Lipcote is as the name suggests a coat which seals your lipstick colour in giving prolonged wear.
The little bottle has changed from the red lidded version that has been around for decades, and now has a gold coloured lid, as far as I can tell everything else is pretty much the same, though I can't be entirely sure as mine is the red lidded version. It costs £3.19 (for7mls) from Superdrug at the time of writing.
The smell is quite strong, it reminds me a little of old fashioned nail varnish removers, but this scent doesn't last when the product is dry on your lips. The texture is not dissimilar to nail varnish either, though a little thinner. It tastes a little bitter, but not unbearably so, and this taste wears off fairly quickly.
Application is also just like nail varnish; you unscrew the lid and sweep the brush along your lips until they are evenly coated with a thin layer of the product. I find that it stings quite a bit on first application. There is a fairly high alcohol content in this so that may be why. That sensation doesn't last long though, and not as long as the tingle from a lip plumping product would.
The instructions tell you to blot the lips before applying Lipcote and this is an important step as if you have too thick a layer of lipstick on it will pill and flake off rather than fade off, it will also feel tackier once the Lipcote is dry.
I find the brush a little thin and it takes several strokes to coat each lip (don't overdo the Lipcote either as this will also cause excess tackiness and pilling). The way that works best for me I found by accident. I forgot to wipe the brush a little on the edge of the bottle and plopped a big pool of Lipcote in the middle of my bottom lip. Instead of wiping off I instinctively pressed my lips together and I could feel (because of the burn..erm I mean tingle) the Lipcote spread out quickly following the shape of my lips surprisingly accurately, just a gentle wiggle of the lips coated them perfectly. I then kept my lips parted for the drying time (about 5-30ish seconds depending on the lipstick and the thickness of the Lipcote application). This is the way I apply it now and it seems to work well for me giving a thin application.
If you are using this over different coloured lipsticks, which most of us will do over the life of the bottle, then it pays to wipe the brush before dipping it back into the bottle. As the brush picks up some colour from your lips and it will be transferred to the bottle, and colours the liquid a little. I don't think this would be too much of a problem but if you use a lot of pale lipsticks if it might change the base colour a little.
After application my lips stay feeling a little tacky despite thin application, but not much more than lipstick alone would. A thin application of lip balm or gloss can counteract the dry, and even the tacky feeling a little bit, but it does mean that it comes off more quickly and is more likely to ball up and flake.
For me Lipcote only lasts a couple of hours before it starts to look 'tired' and faded, it certainly doesn't take me through a whole day or evening. I can't say it keeps the colour looking fresh throughout wear as the colour quickly becomes 'flat' and loses some of its vibrancy . What it is good at iss preventing transfer. You will not get lippy marks on glass rims or anything else while wearing this, though I would say that if you press your lips against something white like a napkin a faint trace of colour may be left behind.
I have found the same pattern of wear whenever I use it, and to be honest it spends most of its time stuffed in a drawer and rarely taken out. I prefer naked lips or to reapply lip products through the day.
Lipcote is quite drying and isn't a product I would consider wearing every day. Depending on the lipstick it's worn with it can seem more drying sometimes than others, the lipstick also seems to affect the degree to which if flakes or pills, or fades off. Though it is drying my lips recover quickly and it doesn't seem to leave them sore after removal. Despite the fact that it wears off after a few hours it does take some shifting if you want to remove it before it naturally faded away. Something creamy or oily and a good rub will get it off, I can't say how a make up remover will get it off as I don't and wouldn't use one on my lips.
Conclusion
It does keep colour on for a few hours longer than lipstick alone but it doesn't keep it looking fresh moist and newly applied. It doesn't work well over moisturising or glossy lipsticks and of course would be useless over gloss. This is a product I would consider again for formal occasions where you won't always have time to fuss with your lipstick as although I needed to reapply it wasn't as often as would have been required with lipstick alone. I won't bother for everyday wear or nights out, I'd rather top up my colour as normal, have my lips feel soft and comfortable and not have to worry about the possibility of my lipstick 'balling' up.
