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MAC Fashion Sets: Lipstick Review Round-up

MAC Russian Red Trio
MAC Russian Red Lipglass over Lipstick; Nail Lacquer

MAC Fashion Sets: Lipstick Review Round-up

In the collection, the lipsticks, on average, were the strongest product. The quality of MAC’s lipstick range is definitely there, particularly with their core, permanent shades. The permanent shades are often overlooked because of the neverending onslaught of limited edition shades coming out each month (and sometimes each week!). Many of these shades have been around for several years and have proven to be bestselling shades for the brand for good reason.  I would recommend the lipstick over the matching lipgloss and nail lacquer for every single shade (which is not to say I recommend every single lipstick, period).

These shades did the best when it came to pigmentation. They’re rich, pigmented, and pretty much opaque across the board, with some being totally and utterly opaque and others being nearly opaque. When it comes to the overall quality and claims, these do well, but some finishes are more drying than others. I don’t find MAC to have moisturizing lipsticks, but for the most part, they are not drying either. Lustres and cremesheen finishes are the most drying for me, while mattes and satins can be slightly drying depending on the individual shade. Frosts are neither drying nor hydrating in my experience.

Generally, lighter shades (think Angel, Myth, Snob, etc.) will not wear as long or as well as richer, deeper shades (think Girl About Town, Rebel, Russian Red, etc.), as those deeper shades (combined with their finish) lead to six hour wear as a result of staining–and staining may be good or bad depending on your preference. Lighter shades typically wear three to four hours with deeper shades lasting four to six hours–and this is based on experience of over a hundred MAC lipsticks over the years. I’m pretty sure it’s way more than that, but I’m not going to guarantee it.

The best shades were:  Girl About Town, Morange, and Russian Red (all As).  Good but not great shades were:  Peachstock, Please Me, Rebel, and Spice.  The most under-performing shades were:  Myth and Razzledazzler.

Availability: Based on the information I have received from MAC, the distribution of these shades is regional. I cannot confirm the extent of non-regional shades being available online for your region (e.g. whether all of these will be available on the UK website). I can confirm only that for North America, all shades are available for purchase online. Only the North America-specific shades will be available in-stores on May 3rd, 2012. Select Macy’s will also carry Latin America & Middle East region-specific shades.

North America: Chestnut, Girl About Town, Myth, Rebel, Russian Red, Snob, Spice; Chestnut and Spice are limited edition–the rest are permanent
Asia Pacific: Angel, Morange, Impassioned, Peachstock, Ravishing, Razzledazzler, Saint Germain; Peachstock is permanent at PRO stores only, Razzledazzler is permanent in Asia only–the rest are permanent
Europe & Africa: Impassioned, Morange, Myth, Rebel, Russian Red, Saint Germain, Spice; Spice is limited edition
Latin America & Middle East: Girl About Town, Impassioned, Morange, Pink Nouveau, Please Me, Russian Red, Snob; all shades are permanent

Reviews, Photos, Swatches

MAC Fashion Sets: Lipstick Review Round-up

A-
9
Product
10
Pigmentation
9
Texture
8.5
Longevity
4
Application
90%
Total

Please note that the photos included in this post are for summary purposes only–there are four additional photos for each lipstick shade that have been excluded in this post but are available in the set’s original post: two product photos, one lip swatch (diffused flash), and one lip swatch (studio lighting).  All links to the individual posts have been provided above.

MAC Angel Lipstick
MAC Angel Lipstick

MAC Angel Lipstick
MAC Angel Lipstick

MAC Chestnut Lipstick
MAC Chestnut Lipstick

MAC Chestnut Lipstick
MAC Chestnut Lipstick

MAC Girl About Town Lipstick
MAC Girl About Town Lipstick

MAC Girl About Town Lipstick
MAC Girl About Town Lipstick

MAC Impassioned Lipstick
MAC Impassioned Lipstick

MAC Impassioned Lipstick
MAC Impassioned Lipstick

MAC Morange Lipstick
MAC Morange Lipstick

MAC Morange Lipstick
MAC Morange Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipstick
MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Myth Lipstick
MAC Myth Lipstick

MAC Peachstock Lipstick
MAC Peachstock Lipstick

MAC Peachstock Lipstick
MAC Peachstock Lipstick

MAC Pink Nouveau Lipstick
MAC Pink Nouveau Lipstick

MAC Pink Nouveau Lipstick
MAC Pink Nouveau Lipstick

MAC Please Me Lipstick
MAC Please Me Lipstick

MAC Please Me Lipstick
MAC Please Me Lipstick

MAC Ravishing Lipstick
MAC Ravishing Lipstick

MAC Ravishing Lipstick
MAC Ravishing Lipstick

MAC razzledazzler Lipstick
MAC Razzledazzler Lipstick

MAC razzledazzler Lipstick
MAC Razzledazzler Lipstick

MAC rebel Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC rebel Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC russianred Lipstick
MAC Russian Red Lipstick

MAC russianred Lipstick
MAC Russian Red Lipstick

MAC saintgermain Lipstick
MAC Saint Germain Lipstick

MAC saintgermain Lipstick
MAC Saint Germain Lipstick

MAC snob Lipstick
MAC Snob Lipstick

MAC snob Lipstick
MAC Snob Lipstick

MAC spice Lipstick
MAC Spice Lipstick

MAC spice Lipstick
MAC Spice Lipstick

13 Comments

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AshleyHolloway Avatar

Thank you for the great and quick lipstick swatches Christine!  
 
I don’t quite understand the reason for Razzle Dazzler receiving the lowest rating of the bunch though.  Is it just because it has more pigmentation than the finish (lustre) is supposed to have? I’m thinking of making the purchase, but I just wanted to make sure that was the reason it scored lower 🙂

Summer Avatar

Christine, your hard work is so appreciated! I can’t believe how many photos you took for this collection. All of the writing, product comparisons, formatting, etc must have taken an eternity, yet everything looks effortlessly executed. Bet you’re glad to be done! 😉
 
All this line has made me realize is:
 
1) I never should have swapped away Girl About Town. What the heck was I thinking?
 
2) I really need to buy Rebel this fall, as I’ve been lemming it since Christmas. Your swatches were lovely!
 
3) MAC’s gloss line makes me cry. They have so many beautiful colors, but I hate the texture. I want to buy the GAT, Spice, Rebel, and Impassioned glosses for the shades alone, but I know I’ll just wind up returning them or swapping them away. Sigh. 
 
All in all, all MAC did here was reinvigorate my appreciation for their classic lipstick shades. 

Cat G Avatar

Thanks for organizing all the products by category in these sort of posts! Helps me compare and decide which one’s I love most  and make it so much easier! I love the lipsticks and lipglasses from these sets especially…

VanessaMena Avatar

Sorry Christine,I just seen razzledazzler lipstick is not listed in north America as limited edition,is it permanent? Also,will it be available at mac counters? Macy’s/Nordstrom ,etc? Thanks for all your swatches and organization,thanks so much.

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!