Cargo Plant Love Lipstick

The Plant Love Lipstick from Cargo was the first 100% natural and EcoCert lipstick when it was released several years ago.  The lipstick is by far the first of its kind, both in formulation and in the packaging.  I first bought one of these lipsticks years ago, after thinking that I really liked the color in the store.  I got it home and it wasn't quite what I had in mind so it just sat in my traincase for quite a while before I started cleaning.  I had every intention of throwing the product away but I decided to try it out one last time and I decided that I liked it much better this time around.  Of course I would start to really like it now that Sephora is no longer stocking the line in their stores...

"Plant Love's 100% Natural, EcoCert certified lipsticks are gorgeously green on all levels - Product, Packaging, and Process."  This product and the concept is so unique that I gave a presentation on it in my marketing class for an example of product differentiation.  The lipstick formula is completely natural, with the major ingredients being several types of organic oils and an organic Caranuba Wax base.  Seeing as how it has been shown in studies that women shallow about eight pounds of lipstick throughout their lives, this is a formula that I have no problem accidently licking off my lips.  The lipstick tube is made from corn oil, using less pollution and energy to produce and not making Cargo dependant on the price of oil and plastics for the product.  The box that the lipstick comes in is laced with flower seeds and can be planted and then flower will grow up.  For my product differentiation presentation, this product got me the highest grade in the class.

This lipstick has a cream finish with a slight shimmer.  It is very hydrating and soft, however I only get about one to two hours wear from it.  It is not a long-lasting lipstick and it comes off as soon as I drink or eat anything.  The stick itself is also quite soft and cracked a bit when apply straight from the tube.  I am considering cutting the stick up and putting it in a container to apply with a lip brush.  Formula-wise, this is not among my favorites that I own.  I understand that a natural product will not have the long-lasting properties that other lipsticks have since that property often comes from chemical compounds.

I bought the Lindsay shade, the pink that was made with Lindsay Lohan (pre-breakdown and rehab phase).  I first thought this shade would be very sheer and more like a gloss than a lipstick (this was when I wasn't as big a fan of pink lips) and when it was full pigmentation, I pushed it to the side.  Since I have been using pink lipsticks all of this spring and summer, I tried this one again and now the shade was perfect.  This one is more a neutral, medium pink.  It works well for cool skin but I don't find it neutral enough for warmer skin tones.  I looked for this shade on the website and it is one of the only original shades that is no longer offered from this company.  I was upset since I love the color but with the negative publicity around her at the moment, I don't know that I would want her shade in my color collection either.  However, this product is offered in quite a few more shades and the Sarah Chalke shade isn't all that different from the original Lindsay shade.

Here are the rest of the shades (and the celebrity that inspired/helped create them)...

- Angie Harmon - Faith - muted mauve
- Angie Harmon - Grace - iced strawberry sorbet
- Courtney Cox - Cece - sheer berry
- Denise Richards - Lola - sheer sparkling praline
- Denise Richards - Sam - sheer red currant
- Gamba - sheer cranberry
- Joshua Tree - shimmering cinnamon sand
- Killarney - soft terracotta pink
- Majella - natural dusky rose
- Maria Menunous - sheer vibrant poppy
- Mariska Hartigay - sheer nude caramel
- Muir Woods - sheer spiced mauve
- Nahinni - shimmering honey copper
- Robin McGraw - Ageless - tropical coral
- Sagamartha - sheer rosewood
- Sarah Chalke - shimmering petal pink
- Yakushima - sparkling candy apple pink
- Yellowstone - rich iced rose

 The first shade that I would order from this line is the Sarah Chalke shade, it is the closest to the Lindsay shade and I do remember that I was going back and forth between the two shades when I originally bought Lindsay.  With the lack of lasting power in this formula, I don't think that I would use this product in dark or bright colors.  When I wear a high maintence lip shade, I need to know that it will last the whole day.  I think the only other shades that fit the bill are Cece, Faith, Killarney, and Majella.  No one these will be pigmented enough to be noticed when they begin to wear off. 

I give this product major points for uniqueness and for showing the world that you can have products that are both organic and very pretty at the same time.  I wish that this lipstick lasted a bit longer but I know that I can't have that and the organic ingredients at the same time.

photo courtesy of Cargo