What they say:
Unique, dual-ended pencil perfectly plumps, conditions, and defines lips. Enriched with botanical extracts to hydrate and protect lips, while accentuating their shape with natural looking color.

What I say:
This combo is one a little more non-traditional, this pencil is a plumper on one end and a lip liner pencil on the other. The stick-formed plumper rolls on smooth enough, but gives a slight oily feel the glosses don’t contain. This is a little bit of a turn off as I expect a feel not so petroleum-jelly-ish but the plumping ‘burn’ is honorable and it had nice effect (although didn’t last as long as its sister product, Mega Plump). The liner is great – pretty typical of a Wet N Wild liner. It was smooth, lasting and is available in a great variety of colors.

Bottom line: Priced right. Liner/plumper combo is nice spin but plumper is a little clumpy.

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