Before we were allowed to wear actual makeup, girls of the 80s loved their
flavored and tinted lip glosses. We stowed them in our
purses, because periodic
reapplication was a must. Those sheer colors and glossy shines didn’t
last for long.
But that was TOTALLY okay, because these luscious glosses were sweet
treats as well! A little hit of Dr. Pepper or strawberry lip gloss was
just as yummy as a mouthful of Nerds or Pixy Stix, but it was something
you could indulge in at, like, your desk in homeroom.
Here’s a rundown of our very favorite lip glosses of the 1980s:
Bonne Bell Dr. Pepper Lip Smackers
MMMM! This was delish. Like its soda namesake, Dr. Pepper lip
balm was a
mysterious taste hybrid, sorta like a cola, and sorta like a root beer.
Whatever, it tasted great and softed our lips nicely. Color and shine,
not so much, but this lip gloss’s great flavor more than made up for
that. Bonne Bell produced balms flavored like sodas (such as 7Up, Orange
Crush, and Hires Root Beer) and candy (including Tootsie Roll and Good
and Plenty), but Dr Pepper was the most popular.
I love this vintage Lip Smackers ad with a rainbow of yummy flavors:
Cuteness of Container: C-
Color: D
Gloss: B
Moisturizing: A
Flavor: A+
Color Change Mood Lipstick
It’s like magic, you guys! Like a mood ring, which changed color when
you put it on, Color change lipsticks went on basically sheer, but then
changed color due to your personal body temperature and chemistry.
Awesome! Color change lipstick is still around (and
not just for little
girls) so you can play lip color roulette again any time you like. There were
several varieties back in the eighties, and there are tons of brands for
sale today. Girls will never get tired of putting on emerald green,
canary yellow, tangerine, and royal blue lipstick and having it turn
into girly pink on their lips:
Cuteness of Container: D
Color: A+
Gloss: A-
Moisturizing: B-
Flavor: D
Maybelline Kissing Potion
Kissing Potion glosses were in liquid form with roller ball applicators.
They were clear and super shiny, and oh-so-yummy. Equate them to licking
a Dum Dum and rubbing it on your lips, only with less color and slightly
longer-lasting shine. Of COURSE little girls were going to dig them. Add
to that the idea that maybe – just maybe – your crush might notice your
extra shiny lips and get the idea to go in for a smooch, and you’ve got
one bitchin’ lip gloss, ladies.
Here’s a great vintage ad for Kissing Potion featuring Kim Basinger:
Cuteness of Container: B+
Color: F
Gloss: A+
Moisturizing: C
Flavor: A+
Avon Figural Lip Glosses
Avon figural lip glosses! OH MY GOSH these were so cute! And such
special little accessories for your purse! I had the Nestle Crunch one
and just loved it. It had delish chocolate flavor, great lip softening,
and a hint of color, too.
Check out Andrea Singarella’s entire post
about these adorably playful lip glosses from Avon. (I think the
packages are super cute, too.) Here’s the Berry Nice Lip Gloss:
Cuteness of Container: A+
Color: B-
Gloss: C
Moisturizing: A
Flavor: A
Village Lip Lickers
Village Lip Lickers came in an old-timey tin with vintage calligraphy
and supersweet flavors. They had a certain Holly Hobbie flair, and would also
have been right at home with Laura Ingalls on the prairie. If, you know,
Laura had used mass-produced cosmetics. The tins also clicked in a
pleasing way (watch the brief and informative video from
Laura’s Last
Ditch below for a reminder)
when you slid them open and closed. Village Lip Lickers had a nice
tactile quality when you applied them with your fingertip, but in
retrospect, it probably wasn’t the most sanitary kind of lip gloss to
use in an elementary school. (Gross.) Anyway, I had the root beer
variety and LOVED it. I remember it being very soft in the tin, not
terribly glossy, deliciously flavored, fabulous smelling, and basically
colorless.
Cuteness of Container: A+
Color: D
Gloss: C
Moisturizing: A-
Flavor: A
Special lip glosses were perfect stocking stuffers, good grade rewards,
and surprise treats. Like any glamorous grown-up woman, we didn’t want
to leave the house without our favorite lip products tucked safely into
our purses. Girls’ lip glosses were light on the color but high on the
flavor and shine, which is just how we liked it in grade school in the
1980s.