This is kind of cheating, but Estee Lauder’s reformulation of the Pure Color line-up made it so it went from a really fantastic, go-to formula to one I don’t even think I’d bother to buy more shades of to review 🙁
We're here to help you make better beauty purchases that you'll enjoy and love! We recommend signing up to take advantage of personalized features like tracking products you own, viewing dupes that you already have, and more!
Here are some useful resources for you:
Curious how two shades compare to each other? Type in the shades below to get instant side-by-side swatches!
Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!
Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).
We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!
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!
Melt. When I was younger, I didn’t mind that they were dry, and I loved how long lasting they are. But now there are so many formulas that are comfortable and long lasting that I don’t feel the need to wear something so dry. Also they got rid of my favorite colors.
I wish a brand would dupe some of their discontinued colors in a better formula, they were so unique.
Any finish that dries to the point where I have to remove it and reapply it rather than just touch it up, and finishes that don’t allow me to rub my lips together and feel the creaminess of lipstick. Lipstick that completely dries down used to be something I liked, but I strongly dislike it now.
I like the new MAC Lusterglass lipsticks but i really loved the original luster lipsticks in the Jubilee and Freckletone shades.
You know, ugh..why? I certainly will not be buying any of the new formula.
Tom Ford is too old school thick and clunky for my tastes now. Caveat: haven’t purchased a TF lipstick in many years.
Dry-down liquid lipsticks in general! There’s only several that I still use at all, like MAC Siempré Selena and the Sephora formula are some that aren’t too dry for me.
Christine, with regards to the Pure Color formula,
do you mean this for the mattes or also the cream formula? It look like they redid both formulations, and I see you just rated 2 of the matte shades quite poorly, but am curious if you thought the cream formula has also suffered.
To your question: honestly, no…I actually haven’t been as disappointed by reformulations as I have been towards the trends of warm color and matte finishes and how those have in some cases replaced entire lines of beautiful, vibrant creams/satins. Most reformulations that isn’t a total revamp into a matte formula have been fine, IMO.
Yes, the cream formula is different, too 🙁 It’s a lot slicker and doesn’t sit as well or as long on my lips.
Christine i tried one of the new cream formulas at Macys and by the time i got home from shopping and had some water the lipstick was gone!
Bobbi Brown’s Lux Lip Color were amazing in longevity and nurture for my lips, especially the Hibiscus colour which was my HG for years. But after the reformulation they are no longer as good for my lips. I could live with the slight colour change in Hibiscus, but I NEED a lipstick to do well for my lips. Luckily I have two backups of the original Hibiscus now that I am using up my first.
MAC’s Lustre lipsticks were my favorite for a long time, until I developed an allergy to something in them. The new Lustreglass formula is even worse. I love their Love Me line, but it looks like they’re cutting it down and possibly discontinuing it. It’s frustrating.
It’s amazing to me how a brand can create a fabulous lipstick and then change the formula so that it’s now quite rubbish – I agree with you Christine – don’t waste your money buying anymore EL lipsticks when the ones you have purchased are just not up to the mark for the price.
As someone who now never, ever buys expensive lipsticks nowadays (because in the past I have and they have either broken (Chanel) or had a ridiculously short wear time (EL) I tend to only purchase from brands that are inexpensive but great – like CP, Maybelline and Flower Beauty.
I guess a brand I used to buy from a lot was Revlon, but we parted ways quite some time ago because I found their lipsticks to be not worth it for me.
I think liquid lipstick (specifically the kind that dries down and becomes matte). I used to like it because it generally lasted so long but now-a-days I just want something I can go quickly wipe off in the bathroom if I get tired of having something on my lips!
The MAC Lustre formula. I used to love the prismatic formula with an almost duochrome effect some the of the special colors had like Lollipop Loving which was coral with a slight green shift and some other shades had rainbow shimmer and glitter. It may be age related but now that formula dries out my lips and leaves them chapped. I can’t be arsed to layer with their primer and all that. Also, I just gravitated from sheerer natural formulas to more opaque. If I wanted colored lip balm, I will buy colored lip balm.
I can’t wear full opacity matte lipsticks anymore. After years of wearing tinted balms and sheer glosses, I just can’t go back to lip products that need to be babysat and a mirror for touch ups.
I can’t think of any. Formulas I like being discontinued before this becomes a problem is the issue for me. Or I start finding the company unsavory. Or the color selection gets so narrow I get bored.
Agree, and agree!
Shiny and glossy formulas. They just don’t look right anymore. As I mature, I prefer a more balm-like texture or a cream that isn’t too heavy.
Same with UD Vice lipstick. I loved the old formula and shade range, the new formulation doesn’t do it for me at all.
Every flat matte formula.
Like a lot of people, I grew tired of them, because the trend faded, and also because they are super drying.
I am no longer willing to compromise comfort so I want my lip products to feel moisturizing 🙂
From you swatches thus far, I concur! I was hoping they’d improve it not bleeding, but it’s so splotchy!
Ultra matte formulas that made my lips look like a stucco ceiling!!!! I also don’t like the “plumping” tingly lipglosses. I like mousse finishes–Lisa Eldridge Velvet Lipsticks, Maybelline SuperStay Matte Ink Liquid Lipstick, NARS Powermatte, Lancome L’Absolu Lip Lacquer Gloss aren’t bad.