MAC Art Supplies Collection: Pro Longwear Lipstain Markers Review, Photos, Swatches

There are nine new and limited edition shades of Pro Longwear Lipstain Marker ($16.00) in MAC’s Art Supplies Collection. I really, really wanted to love these–I have been wanting a good lip stain forever–a superb formula in various shades, not just one great shade (e.g. Benetint). I was most excited for the Lipstain Markers when I first read about Art Supplies, but they just didn’t work well for me.

Pro Longwear Lipstain Marker ($16.00)

• Full of Flare, Modern Mocha, Point of View, Purposefully Red, Runway Ripened, and Sunset reviews will be up on April 1st — sorry all, I have to buy ‘em in store on launch day :) I appreciate your understanding!
• Tomorrow’s Coral is a rich red with only a smidgen of coral in it. It’s definitely redder than I anticipated–I don’t think I’d have even picked up on any coral tones to it if it wasn’t for the name!
• Stylesetter is a brightened pink with blue undertones. Reminded me a bit of Impassioned, perhaps, but more blue-based.
• A Classic is a muted red–significantly lighter/less bold in comparison to Tomorrow’s Coral.

The good: The color applies quite evenly from the marker tip. I didn’t experience problems getting the color to apply evenly onto my lips. The stain will also last for hours if you don’t eat or drink (sounds like lipstick/gloss, eh?) and doesn’t come off on skin (or someone else’s lips…). You can layer a lip balm on top to keep it from looking so dry without disturbing the color itself as well. I also didn’t find that the lip stain would bleed on my lips, which is always a good thing!

You can wear the lip stain as a way to add more color or deepen color of your lipglosses and lipsticks.  They seem to work and look best when layered underneath something, rather than worn alone, which is kind of how I like to wear my lip stains–just a shift in natural lip color that looks exactly natural, no heavy gloss, no sheen, no shimmer, no weight.  To use it as a layering product, it acts a lot like a lip pencil or lip liner.

The bad: If you have dry, cracked, peeling, or otherwise imperfect lips, these are going to be a pain in the behind to use. I don’t consider myself to have any lip issues, and I even made sure to exfoliate promptly before applying these, but they are brutal on my lips. They’re incredibly unforgiving and will accentuate any dryness on your lips. If you wear a lip stain, make sure to exfoliate lips and moisturize well beforehand so that lips are hydrated before applying the stain on top. You may want to layer clear lip balm or a gloss on top to keep lips from drying out during the day as well.

Like other stains, the color will also have a tendency to deposit more in lip lines, but the effect of this isn’t noticeable until after two or three hours of wear when the stain starts to fade a bit. I’m not sure if perhaps my lips are more sensitive than others, but I found the marker tip to be more abrasive than I’d expect in a lip product. It really does feel like a regular marker on the lips–it’s not like sandpaper, but it’s not like a sponge-tip lipgloss wand either. It made my lips tingle and feel a bit irritated for about twenty minutes after application.

I also found that these stains wore off significantly when drinking or eating. I actually brushed my teeth wearing one of these, and it was almost completely gone. It’s surprisingly easy to remove, but that’s not exactly why you’d opt for a stain, is it? I did several wear tests since receiving these on Friday morning, and I did wear tests with two of the three shades I currently have. I wore Tomorrow’s Coral while sleeping (approximately eight hours total), which allowed me to wear it without eating/drinking. I didn’t wake up with perfectly stained lips, but there was still a good amount of color left–too bad my lips looked like raisins left out in the sun to further dry out! I also wore Stylesetter for another eight-hour test, but during the day, to see how it would survive eating/drinking–it didn’t. I’d say about 80% of it disappeared by the time I had finished lunch.

They smell like vanilla, but they have kind of an odd taste. It’s not gross or chemical-y, but there’s something about it that’s a little unpleasant (but not wholly so). The packaging is cute and sleek, but they look 95% like CoverGirl’s Outlast Lipstains, which I thought was interesting.

My picks: None at this time. Based on lack of long-wearing power, I don’t think any of these shades are must-haves. I’ll be buying the other six shades to photograph and swatch so you can see what they look like when it launches in-store, so perhaps one of those shades will wow me enough to recommend it!

See photos & swatches!

Lipstain Markers: Tomorrow’s Coral, Stylesetter, A Classic

Lipstain Markers: Tomorrow’s Coral, Stylesetter, A Classic

Lipstain Markers: A Classic, Stylesetter, Tomorrow’s Coral

MAC Tomorrow’s Coral Lipstain Marker

MAC Tomorrow’s Coral Lipstain Marker

Wear test: 8 hours (no eating/drinking–I just went to bed, ha!) with Tomorrow’s Coral

Keep lips from looking dry with some lip balm (applied over color after 8 hours)

MAC Stylesetter Lipstain Marker

MAC Stylesetter Lipstain Marker

MAC A Classic Lipstain Marker

MAC A Classic Lipstain Marker

The Spring Season: Guerlain Brit Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Brit (B40) Rouge G Le Brillant Lipstick ($46.00) is a softened coral-orange with a rich, glossy sheen and subtle gold shimmer. As I mentioned in my review of a few shades of Rouge G Le Brilliant, the formula is smooth, glossy, lightweight, and moisturizing. It feels almost like a lipstick-gloss hybrid on lips, and the color is sheer but not ultra sheer.

You get enough color pay off, but it’s sheer enough that those with more pigmented lips will find more variation in how these shades look on their lips. Brit lasts around three or four hours on me, as compared to the original Rouge G line-up that lasts an average of five hours.

I love this kind of color for spring, though. It’s a pop of color without being bright or overwhelming and can be worn alone with just mascara or paired with a heavier eye look.

Is this the right coral lipstick for you? Would you wear it?

The Spring Season is a series of posts featuring my favorite soft beige, coral, and pink lipsticks and lipglosses — all perfect for the first blossom of spring — that runs through March 2010.

See photos and swatches…

Guerlain Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick: Betsy, Bianca, Blondie

Rouge G de Brilliant ($46.00 each) launched earlier this spring with ten shades (all permanent). Like the original Rouge G line-up, there is a theme–all of the names begin with a B. Brilliants different from the traditional Rouge G formula, because they are sheerer with more shimmer and a glossier finish. These are touted as a more natural lipstick. It feels lighter than Rouge Gs, but it looks considerably lighter on lips as well. These have a kind of “wet” look to them, so you may not need a gloss to give you that glossy sheen.

While the formula itself feels amazing on lips, without the wear (I only get about three to four hours as compared to four to six on regular Rouge Gs) and the rich pigmentation of the traditional Rouge Gs, I still prefer the original Rouge Gs over these, if I’m shelling out $46 a shade. But keep in mind that these were designed to be sheerer and glossier, so Guerlain hit the mark there. But for me, since I like my lipsticks pigmented, they’re not my favorite when I know the pigmented Rouge Gs exist!  These are, however, not ultra sheer–they do pack some color and change-up my natural lip color.

• Betsy is a softened berry plum with subtle gold shimmer. Applied, it has this wet, shimmering look–very pretty and a color I’d slick on in a rush during the fall.
• Bianca is a semi-sheer pink-coral with barely-there shimmer. This is one of the more pigmented shades of Brilliant that I’ve tried–this is more semi-opaque than semi-sheer–and it imparts a healthy color to my natural lip color.
• Blondie is a subtle nude beige with champagne shimmer. On my lips, it actually does a fair job of giving my lips enough color, but it’s still sheer enough where your natural lip color can greatly affect how the color shows up on your lips. I see this turning much pinker and less nude on those with more naturally red lips.

Packaging wise, these have the same fancy-pants packaging as Guerlain’s Rouge Gs, which is luxe, heavy metal. It’s a very solid piece of makeup, but I’ve always felt that a lot of the price tag of Rouge Gs goes towards that indulgent packaging (which is nice, but I’d happily pay less for regular packaging!).

Much of the value gets eaten up by this packaging, because this is a formula that I’d pay $30-35 for (which is typical for high-end lipsticks), while at $45-46, it’s more about finding those perfect shades you’ll wear over and over again.

If you want to know more about how products are evaluated, read out Rating System FAQ! :)

• Product: 29/30
• Value: 7/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 4/5

Recommendation: If you like softer, sheerer lipstick color that goes on and feels almost like a thin yet creamy gloss, Rouge G de Brilliant hits the nail on the head. Colors are easy to wear, the formula feels fantastic on lips, and it is all housed in space-age packaging.

Availability: Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue

See photos & swatches!

Guerlain Betsy Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Betsy Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Betsy Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Betsy Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Bianca Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Bianca Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Bianca Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Bianca Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Blondie Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Blondie Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Blondie Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

Guerlain Blondie Rouge G de Brilliant Lipstick

The Spring Season: Lancome Rich Cashmere Lipstick

Lancome Rich Cashmere L’Absolu Rouge Lipstick ($29.00 for 0.14 oz.) is a softened peachy nude with subtle gold shimmer. It has a very creamy, almost milky look when applied to lips. It’s nearly opaque in color, and the shade itself is definitely a nude for me. Paired with my warmer skin tone, it doesn’t make me look corpse-ish, which is something I definitely like. I find cooler nudes can often wash out my face, but shades like Rich Cashmere give me that sexy nude lip without making me look pale.

Is this the right nude lipstick for you? Would you wear it?

The Spring Season is a series of posts featuring my favorite soft beige, coral, and pink lipsticks and lipglosses — all perfect for the first blossom of spring — that runs through March 2010.

See photos and swatches…

The Spring Season: Korres #34 Nude Guava Lipstick

Korres #34 Nude Guava Lipstick ($22.00 for 0.06 oz.) is a softened peachy-nude with a creamy, smooth look. It goes on opaque and feels moisturizing without being heavy. There is no shimmer to the color, just a bit of a glossy sheen when the light hits. It’s a beautiful color with a lovely finish and feel–I just wish you got more in the tube, as it’s about half as much as a typical lipstick.

Is this the right nude lipstick for you? Would you wear it?

The Spring Season is a series of posts featuring my favorite soft beige, coral, and pink lipsticks and lipglosses — all perfect for the first blossom of spring — that runs through March 2010.

See photos and swatches…