Glossier's Balm Dotcom: the balm that launched a thousand ships

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Glossier’s Balm Dotcom: from OG to mango

Glossier’s Balm Dotcom: from OG to mango

Since its inception I’ve purchased six tubes of Balm Dotcom, the classic, unscented version being the first — it came with the Phase 1 set which also included the Milky Jelly Cleanser and the Priming Moisturiser. This fact alone doesn’t make me special by any means, more like persistent in my pursuit to find the best darn lip balm out there.

Balm Dotcom was alright at the start, but it was lacking something. So, I tossed it in my vanity and didn’t give it much thought until the launch of Birthday Balm Dotcom as inspired by Milk Bar's hundreds and thousands (a.k.a rainbow jimmies or sprinkles) birthday cake. Birthday smells of vanilla cake and features an iridescent finish, alas I was spellbound by the holographic packaging more than anything else, and so it goes Birthday was relegated to my vanity shortly thereafter.

Not wanting to stop there (for the sake of experimentation and all) I purchased a trio of flavours, which included mint, cherry, and coconut. Mint is refreshing and tint-less; I enjoy applying this before running out the door to help make myself feel a little more put together than I actually am most days. Coconut is more on the buttery side (think, butterscotch) — lovely enough, but I still hadn’t found my match. With cherry plan on feeling nostalgic; think Lip Smackers circa 1995, just more grown-up with its cherry red tint.

As luck would have it, more like being in a pinch when I found myself with dry cuticles a few winters back and no cuticle oil on hand, I grabbed for a tube of Balm Dotcom to help keep my hands and lips happy, and I’ve never looked back.

The texture is consistent across all of the flavours — thick and rich, never greasy, and emollient; giving quenched lips and digits a new lease on life over and over again.

What about Mango? Well, it’s my personal favourite! With its light coral pink tint and mango-y goodness, it transports me back to Hawaii whenever I need a hit of holiday feels.

Wearing Mango Balm Dotcom layered over Cloud Paint in Dusk on my lips

Wearing Mango Balm Dotcom layered over Cloud Paint in Dusk on my lips

It’s What’s on the Inside that Counts

Each tube features hydrating, good-for-you ingredients including:

  • Beeswax - a natural emollient used to help protect the skin.

  • Lanolin a.k.a. wool wax, but try slapping that term on a label for consumers to mull over - a moisturising ingredient which “mimics human skin lipids.”

  • Castor seed oil - a natural plant extract that acts as a humectant (helps to retain moisture).

  • Cupuacu fruit extract - moisturiser with Omega-6 and 9 fatty acids to maintain a healthy appearance.

  • Rice bran and rosemary leaf extracts - “antioxidants used to combat free radical skin damage” (free radicals are by-products floating around in the atmosphere, e.g. smog, dust, and cigarette smoke. Yay?)

Balm Dotcom, or BDC, well, it’s my jam — especially when it comes to Mango or OG BDC (balm dotcom, to you).

Wait, how much does it cost? I’m so glad you asked.

A single tube goes for $12 USD, or buy them in a trio and save $6 USD! So handy.

Honest thoughts on Glossier: the series

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All the Glossier stuffed inside a pink bubblewrap pouch

All the Glossier stuffed inside a pink bubblewrap pouch

Welcome back! It’s been a long while since we last caught up. After a bit of thinking and stewing, and missing having a creative outlet, I thought to myself it was high time to re-visit the blogosphere.

So, hello again — how are you and what’s new?

After posting about my comeback my lovely friend, Kara of Miss Frankie, dropped me an inspiring note that solidified my burning desire to return to writing and reviewing makeup over here on Bagful. Plus, she may’ve subtlety hinted about featuring Glossier, and well, here we are. Over the next few weeks I’m going to take you on a semi-deep dive through all things Glossier.

Instead of jotting down one long review with way too many photos of my face, I’ll provide links in this post as the reviews progress <watch this space>, but here’s what you can expect to find over the coming weeks (in no particular order; it’ll all come down to what I feel like writing about at the time #truth):

Skincare

  • Serum: The Supers (Super Bounce, Super Glow, and Super Pure)

  • Lip stuffs: Balm Dotcom

  • Face wash: Milky Jelly Cleanser

  • Eye and lip cream: Bubblewrap

Makeup

  • Complexion: Perfecting Skin Tint, Wowder, Stretch Concealer, Haloscope, and Cloud Paint

  • Eyes: Lash Slick, Lidstar (as made famous by the likes of Beyonce and Maya Rudolph at last year’s Oscars ceremony), and Colorslide

  • Brows: Boybrow and Browflick

  • Lips: Generation G, Cloud Paint (yes, it’s a rascally multitasker), Lip Gloss, and Vinylic Lip

Apparel

  • The Glossier sweatshirt — I need a back-up, stat! It’s super soft, keeps me warm, and turns me into a walking billboard for Glossier whenever I wear it. Does that mean I qualify for some sort of kickback now?

Bear in mind that I won’t have photos for some of the Glossier products I’ll be reviewing — it’s either been used up, dried out and binned, or sold on eBay (true story, I did that).

Wonder how I managed to smuggle so much product over to Australia? (Glossier doesn’t yet ship here.) Let’s chalk it up to using a mail forwarding service, and strategically placing orders while on holiday in the US ever since Glossier’s opened it’s brick and mortar-less store.

To satiate your appetite between reviews, here’s a 10% discount code: https://re.glossier.com/7ba0f00a

I’m not an affiliate, but it’s a sweet incentive for Glossier customers :) Happy shopping, and let me know what you buy!

Apart from brows and foundation I’m wearing a face full of Glossier; full look breakdown coming your way!

Apart from brows and foundation I’m wearing a face full of Glossier; full look breakdown coming your way!

Until next time 💋🙋🏻‍♀️

The cost of spots

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the cost of spots

My entire being is covered in a constellation of spots. On my left thigh I can draw the little dipper; as for my back, I avoid letting it see the light of day out of embarrassment. I wish I was hiding a regrettable tattoo rather than an endless sea of spots most likely borne from fake baking in my early twenties.

I was checked from top to toes last Monday: freckles, and moles (mole-y, mole-y, mole. Mole.) - nothing was safe. My dermatologist was pretty casual about the whole thing as she peered through her handheld microscope to inspect my largest bodily organ. When we first met I think she half expected to find something, and she eventually did. She biopsied an unassuming spot located just above my ribs because she thought it looked funny. What's so funny about a mark no larger than the size of a pin head? I wasn't even aware of it, it appeared innocuous, and maybe it still is.

Yet in the wake of parting ways I replayed my stupidity. Buying tanning oil with factor 8, turning lobster red most summers, allowing myself to get so badly burnt during the summer of 2001 that my calves swelled to almost twice their size and bags of frozen peas were my saving grace, and for being recklessly (s)unaware. I love the sun. I worship it for its ability to make an okay day turn good, I love the feeling of its warmth on my back, and I'll even go as far as following it just for another glimpse.

The sun bookends our days, and highlights our memories - how poetic.

I mean, can you even fault it for moments like this?

Sunset captured at Spouting Horn, Kaua'i

Sunset captured at Spouting Horn, Kaua'i

Yeah I didn't think so.

The sun though, it hates my DNA. I'm thirty-two now, and it's taken me one too many sunburns to realise if I want a tan it's coming from a bottle (thank you, Clarins), a hat and a pair of sunglasses are way cuter than a peeling part and premature wrinkles, and factor 40 SPF is the bare minimum.

Come next week, good news or bad, that funny, little spot left a tiny hole in my side for my past sun sins to pour out. Two stitches made me whole again, and the discomfort and inconvenience was a nasty reminder that the bright, burning ball in the sky is a bully.

A few takeaways from last week's appointment (I am not an expert, but these tidbits resonated with me):

  • Pink and skin coloured (beige/tan) moles should be pointed out to your GP or dermatologist
  • Moles that you've had for eons are likely nothing to worry about, but it's still a good idea to keep an eye on them
  • Get your skin checked every year, or even sooner if spots become itchy, won't heal, bleed, or changes in shape/size
  • If you have loads of spots, photograph the entirety of your body in sections, and allow it to serve as your skin diary for the next twenty years. You can get this professionally done, or have a trusted partner, friend, etc. take them for you
    • Store these images some place safe, ideally protected with an excellent password
  • A cloudy day won't protect you from the suns' harmful rays.

For further reading:

http://www.cancer.gov/types/skin/moles-fact-sheet

http://www.sunsmart.com.au/skin-cancer

Btw, Supergoop (specially formulated for people with sensitive skin) is my favourite sun care range.