What do you like about lipstick sets? What don't you like?

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Lipstick Sets

I love trying a greater variety in shades for the cost of one or two lipsticks, but since most sets offer mini or travel-sized products, they are more prone to breaking at the base.

— Christine

11 Comments

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Fey Avatar

I like the mini size because I like small handbags. I rarely finish an entire lipstick bullet. I typically don’t enjoy reds, which seem to come in most sets. If a set has a color scheme, like neutrals or berries, awesome. Otherwise, I find the value isn’t worth it if I won’t use 1+ red/hot pink shade.

AJ Avatar

What I like: I’ve literally never finished a full-size lipstick in my life, so mini sets give me a chance to try multiple shades in a single formula without having so much waste. Also, sometimes they come in cute packaging that is reusable, like a little tin.

What I dislike: In addition to the risk of breakage or the difficulty of applying neatly if the bullet is too small, I dislike sets where there is not a lot of variety. Like I guess a set of all reds or all nudes is great if you want to try a few options before picking a full-size of your fave, but I’d really rather get a range, such as one nude, one red, one berry or mauve or coral, and one fantasy or statement color. I’d also love to see more sets that have a range of finishes, so you can try multiple formulae from a single brand and see which one wears best on you. I’d be a lot more open to getting all red or all nude if the set included say, an ultra matte, a soft matte, a cream, and a shimmer or metallic.

Andrea Avatar

I looove the price, I don’t like that 95% of them are warm-toned, I really dislike the fact I never like all the colours -I won’t even say “love”, as I’d settle for “like”- so after the novelty wears off I can’t help but think in the end it wasn’t that cheap, and last but not least where I am there’s very little choice in terms of brands (in fact there’s at least one shop I can think of where they’re pretty much always out of stock, so they’re not just like a unicorn, they’re like an albino unicorn).
I wish they would separate sets into only cool and only warm shades instead of doing one colour in different warm shades or a mix of cool/warm. For me, warmer shades are a very personal choice and I can’t pull all of them off, but I can always get away with cool ones. Also, while I’m at it, what’s with the orange red!? Have all the execs got together for a boozy party and decided that every.single.set must have one? Where’s the burgundy, the mauve, the plum…?
I’m also not particularly attracted to sets of lipstick w/ lipliner. I already have universal lipliners so those sets don’t speak to my heart.

Genevieve Avatar

Generally I don’t like lipstick sets because they always contain shade colours that I don’t wear. Sometimes the brands put them together to get rid of stock that they can’t sell either.
I have found that even when you buy them from a reputed brand, say PMG, that is no guarrantee that the lipstick won’t break….

Ana Maria Avatar

Since I like variety with lipsticks, I like the idea of lipstick sets, especially if they cover a spectrum of colors. But I don’t like that most times you can’t customize the shades; there’s always a color or more than aren’t my style, so I wish brands would let us select which shades we want.
I don’t like when shades in the set are too close, some being almost the same shade.

Raine Avatar

I appreciate when it’s a good value and a way to get a feel for a brands lip offerings. I feel like they tend to be the same colors, though. Usually the same exact mid tone pink, bright red and tan nude. I get that is their way of trying to have something to suit everyone but
I like how MAC does or did multiple lip sets grouped cool or warm and sets with multiple shades in the same general range of color like plums, nudes, reds, etc. I’m more likely to use all the shades that way. Too bad the quality of their products has gone down over the years.

Z Avatar

Love – trying multiple colors
Not Love – pinks, mauves, berries – and those are ALWAYS in lip sets. Also smaller lipsticks tend to be quite fragile.

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