MAC Lipstick Collection

My MAC Lipstick Collection + Lip Swatches

I remember when I got my first MAC lipstick. I spent a good 45 minutes at the computer, switching between the MAC website and Google image search trying to compare shades and figure out which one I would like best. I finally settled on Brave, which was and still is my favorite lipstick of all time. The formula of the satin finish lipstick was perfect for me - if I could make my own lipstick, it would pretty much be the same as a MAC satin finish lipstick. And the first color I made would probably be identical to Brave. The only thing I'm not particularly fond of is the classic MAC lipstick vanilla scent, although it has grown on me.

Left to Right: Brave, Finally Free, Twig, Craving

As you can see, I've used Brave a lot. I've never actually finished a lipstick before but I'm pretty sure I'll end up finishing Brave in the next year. And I will absolutely repurchase it. Finally Free is a cremesheen, and it was made with Caitlyn Jenner. At the time I purchased it, 100% of the purchase price went to the MAC AIDS Fund Transgender Initiative, which is the main reason I bought it (I do like the color though). I'm not entirely sure if that's still the case but I do know that as of when I post this it's still available. Twig, a satin finish, is actually quite similar to Finally Free but less glossy. Craving is an amplified finish, which is almost like a more pigmented cremesheen finish to me.

Left to Right: Russian Red, The Fashion Flock, "O"

Russian Red is a matte finish. It's my perfect red - matte, blue-toned, and intense. The Fashion Flock is a matte, and it was limited edition so it's no longer available, at least not through MAC. I don't think it's worth trying to get on eBay or a blog sale though, which I will explain in more detail in the lip swatch section. "O" is my newest MAC lipstick, and it's a frost finish. I would never have gotten it if I hadn't swatched it myself in-store, because in the tube it just looks like a shimmery dark brown, which is pretty but not what I prefer on myself. When you swatch it, though, it's really a lovely purple shade with lots of copper and gold shimmer.

Swatches

Brave (Satin Finish)

Like I've mentioned a couple times already in this post, and excessively in past posts, Brave is my favorite lipstick. If I had to choose one lipstick to wear the rest of my life, it would be this one. Brave is one of those shades that looks good on pretty much everyone. It's not quite a nude, but it's not quite a pink or purple either. It looks different depending on the lighting, but it generally looks like a mid-tone mauve.

Finally Free (Cremesheen)

This shade is another universally flattering one in my opinion. It is a bit more sheer than Brave is, though, so it may look different on you depending on how pigmented your lips are. When I bought it 100% of the purchase price went to the MAC AIDS Fund Trangender Initiative, but I'm not sure if that's still the case. You can still get it though, so if you like it then it's available as of posting.

Twig (Satin)

I wanted a brown lipstick, but I knew most brown lipsticks weren't all that flattering on me, so I went for Twig after seeing some swatches online. It's a lovely rosy brown color that I think looks nice on me. I don't wear it nearly as often as I should.

Craving (Amplified)

Craving is another one I don't wear as often as I should. It's kind of a plum shade, but a little more brown than I would expect from a plum color. I think it's a great fall shade.

Russian Red (Matte)

If you like blue-toned reds, this is for you. It's also highly pigmented, which is an essential quality for a red lipstick in my opinion. And it's matte, which is my preferred finish for bright and bold lipsticks so they don't bleed as easily. Those things as well as how long-wearing it is make this my favorite red lipstick.

The Fashion Flock (Matte)

The camera doesn't show enough detail for it to be obvious here, but it is in real life - this is the patchiest and streakiest lipstick I've used in a long time. And it's a shame, because the color is bright and eye-catching and gorgeous. Even if my lips are in perfect condition, no chapping or cracking at all, this lipstick clings to every tiny little dry patch. You will be able to see every little line and crack in your lips if you wear this. I was so disappointing by this one, especially because it looked like the perfect bright spring shade and I needed one. It was limited edition, so it is no longer available.

"O" (Frost)

I was at the MAC counter in the Macy's in a mall when I first discovered this one. I almost didn't even swatch it because it just didn't look like something I would wear, but I'm so glad I did. It looks like the average brown lipstick but with some shimmer if you just see it in the tube, but when you swatch it, there's way more to it. It's a sheer dark purple base that reflects a coppery-gold, and it shifts from more purple to more coppery-gold depending on how the light hits it. Most people would use this as a lipstick topper, and I'll probably do that too, but I'm loving it on its own right now.

Lipstick Swatches & First Impression

Kleancolor Madly Matte Lipsticks First Impression And Swatches

Yesterday I hauled these lipsticks, and I wanted to do a first impression including swatches. I will swatch them on both the inside of my wrist and on my lips! The shades are, from left to right, Orchard, Brick Rose, Arctic, Catalina, and Liberty. Orchard and Brick Rose are the most wearable shades in my opinion, and definitely the better quality ones, as you will see in the swatches. I haven't worn any of them for a full day yet but it's easy to tell from the swatches that some of them are better than others. I will say that these don't seem to be totally matte either - they range from satin to more of a glossy finish, other than Arctic which is pretty matte but also very patchy.

Orchard is a stunning blue-based dark pink that I can definitely see myself wearing a lot if I end up liking the formula. It's definitely not a really matte finish, it's closer to a satin, but that's what I prefer anyways.

Brick Rose looks more red on camera and in pictures than it does in person, but it does have more red in it than Orchard did. It's basically what you would get if you took Orchard and added some red to it, and I really like it. I think it makes red lipstick more wearable for everyday if red isn't exactly your thing. This one has more shine to it than the last one did.

Arctic is going to end up being a lipstick I use to lighten other lipsticks, because on it's own it's very clingy and patchy. It's also not all that pigmented unless you really build it up. I personally wouldn't wear this on it's own because I think it makes my lips look terrible but I think it will work to lighten other lipsticks. It has more of a true matte finish than any of the others, but that seems to make it patchy and very dry.

Catalina is a really pretty color, almost a blue that I would wear everyday if it were just a little more pigmented. I do have some blue eyeliners that might match this well enough to use as lipliners so that this lipstick would look more opaque, so I plan to try that out. As for the finish, it's closer to a satin than a matte, but I still like it a lot.

The last lipstick I have to show you today is Liberty, a dark blue. I kind of see it as a crayon blue, which ruins it being pretty to me a little bit, but I would still wear it for fun every once in a while. I would probably have to use a blue eyeliner as a lipliner so it would be a little less patchy, but as far as super cheap lipsticks in fun colors go, this isn't all that bad.

So my first impression is that these are worth it. You can get them for a dollar each from ShopMissA and they come in lots of other colors. The shade Arctic is one to avoid if you're going for something to wear on it's own, but if you just want something to mix with other lipsticks to lighten them then it's worth a try. It's hard to find blue lipsticks for drugstore prices, and these are only a $1.00 USD! So I would say that if you want some decent lipsticks and don't want to pay much at all and are willing to risk a few of them not being the absolute best quality, go for it.

e.l.f. Lip Stains

e.l.f. Lip Stains Lip Swatches and Review

During the e.l.f. moving sale, I managed to get all four colors of their Studio Lip Stains for a dollar each. They're usually $3.00 USD, which isn't a bad price, but if you can get them for cheaper then definitely do. In this picture I have them in the order (from left to right) of Heartbreaker, Fashionista, Birthday Suit, and Red Carpet. The colored side dries to a matte looking finish, but it isn't totally transfer-proof so that means it isn't super drying. You can layer the gloss on top for a glossy finish, but I find that when you do that it makes the color underneath separate and go patchy if you aren't careful. My recommendation is to use just the colored side and go for a matte look. It's pretty long lasting and it layers well so it won't go all weird like some liquid lipsticks do when you try to touch up. I will mention that they have a bit of an odd smell so if that bugs you, you may want to steer clear of these.

This is Heartbreaker on my lips, without gloss on the top and with gloss on the bottom. It's a bit sheer so you may want to layer it a couple of times if you're going for a more opaque look. I find that the best way to apply the gloss is to dab rather than swipe, otherwise it will disturb the color.

Here is Fashionista on my lips, matte on the top and glossy on the bottom. This color seemed to be a bit crumbly on the inner part of my lips for some reason, but none of the other colors did that.

This is Birthday Suit. This one is the sheerest and needs the most building up. It's also the most easily disturbed by the gloss.

Red Carpet s my favorite shade because it's the least sheer and the gloss doesn't disturb it as easily. It's a very pretty red as well. If I had to choose one shade to keep it would definitely be this one.

Overall, I think these are decent lip products and if you're just getting into makeup and don't want to spend a lot of money then they might be for you. But if you already have lots of lip products that you love, this probably won't be anything special. None of the colors are especially unique, and the formula isn't all that great in my opinion, although it certainly isn't terrible either. Is it worth $3.00? Yes, and definitely worth the $1.00 each that I paid. But I don't see myself wearing them very often.

Lipstick First Impression

Kleancolor Kleanista Lipstick Review and Swatches

If you saw my last post, you'll see that I did a hug haul from the website ShopMissA. I got these three fun-colored lipsticks there to try out, and although it's too early to give a full review, I wanted to do a first impression on them because I was so excited to try them out.

Here are the lipsticks. I got them in the colors Lightning Struck, Envious Desire, and Sky Dive. I got these colors because I wanted to try out some fun colors without spending much money, and at a dollar each, I figured you can't go too wrong.

Here they are swatched on my hand. As you can see, Envious Desire skips a bit and isn't as opaque as the other two. I had to apply quite a bit of each to get good opacity, as well. They do have a smell, but it's not unpleasant - it reminds me of pink lemonade flavored candy.

This is Lightning Struck on my lips. As you can see, it clings to my lips in odd places and doesn't apply evenly. Sadly, this was the best looking one of them all, so it's downhill from here.

Here's Envious Desire on my lips. It barely goes on at all and looks really patchy.

Lastly, we have Sky Dive on my lips. It's a bit better than the previous one but I'm still not impressed.

Overall, my first impression is that they kinda suck. I've heard that other colors look better, so maybe I'll try those out next time I order from ShopMissA, but these ones aren't even worth a dollar compared to the e.l.f. ones you can get for the same price. Hopefully I'll find a use for these around halloween, but if not, I may ask a friend if they're interested (I doubt they will be once I tell them about the quality, though) or toss them. I would not recommend these.

Lipstick Review

NYC Expert Last Lip Color Review

A while back, I noticed my lack of pink lipsticks at the time, so I went to pick one up. I also saw a red one and fell in love with it, so I purchased both.

Here they are - the NYC Expert Last Lip Colors in Traffic Jam (the red) and Forever Fuchsia (the pink). They cost $1.99 USD and you can get them here.

This is the amount of product you get - 3.2 grams. I've used a little bit of it, but this is pretty much the amount you get. The website claims that they last at least 6 hours, and I find that to be true, especially if you wear a lip liner. They're pretty easy to apply and somewhat creamy. They aren't too drying as long as you wear them for less than three or four hours, and they don't tend to feather much.

Here's Traffic Jam on my lips. It's a very pretty warm red. It has a semi-matte finish.

Here is Forever Fuchsia on my lips. It's almost a "barbie-pink," but not quite purple enough. It's also semi-matte, but a bit more matte than Traffic Jam.