MAC Heaux Lipstick ($15.00 for 0.10 oz.) is described as a “matte berry” with a “Retro Matte” finish. It’s a deep, berry-hued red with a matte finish. MAC Lush Life is glossier, a touch lighter. Guerlain Liu is redder. NARS Dragon Girl is redder, less berry. MAC Love Goddess is warmer, brighter. MAC Scan-delicious is pinker, lighter. Burberry Bright Plum is darker. See swatch comparisons.

If you picked up RiRi Woo, the texture and consistency of Heaux is just like it–a little creamier, not quite as dry as Ruby Woo, but still drier and stiffer than MAC’s regular matte formula (or any of their other finishes for that matter). It feels dry, looks a bit dry on–and I had exfoliated lips the night before with a lip scrub–so it will emphasize any imperfections in the lip if you look closely. It has rich, opaque color coverage, and like RiRi Woo, it’s not going anywhere any time soon. I’ve been wearing Heaux since about 10AM (it’s 3PM), and it still looks nearly immaculate. It doesn’t feel drying to me (my lips aren’t cracking, and I’m not getting the urge to reach for lip balm). I would expect this to last another two to four hours well, then some light staining. The biggest advantage of the Retro Matte formula is that they tend to wear for hours and hours.

When swatched, Rebel had a stronger berry tone with a lot less red in it, and of course, the finish has a soft sheen, but applied, it was harder to tell the difference–the sheen was the most notable difference between the two. I was surprised, because I really did expect it to look noticeably different applied as well as when swatched.

The RiRi Hearts MAC summer collection will launch June 18th at noon EST exclusively online for North America; June 20th exclusively online for international.

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick

MAC Rebel (left half) | Heaux (right half) Lipstick

MAC Rebel (left half) | Heaux (right half) Lipstick

MAC Rebel (left half) | Heaux (right half) Lipstick

MAC Rebel (left half) | Heaux (right half) Lipstick

MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC Rebel Lipstick