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The Hit List: Worst Lipstick Shade
Worst Lipstick Shade? What brand/product wins this category?
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I’ve pretty much stuck to MAC and have liked the brand and the shades I’ved used… but I avoid anything labeled “frost”. A little frost is pretty but anything more than a tiny bit looks grandma-ish to me!
Yes, I totally agree. I just got a MAC lipstick — love the color but the frost finish is not for me! I like shine and some shimmer, but not frostiness . . .
Its funny you girls say that about the Frost MAC lippies cause some of my favorite colors are frosts. I agree, some shades are total “grandma” colors in the frost category, but there are others that are just gorgeous. New York Apple, Ramblin Rose, Eden Rocks, What a Do, most recently..Madly Creative. It definitely depends on the person & I believe that because i almost regularly use gloss, this addition does cut down on the frost factor.
I think any black lipstick looks bad. It makes people look dead.
I agree!
Well watch out for this falls collection! No joke here- Black lipsticks!
I used to sell AVON and had several retirement centers as my territory. (You can see where this is going….)
Avon had a garish orangey red color that all the ladies bought. It was the driest, most horrible lipstick ever. They probably had that color for 30 years. It would bleed all over, settle into lines and just look a mess.
I can’t think of another brand with a lippie that made me gasp in horror like Avon.
However.. Guerlain’s lippies smell dreadful so yuck on them.
My mom owned this YSL lipstick that was georgeous in the tube but looked a mess on her and on me. It was a copper red, I forget the name
MAC’s O has got to be one of the worst, on me at least. It’s a dark purple/brown duochrome with a ton of frost. I don’t know how it ends up like this because it looks great on some, but it’s a hot mess on me. That being said, browns, putty nudes, purples, and lavenders all look awful on me. I did not rush out and buy Lavender Whip!
I agree. O is terrible. Why would anyone want their lips to be that color? I don’t get it.
This is too funny…I have O and I love it! It’s my “go-to” shade when I have no idea what to wear!
O is great. I don’t see why one would say it’s terrible.
Exactly!
I love O! It looks different on lips than in the tube. Any m/u color will vary depending on a person’s skin tone and lip pigmentation. On me, O looks gorg! Like a warm brownish-purply with gold. It’s a very hard color to describe. I wear different m/u colors during summer (with tan) than the rest of the year because my skintone changes. No color is terrible in itself.
I love O! It’s been one of my go-to’s for years! It doesn’t turn purpleish on me though. It’s more a dark brownish red with gold frost, am between NC35-NC42. Lipsticks that don’t work are pale lavender’s, cool pinks and cool brown’s. eg. St.Germain, I have to put a golden or orange shade of gloss over it to make it come close to wearable. eg. Chintz, close to O, but not at all on the lips. It is a cool brown with silver frost, makes me look so goth.
“O” is not purple on me at all either. Just a pink based dark red with a gold reflect! I think this is kind of a lipstick that give a different effect on everyone.
“o” is awesome on me. Loves it. lol
O looks totally different when you swatch it on your hand, like most of the Frosts. I just got Sequin and New York Apple and I love them!
Black lipstick in fine on some people, it can be unique/dark/sexy… the worst shades have to be poop brown, very pale pasty porn star pink, and old lady mauves.
I agree! I HATE brown lipsticks unless they’re really warm – cool brown lippies are so unflattering! Others, at least on me, include MAC Cyber (deep purple – not plum! It’s purple..yuck), deep wine shades (Think MAC Hang Up or any of the darker Cult of Cherry mattenes) and like Liz mentioned, purely nude lips are VERY unflattering. When wearing dramatic eye makeup, I tend to lean towards subtle pinks and reds so I don’t garner a risk of a MUA asking me, “I didn’t we had a shade called MAC Death…”
i simply adore those pale porn star pinks
theyre ALL i ever wear!!!
gosh, st. germain.
it just bothers me, its wayyy to pale and the color is like a porn star crayon.
I’m not in love w/ St. Germain either.
I agree!
oh good i’m not the only one
The dark brown lipstick trend of the 90s was pretty unattractive.
I have to agree with that…although I did wear it in the 90’s!
I did not like MAC Lavender Whip or MAC Fashion Mews. The pastel purple-y colors looked really awful with my skin tone.
Mac Russian Red, I saw it on a girl and it looked awesome! I went out and bought it. I tried it on, I looked like Ronald McDonald’s wife! I learned that blueish red lipsticks on me do nothing for my NW20 skin. I did buy Cockney later, and came out great!
My mom loves Russian Red, and looks great on her (she has darker skin tone than me.)
Well, I’m NW20 and Russian Red is fine on me. So maybe it’s not a matter of skintone.
A red that is impossible to wear for me is MAC Red. Really too blue and bright.
I figured out, anything blue based, looks bad on me
I have no idea why that is. Anything Yellow based works for me… it maybe that I have dark red hair and hazel eyes. Who knows
I plan on dying my hair level 3 brown so we’ll see if I change my mind on colors
I suppose that Russian Red works on me because I’m brown haired/green eyed. So if you dye your hair darker, that might work! I can imagine that anything blue based would fight with your dark red hair and your hazel eyes. Maybe would “O” or “Dubonnet” work on you? It’s so difficult to find a good red. 🙂
I just got Lollipop Lovin off ebay and it looks green on my lips in every light 🙁
It does that too me too! I think it’s coz my lips are already quite pigmented – just like what black eyeliner does to those duochrome eyeshadows. What I do to get it to work is to layer it with something like Pleasureseeker or Lightly Ripe, then I get what I thought Lollipop Lovin would be like.
I don’t like MAC Tanarama at all by itself. It’s nice however underneath other shades. Myth and Lavender Whip make me look hypothermic. I don’t like black lipsticks on people. Ever.
Tanarama doesn’t interest me. I recently tried Myth (cause so many people seem to love it) and it was ridiculous on me. I like Lav Whip but can’t apply it too thick or it looks weird. Can’t agree more with the black lip anything – unless you’re on a runway, and even then, it’s just wrong.
pale pinks make me look like a corpse
Any shade in green or blue are the worst!
Lots of colors aren’t for me but I understand how they could look nice on someone with different coloring than me, but I don’t understand why anyone would buy Blankety from MAC. I tried it once and I looked like a corpse.
SO FAR SO GOOD LOL I ONLY HAVE SAFE COLORS LOL. WELL I BARELY STARTED TO GET INTO LIPSTICKS AND I ONLY HAVE A COUPLE AND THEY’RE EITHER NUDE OR VERY LIGHT PINK
I hate all orange lipstick! Lol I see some of you ladies disslike myth and st. Germain and I have to say those are 2 of my favs. You need a lipliner to warm up both colors though.
you may just not be able to wear orange right.. i love orange but with my skin tone ( olive) its hard to wear… someone hated Lavendar whip i wear it all the time and love it.. purples look good on me.
my hardest thing is finding a nice natural pink like Paris hilton wears… the colors look different on everyone and you just have to see what goes good with your skin tone
reds are hard.. i just statred to play with them there are so many types of red.
i hate frost too!!! they look so 60’s
i never wear black b.. im very adventurous but i always wipe it off and choose something else lol
I don’t like black lipsticks either!! And really cool pinks, the kind someone earlier described as porn star pink!
Although a lot of people seem to like Myth I hate it makes me look dead and it drys my lips!
Second that! Myth is horrible on me. It makes my lips look cakey and shows up as an odd flesh color. I read so many good reviews on it and think to myself, “I must have some very unique lip/facial coloring or have an odd idea of what a nude lip should look like because I just don’t see it!”.
I also have problems with some of MAC Frost, mainly Eden Rocks. I love the color but ultimately after long wear I am with frost. I can’t rule out all Lustres but some are so sheer that they don’t wear very well. I wish the formula was more consistent. Brick-O-La is so severe on me, love it in the tube but eek!
I hate Myth on me too, but it works as a great lip concealer.
It is also pretty mixed with other color too. Like if you layer a coral lipstick on top of Myth, it goes really pretty pink peach shade, etc.
What an horrible statement to make. There’s no “terrible” or “awful” colors. What is horrible on a girl can be perfect on me, what is horrible on me can be absolutely graceful on an other girl. It’s all relative.
I used to watch this girl on utube who did makeup and she used myth a lot when I finaly bought it I thought ugh it looks like dried up pepsto bismo on me not good lol
Oh, and black lipstick is gross. I hate how it’s becoming a cool shade now cause of Twilight.
Black lipstick=Goth
see thats just sterotypical…it makes me sad. black lipgloss or lipgloss is not just goth although it is lumped in with it but for the most part it is just another color to help tone other lipsticks down. black anything is really big this fall and its not just because of twilight its actually a trend which seems to happen every fall more or less this severe. i think black lipgloss over a red lip or black with a bright pink on top of it looks awesome and i don’t think its very goth i just think its trendy and edgy. if your going to lump black lipstick in with goth then you best not use too much eyeliner cause thats probably goth too…sorry if i sound like a bitch but you don’t have to say something is gross if you don’t like it you can just state that you dislike it ad move on cause you have to think about the people you offend who think it looks good and can make it work…i’m just saying you wouldn’t want to be offended by someone saying your favorite color was gross
<3
Agreed!
I completely agree with this statement. I am a female with an NC40-NC42 complexion and I am even open to black lipstick. Would I wear it on a regular, obviously not because I’m pretty simple, but I wouldn’t mind trying it once for fun to go somewhere. It’s not good to categorize and label things. Just my opinion…<3
Sure!
I’ve heard “you’re goth” million times because I’m wearing black smockey and often dress in black (add to this that my skin is natrally light and I’m brown haired). I’ve always hated being called a goth just because I use black eyeliner and feel better dressed in black. It’s really reducing. As a matter of fact, I’m not a goth at all and don’t look like one. To me, goth is so much more than a simple black lip or black eye! I’ve seen goth girls with light pink lips, so to say. It really doesn’t mean anything. But in people’s head, black=goth. It’s a code. And it’s very tiring. It belongs to cultural, pre-made thoughts. Like red lips=glamour, light pink lips=porn, plaid fabric=punk, etc. I don’t think that this Autumn’s black trend has something to see with Twilight (we barely know what it is in France and yet, French beauty brands have already made black lipgloss last year). Let’s wait and see and let’s keep our mind open. Maybe will transparent black lipglass be totally wearable and surprising!
I wore a plaid shirt yesterday but it was from J.Crew, can I still consider myself “Punk”? Hee Hee :]
Black lipstick and glosses are great. Even a Princess like me loves them!
stop trashing black lipstick.jeez. just because its out of the ordinary does not mean its goth. and twilight’s lips were dark red. NOT black.
THANK YOU! i hate how people go ‘oh, this is popular because of twilight.’ ‘twilight made this popular.’ and all that stuff esp. when it’s not true. honestly, i doubt twilight is responsible for anything in the collections that the makeup industry has never seen.
Dayum… why is everyone getting mad at Elle? We are ALL entitled to our own opinion and it shouldn’t offend people. SAFE SPACE PLS! 😀
im not mad. sorry elle. i was just talking about everyone in general who was mean to black lips lol. but ppl bringing trends into it and trashing the trends isnt creating a safe space either.
i’m totally not mad at anyone i just wanted to point out that everyone has a right to wear what they want if they like the way it looks. no attacks or harm ment ;D
It’s an opinion. I like chocolate, you like vanilla…I could care less if anyone wears black lipstick. It’s just not going on these lips, haha
I just think black lipstick, I think goth. I wasn’t trying to bash goth or what not(sorry to those if you thought I was)… although goth is VERY hard look to pull off. I’ve seen crazy cool looking goth makeup and though it looked great on the person (mind you she was a MUA) I just can’t stand the cheapy teeny goth make up thats taking over high schools… thats the “black lipstick” I’m talking about. I’m sure they’re are ways to make black lipstick look cool, but I haven’t seen it “out”(magazines/photoshoots, it can look nice/edgy)
I didn’t realize make up was so PC, lol!
what’s gross about looking gothic? black lipstick being in vogue has nothing to do with twilight, by the way! gothic makeup has been in style for autumn/winter for years now
Yes and no. Black does not automatically equal goth, although I am goth and will break out the black lippie now and then. Black is not gross on the right person, goth or not goth, and there is nothing wrong with being goth. 🙂
What’s wrong with goth, exactly?
“Twilight” has nothing to do with any kind of black makeup. Ever.
It’s never mentioned in the [terrible] books or movie. Seriously, please get your facts straight. 🙂
— antwi black-lover
Rimmel lipsticks… The smell :S
Vintage just looks weird on me
REALLY? I love the smell. Smells so good.
I don’t think I have ever come across a worst lipstick shade; I would always mix or put a stain underneath to create a shade that I thought worked for me.
ANY LIPSTICK THATS A FROST OR HAS A FROSTY FINSIH
I HATEEEEEEEEEEEEE FROSTS SOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH lol 🙂
Flames. Flames on the side of your face??? lol
wht??? i didnt say anything about flames
CONCEALER LIPS. Fleshpot looks like utter death on me. (Honestly, it looks like death on most people, though I have also seen it worn very well!) Pale beiges and pale white-ish pinks = corpse mouth. On me, anyway. Neutral lips are fine, but it has to be in line with your skintone. I think it’s much harder to find a suitable neutral than a suitable red!
I really can’t rock the totally nude concealer lips either, the palest I can go lipstick wise is Marquise’ D or Colour Crafted, I think because I’m so pale and very very cool toned, completely nuded out give me zombie face.
For SURE. I have pretty pigmented lips so very light concealer-y shades look SO AWFUL on me. Siss made me look like I was dead.
Super dark purple lips!
silver…i used to wear opaque shimmering silver lipstick, thank god there’s no photographic evidence
i’m not fond of orange lipstick either. reddish orange or copper orange is pretty, i mean pure opaque orange.
Mac underworld… yuck close to black lol
MATTE BROWNs does not look well on me lol, but the things people post on here are really funny!! I love St. Germain, O, and Lavender Whip haha, oh well whatever suits you I guess 🙂
Black lipstick. It looks cool for photo shoots and stuff like that, but normally I think it’s a little gross/harsh. Not a fan of yellow or orange for everyday wear either.
Bright fuchsia opaque or matte lipsticks are heinous & concealer nude.
I happen to be a person who identifies as goth — at least, when I go out clubbing, I do. I don’t understand why so many people who are interested in makeup tend to trash the gothic look. If done with quality products, and given a twist of genuine creativity, the darker vampy and even outright death-metal glam looks can be absolutely stunning. Not everyone can get away with them, or is interested in those particular looks, it’s true; still, I get very tired of the attitude by a lot of cosmetics junkies that these are not legitimate ways to do makeup if you’re over a certain age range. To me, makeup is about finding your particular beauty — whether that means nude lips and subtle eyes, or whether it means black lips and the darkest eyeliner you can find. I personally enjoy experimenting with all different kinds of looks, and I’ve found some very unique ways of doing my makeup as a result. 🙂
Freakin’ *word*. Gothy person here too, and I’ve seen some HOT makeup on goths, and some screwed up looks too – just like any other kinda peoples. Also, lol, half the people here are flipping over Llamasqua hitting the US, and that leans decidedly on the dark side. 😛
I’d be sooo interested in seeing a goth glam look! Do you have any links to particular tutorials or your own list of products for a look? 😀 It sounds so interesting and fun!!!
im not a lipstick gal, but i love st germain! with gloss ontop because my lips are too dry. my mom has the worst 80’s color lipstick by cheapie brands. she has this bright orange one, and i like corals but this is straight up ugly! its like 99 cent cheapo, ugly orange lol
HATE Blankety by MAC. Horrid Color.
LOL, I love Blankety! With stripdown liner or a pale pink liner and then with Oyster Girl lipglass on top — it looks great with my skintone. Just didn’t want all to be disuaded from buying Blankety because it works with some skintones 🙂
I completely ADORE blankety!!
Any black, blue or gray lipstick should be banned! They make people look awful! and you may add to that list very light pink lipsticksv- they look cheap and way too 60’s. Not flattering either!
Do any of you remember Isis lipstick? Or Orchidstrate? Now those colours were pretty bad. No lip liner could fix that…
The usual ‘Gift with purchase’ lipstick that Estee lauder gives out year after year – shiny plummy brown shade with weird sheen.
I think rather than a lippie, the worst thing is when the lipliner is just off – where you can see a rim (as in the actualy outline of the lips) in a colour too dark or too different from the actual lipstick.
May not be related, but another ‘hate’ is ppl who walk around with uneven, half-eaten lipstick!
Ah, you mean like when someone put a dark contour and a light lipstick or gloss? If yes, ah ah right! 😀
that and when someone does not bother to touch up lipstick after they’ve eaten so instead of a nice pout, you get patches of colour or worse still, spaghetti sauce or hot choc stained lips surrounded by ring of faded lipstick!
While I totally understand the need to “support” your lip colour being bashed, all of these people getting offended by colours being disliked doesn’t make any sense! Clearly this post refers to which colours WE specifically don’t like on OURSELVES because it would be a boring post if everyone responded “well every colour would look good on someone or at least for some specific location/event/purpose!” Which is obviously the case or the colour would be discontinued very quickly!
Personaly, I don’t like dark vampy colours on me with my skintone. I also don’t like oranges or the pale “porn star pink” (I like that quote, haha!) But I have pale skin and medium-light hair so I can get away with almost any colour except the dark ones and browns haha!
SNAPS TO THAT.
glad someone finally said it, LOL.
i think what most people are getting so upset is that people are not just saying “oh this color looks so bad on me” they are saying “oh this color should be banned, oh this color looks gross on everyone, oh this color is stupid” i agree that this post should be about colors that people dislike on themselves. i just hate when people bash a color because they don’t like it on themselves so they make others feel bad or upset about wearing it
i just think if you hate a color maybe you should say you dislike it on yourself and try to think about others who like that color and can pull it off well. just saying don’t hate because you can’t rock it
THANK YOU!
true brick reds look awful with my asian skin tone.
i really dislike nude lips that are too concealer-esque, i favor the more pinky-toned ones.
anything too orange-toned makes me look sick.
I tried this really bright gold colored lip gloss and it didn’t look good on me at all. I couldn’t see myself wearing it to many places or with any of my clothes. It was a little too glittery for me as well. Some shimmer is fine but if it is overloaded it looks distracting I think.
I also agree w/some of the other girls that any shade that is too frosty doesn’t look very appealing.
On me, the worst shades are anything with frosts so i don’t bother checking out there colors. I made the mistake of buying Tanarama as i was told everyone should have one! If anyone can suggest a color underneath to tone down the frosty look, I would deeply thank you!
Erica, i do not like super frosty lipsticks either. But, I do own a few that i love like New York Apple. I typically always put gloss over lipstick as the final touch & when i do that the frost disappears & just leaves a beautiful sheen. With Tanarama, you may want to try a lipliner & fill in your lips to tweak the color since it is quite pale & then put a gloss on top. With a color that light, you have the freedom to change it considerably by just adding liner or gloss & i think you’ll feel like the “frost” factor will definitely not be as noticeable if at all.
Good Luck!
Thanks Nicole! I am ashamed to say but only own two lip liners…ehemm but alot of glosses! I will try your suggestion and hopefully like the results. : )
Worst lipstick shade for me, though I’ve never worn it, is Photo by MAC. Everytime I look at it I get grossed out.
Any lipstick that is too dark or too frosty doesn’t look flattering on anyone.
Anything that’s too dark or has frost!
i loathe mac sophisto…it seems like a wearable color but does absolutely nothing for me…i hate the texture as well! for berries, i love mac craving & chanel spark l/g
Hi Angie,
Im from India and have light to medium skin colour. Wheatish i would say.
I lost my mac sophisto recently. Frankly i got it cos of all the raving reviews & i felt it wasnt that grt for me even though i liked it. Do u think Sophisto suits Indian Skin??
I HATE HOT PINKS AND PINKS IN GENERAL ALSO NUDES! THEY LOOK SO WRONG! =]
MAC Heatherette Melrose Mood.