MAC Rebel Lipstick Review, Photos, Swatches

Reviews
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MAC Heaux Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

The Sultry Season: MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC Rebel Lipstick ($14.50 for 0.10 oz.) is a deep, fuchsia berry with a glossy finish and very subtle, nearly imperceptible shimmer.  It’s almost opaque (you can just barely see my freckle peeking through), but it applies easily, smoothly, and is a great shade to brighten up your skin tone.  It’s bold without being too dark or vampy–but still not a red, not a fuchsia.

Is this the right berry for you? Would you wear it?

The Sultry Season is a series of posts featuring deep, rich shades of brown, berry, plum, and wine lipsticks and lipglosses — just right for autumn — that runs through October 2010.

See photos and swatches…

MAC Heaux Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

MAC Heaux Lipstick
MAC Rebel Lipstick

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About the Reviewer

Reviewer

Christine has normal-to-dry skin with areas of dryness (cheeks, nose, and under the eyes). She has a light-medium skintone with subtle, warmer yellow undertones. Her best foundation matches include: Tarte Rainforest of the Sea in Light-Medium Neutral (best match), Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup in Desert Beige 2N1, Giorgio Armani Maestro Glow in 4.0, Hourglass Warm Ivory Vanish Seamless Finish, Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous in Dusk, MAC NC20/NC25, Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Liquid in Y305 (140). For more matches, please read our full Foundation FAQ. For more information on our review process, please read our Review FAQ.

Compare Any Two Swatches

Curious how two shades compare to each other? Type in the shades below to get instant side-by-side swatches!

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128 Comments

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Lady Di.

This is really beautiful. Im always afraid to venture outside my “coral” comfort zone so I tend to stick to lighter, peachier colors. I love how this seems to brighten up your whole face, this just might be my next MAC purchase!

kasiaj85

Hi Christine! I’m soooo happy to see this post :d I just got Rebel from B2M on Saturday and I definitely LOVE it! 😀 It looks similar on me, maybe a bit more blueberrish 😉 but I just adore it!
P.S. I bought it together with probably the LAST Stereo Rose in Poland 😉 so you can imagine how happy I am 🙂
it looks great on you! love the Sultry Season idea 🙂

Andrea

Rebel has long been a favourite of mine, but it looks a lot more pink in your photos, it’s more berry to me. Grogeous nonetheless, and it definitely looks stunning on you.

baby in a corner

thanks for your reply! i really want to go shopping but with less than 2 weeks to go to my thesis due date, i can’t really take time off!

baby in a corner

thanks, last week was the worst, (i hope) cause i’d a big section not started and i didn’t know what’d be like. but i actually wrote loads so i’m now i’ve to cut down what i’ve written to fit in the conclusion and another section. i was jokingly thinking to myself that logging onto temptalia has been like having a quick chat with a colleague at work! so thanks for the mini breaks!

Stephanie

This is easily one of my favorite fall/winter lipsticks. I’ve found it to be pretty wearable for daily wear and great w/ minimal makeup. One question though, if you were going to use a lip liner underneath, what would you suggest? Thanks in advance!

Stephanie

Oh, this is great advice! I have pigmented lips that run to a brownish pink (or is it a pinky brown?) and when I use a lip liner that’s close to my lip color, Rebel applies a little darker. SO, this is great info to have, especially since I was trying to figure out how to get this to look pinker. Thanks again! 🙂

Brian McDowell

I love Rebel with Chesnutt liner…the brown and the pink look FAB. Chesnutt does a good job of deepening the color just a smidge around the edges so it looks very 3D.

Hilana

For some reason this reminds me of older women years ago wearing 3 quarter sleeve suits, fake Jackie O pearls and that tight 60’s hair with crimson lips….
Mmmmm……
Nope. Not this one. Not for me. 🙂

Katie

Never mind! They’re definitely not comparable. I just pulled out Lustering because I couldn’t remember how it swatched off the top of my head. Rebel is more pigmented and has more fuchsia, I think. Definitely not the same but I love them both and I’d definitely like to buy Rebel =)

Erin

I think Rebel will be in my future! I’ve been on a red streak lately (in spring, it was coral, in the winter it was nudes…) so I think this would be a great way to break out of that. Rebel seems to be quite a nice Satin finish from MAC!

Jessie

Really? Hm..I might need this then.

I just need to learn how to apply darker lipsticks better lol

Does it compare to Pink Burst at all? Rebel looks like a more intense version of it.

Jessie

So I bought this last night and wore it today..

OMGILOVEIT! *#^$#()&$^ It’s like amazeballs! Its scary in the tube though.. not gonna lie. But I rocked it today with a toned down neutral shimmery eye.. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! Thank you, Christine!

Katie

I’m NW20 and I love dark / bright / intense lipsticks! When I wear colors like these, I keep my eyes neutral and simple (with something like Naked pigment), a little eye liner, and a delicate color for the cheeks. I love colors like Viva Glam Cyndi, Lustering, Ruby Woo, I Like It Like That, Viva Glam Gaga, etc. Some of those shades are light colors (but pretty intense) and I think that bright, intense colors can be just as intimidating as dark colors.

Try it out and experiment because you may be pleasantly surprised. Worst case scenario: you don’t like it and you get a full refund!

Leah

I was just thinking last night, “I wonder if Temptalia will use Rebel in her sultry series”.

I love that shade on you, when I wear rebel it looks so much more purple (pigmented lips).

Ashley

This color is absolutely stunning! I always hear people on Specktra talking about this color, but I always assumed it was more purple and more vampy. This looks wearable and more pinky and berryish than I would have thought. I wonder if it would look this good on me? And plus, who doesn’t love the name? Rebel is perfect!

Rosamaria

Beautiful color. I love Girl About Town, and wear it often, but sometimes I want something a little less bold. This would be perfect!

Aimee

Rebel is my favorite lipstick color! I love it so, and it lasts forever on me – to the point where my lips are still slightly stained the next morning!

erin

i LOVE this lipstick. it’s probably my most worn shade. i bought it because in the tube, it reminded me of Cyber (which i wear A LOT), but a little more subtle. on the lip, they don’t look much alike at all, but it’s lovely anyway.

NeenaJ

I love the look of this shade! Is it warm, cool or neutral? I’m warm & fair but can wear berries if they are neutral and would love to get this if it would work on me.

J

It’s funny that you’ve posted your review for Rebel now because I JUST bought it and came home to read your review of it, after hemming and hawing over it for weeks and being unable to find a good swatch of it online. Now that I’ve got it, I LOVE it. It’s amazing. I’m NC20 with dark brown hair and light grayish-green eyes, and Rebel pulls a really beautiful berry-ish purple-fuchsia colour that’s bright and edgy without looking too over the top. It’s much more pink and warm on you, but it still looks fantastic. 🙂

Yoli

oh yeah, baby!!!! i have this one and i LOVE it! on me it looks a bit darker or should i say more dramatic than your photos (i am quite fair NW15) but i just adore it! Sultry indeed…

Pang

This lipstick has been on my wishlist for a little while now. Hope to get it soon. I’ve seen how it looked on someone and it was love at first sight! lol…I knew I had to get me one too. Wondering if there is any drugstore lipstick shade that comes close to it?

Johna

Love it! Rebel looks fab on you Christine & it’s one of my favorite MAC lippies of all time! I’ve read Rihanna wears Rebel from time to time. Wet N’ Wild has a dupe in the matte line but I forgot the name 🙁 I took the sticker off LOL

Jas816

Ok…read this post last night and went and bought the lipstick today! I am NC45, this color is the bomb. I never, ever do lipstick, but when I saw it, I had to have it, it was calling my name….I may be a convert to lipstick, keep these posts comin’!!!!

ginny

I have this color and it’s so pretty. Whenever I wear it I get compliments. However, I have to advise that it stains the lips but in a good way =) This is a nice lipstick to have if you don’t own it yet.

natasha

wow! the mac website is WAY off with the swatch. This is a lovely color. I recently bought viva glam cyndi and I am now obsessed with bright colors on my nc43 comlextion. i think i will have to give this one a try!

Sharon M

Rebel was one of the lipsticks I tried on during my first visit to the MAC counter at The Bay last winter (yes, I’m slow at discovering MAC, LOL). I was looking for a hot pink lipstick and am NW 15 in winter. Rebel was a “no” from both the SA and me… eventually I got Lickable, which suits me much better. Then Show Orchid came along and Lickable has stayed in my lipstick stash at home ever since… Show Orchid is much better for summer when I have a bit of a tan from being outside on my work breaks.

Michelle

Hey! I was just wondering how Rebel compares to NARS’ Strawberry Fields gloss. Not in texture, obviously, but in color. I like lipsticks a lot better than glosses in general (because I hate pulling my hair off my lips and then smearing the gloss on my face, haha), but I can’t get over Strawberry Fields’ color! It’s so gorgeous.

Thanks in advance! =)

dawn

hi christine! what’s REBEL’s dupe among MAC lipsticks? i have full fuschia and girl about town..are they almost similar? 😉 r should I also store this? hehe your site and reviews are very helpful! thank you very much!

Dylan C

OMG IS THIS LIMITED EDITION?! If so I might weep since this is a gorgeous color and must have! If its not permanent I can always check my local CCO? I must know!

Huda

Hey Christine! I know this is an old post, but I recently purchased this lipstick and would really appreciate your advice on something. I like my lipliner to exactly match my lipstick, and I saw you suggested Velvetella for the best match but it’s discontinued 🙁 What do you think about Beet lip liner?? Thanks again!!

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