ColourPop Contessa Lux Lip Duo Review & Swatches
Contessa
ColourPop Contessa Lux Liquid Lip & Gloss Duo ($15.00 for 0.31 oz.) is a new duo that includes one liquid lipstick and one lipgloss, though both can be purchased individually if preferred. Fatale was more pigmented than marketed, while Panache was a little less pigmented, but otherwise, they performed consistently with their respective formulas and were easy to work with, comfortable to wear, and lasted three to four hours on me.
Contessa
LELimited Edition. $15.00.
Fatale
Fatale is a medium, peony pink with moderate, warm undertones and a satin finish. It took an hour or so for the finish to be come more of a true, soft matte (or one could blot!). The texture was very lightweight, emollient, and thin, so it spread easily across my lips but didn’t emphasize my lip lines. The color coverage was mostly opaque in a single layer, which was higher coverage than “medium buildable” as marketed. It wore well for four and a half hours and felt lightly hydrating over time.
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- NARS Vahine (LE, $25.00) is darker (95% similar).
- Make Up For Ever Brave Punch (162) (P, $23.00) is darker, warmer (95% similar).
- MAC Sultriness (P, $22.00) is less glossy (95% similar).
- Estee Lauder Spellbound (P, $32.00) is darker (90% similar).
- ColourPop Sphynx (P, $10.00) is lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- Sephora Blossom (P, $14.00) is lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- Bobbi Brown Spring Pink (DC, $37.00) is more shimmery, darker, glossier (90% similar).
- ColourPop U R Mine (LE, $8.00) is lighter, glossier (90% similar).
- Hourglass My Favorite (P, $34.00) is brighter (90% similar).
- Hourglass I've Kissed (P, $34.00) is darker, warmer (90% similar).
Formula Overview
$9.00/0.17 oz. - $52.94 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "medium buildable coverage" that has a "soft, diffused" effect. It's a more amped up take on their Blotted Lips concept or a slightly "washed out" take on their Ultra Matte/Ultra Satin range. The formula is much thinner--almost weightless--and spreads evenly with a single layer. I'd argue that most shades were often closer to semi-opaque rather than medium and buildable--and I used only what was on the doe-foot applicator to apply (without going back for more) for both top and bottom lips.
The consistency was airier, light, thin, and spreadable with a soft dry down that didn't feel like it was wholly locked in (like Ultra Mattes) but had significantly less transfer than a traditional lipstick (or even the Ulta Satins). They were not the most forgiving of lip texture or lip lines, but they were more flattering than most formulas I've tried that are similar in effect and coverage. Some shades had more of a matte finish shortly after application while others had subtle shine that wore down to a matte finish within an hour or less.
Longevity ran anywhere from three to six hours with some shades leaving subtle stains behind, and the formula felt mostly non-drying for me. It had a sweet, vanilla scent but no discernible taste.
Browse all of our ColourPop Lux Liquid Lip swatches.
Ingredients
cyclopentasiloxane, dimethicone, dimethicone crosspolymer, polyglyceryl-2 triisostearate, cyclohexasiloxane, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, dimethiconol, flavor, caprylic/capric triglyceride, vitis vinifera (grape) seed extract, lycium barbarum fruit extract, punica granatum fruit extract; may contain: blue 1 lake (ci 42090), iron oxides (ci 77491, ci 77482, ci 77499), red 7 lake (ci 15850), red 27 lake (ci 45410), titanium dioxide (ci 77891), yellow 5 lake (ci 19140).
Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.
Fatale
LELimited Edition. $9.00.
Panache
Panache is a light pink with moderate, warm undertones with shimmer throughout a glossy finish. It had sheer to semi-sheer color coverage that applied smoothly and evenly on my lips without sinking into my lip lines. The texture was lightweight, smooth, and plush with minimal tackiness. It stayed on well for three hours and felt lightly moisturizing over time.
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- MAC Under the Sheets (LE, $21.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented, warmer (90% similar).
- MAC MamaStarrr Kiss (LE, $21.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented, warmer (90% similar).
- Jouer St. Tropez (LE, $16.00) is more shimmery, lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- ColourPop Check In (P, $8.00) is less shimmery, darker (90% similar).
- MAC Be an Angel, Darling (LE, $20.00) is lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- ColourPop New Day (LE, $10.00) is more pigmented, warmer, less glossy (90% similar).
- MAC Rainbow Interlude (LE, $18.50) is more shimmery, lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- ColourPop Just Fly (LE, $8.00) is less shimmery, lighter (90% similar).
- Huda Beauty Snobby (P, $18.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented, cooler (90% similar).
- Anastasia Summer Vibes (LE, $16.00) is more shimmery, lighter, warmer (90% similar).
Formula Overview
$8.00/0.16 oz. - $50.00 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "shine" with a "cushiony soft" texture that "hydrates lips." The brand isn't clear on how pigmented or how sheer the formula is intended to be; they instead they have the "perfect amount of colour all in one." Based on what I can infer from promotional images, their marketing, and typical lip gloss claims (in the industry), gloss is typically sheerer coverage rather than opaque, so based on that, I will be rating on the expectation of medium coverage.
The formula has a smooth consistency that was more like a gel-cream, as it felt denser ("cushiony") without being heavy or tacky. I didn't feel like they were the most forgiving, though, as most shades settled into my lip lines to a small degree. The coverage was sheer to semi-sheer, which resulted in the shades looking more similar on than they looked in the tubes (the initial line-up could have been much more diverse as a result). They lasted between two and three hours and were moisturizing to wear.
There was no discernible taste, and they had a sweet, sugary scent.
Browse all of our ColourPop Lux Gloss swatches.
Ingredients
hydrogenated polyisobutene, simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, ethylene/propylene/styrene copolymer, squalane, octyldodecanol, ricinus communis (castor) seed oil, rosa hybrid flower extract, vanilla planifolia fruit extract, papaver somniferum seed extract, copaifera officinalis (balsam copaiba) resin, punica granatum seed oil, aluerites moluccanus seed oil, calcium sodium borosilicate, calcium aluminum borosilicate, aluminum calcium sodium silicate, synthetic fluorphlogopite, silica, copernicia cerifera (carnauba) wax, isopropyl myristate, polyethylene, glycine soja (soybean) oil, flavor, dimer dilinoleyl dimer dilinoleate, tocopherol, saccharin, caprylic/capric triglyceride, tin oxide, triisostearin, propylene carbonate, butylene/ethylene/styrene copolymer, stearalkonium hectorite, hydrated silica, pentaerythrityl tetra-di-t-butyl hydroxyhydrocinnamate, phenoxyethanol, caprylyl glycol, ethylhexylglycerin, hexylene glycol. may contain: bismuth oxychloride (ci 77163), blue 1 lake (ci 42090), iron oxides ( ci 77491, ci 77492, ci 77499), manganese violet (ci 77742), mica (ci 77019), red 6 lake (ci 15850), red 7 (ci 15850), red 7 lake (ci 15850), red 27 lake (ci 45410), red 28 lake (ci 45410), red 40 lake (ci 16035), titanium dioxide (ci 77891), yellow 5 (ci 19140), yellow 6 lake (ci 15985).
Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.
Lovely looking set! Looks quite good with the smokey eye you’re rocking, too. I like that the liquid lipstick is both a little bit darker and warmer than my stick of MAC Please Me.