I wouldn't call this collection a let down overall, but there are a few things that aren't that great. Not keen on the CCs - I got to see the other two. They're better for the cheeks this time, but not as good on the lips. Hi Jinx is the best of them, but if you have Joie de Vivre Cremeblend blush, you don't need it if you're mainly going to use it on the cheeks, and if you have Sushi Kiss, that's very similar but works better on the lips. HitC was disappointing to me - I was hoping it'd be a richer color. RB is a little subdued. The glosses are better on top of lipsticks than on their own, big time. Playland is only for those who will handle it's misbehavior. The rest of the lipsticks are very cute, but you have to like that creamy, glossy amplified finish, which is pretty darn loud. I really like the gloss + lippie combos you can come up with - that's the nicest aspect of the whole collection, but that isn't for low buy conditions, that's for sure. I'm getting a bit more than I originally planned, but I don't have any glosses like the shades in this collection. I'll probably not use them to death, but there will be times where I'll get a Playland collection lip going and will feel House of Labeija fierce, and that's good enough for me.
Sounds like those two will be good picks for you! Red Balloon will look brighter on deeper skin tones, so it might not be exactly demure, depending on your coloring. It's 50% demure!
LOL, you should have seen how many hours I labored over the Patentpolishes. That's part of the enjoyment of shopping for me, though…leisurely trying everything out and then finally making the decision and taking it home. I like to put a little thought into my purchases - I think of it as analysis, not indecision!
Letting go is a very freeing sensation! Right now, there's a lot of that going on in my life (not so much with makeup, but for sure with more important things like health, friends and men) and wanting to feel free is a huge motivation to make the tough choices and take the other consequences as they come. It's a clean slate feeling, that gives you room to make new plans and find new things to love. The makeup stuff is just a mini version. Playland is pretty small in the scheme of things!
On the other hand, if I had to pick 3 things out of the collection for you particularly, I'd say TA, Sweet Experience and either the yellow gloss if you want to really bump your lippies into a bright coral zone, or the orange gloss if you want that but want to go a touch more subdued. Or if you don't want crazy levels of glossiness, skip the glosses and get Playland to do the same things they would in a more subdued way, but just be prepared to fiddle around a bit.
Thank you guys for being the voice of reason 
