A lipstick formula that offers high shine, rich colour, moisturizing properties and leaves behind a nice stain? Yes please! My favourite (sadly limited edition) MAC lipstick formula has a comeback this spring and I’m all over it. Have a look for swatches and a review of the colours I got!
We’re having a bit of a lipstick week here at twindly headquarter! And that’s because MAC Germany sprang a very early release of the new Huggable Lipcolors on us. (You know, glitch in the matrix and all that – it’s gone from their online shop again at the point I’m writing this, but as always with MAC – you never know. The official international release is still in the stars – I’m guessing somewhere in May. It’s early May for Asia and the 7th/14th for the US, but it might not hurt to check their site in the meantime.)
I’m usually over MAC’s frantic churning out of limited editions, but I make exceptions for two of my favourite formulas. One being the aforementioned Huggables (the other is the Extra Dimension stuff, and good things come to those who wait, because apparently the eyeshadows are becoming permanent soon) that come back to us in a release of ten colours, nine new ones and one repromote (see end of post).
So, why am I completely crazy for this formula? For me, it’s the combination of comfort and colour, meaning that I love the moisturizing properties of the Huggables that won’t wear off while leaving a stain that stays.
What the company says
“A new high-shine formula featuring an array of creamy emollients, providing a lasting, glossy finish that leaves lips smooth and sculpted. A unique gel base allows each shade to smooth effortlessly onto the skin, with a feather-light finish giving immediate moisture, lasting up to six hours.”
Lasting, glossy finish? – check.
Leaves lips smooth? – check.
Smooth effortlessly onto the skin? – we’ll come back to this one.
Feather-light finish? – Weeeeell (ymmv).
Giving immediate moisture? – check.
Lasting up to six hours? – let’s give that one an optimistic ‘maybe’.
Let’s have a closer look at this and start with application. The thing that may throw you off is that you’ll start to apply the lipstick from the tube and are appalled how much it tugs and drags on your lips. It’s quite a stiff formula, BUT! I start with a dabbing motion on my lips until the formula has warmed up a bit, which makes application much easier. For people expecting something like a balm or a very emollient lipstick like the Sheen Supremes, this isn’t it. It’s better. This formula doesn’t feel exactly lightweight on your lips, but it won’t slide off, either. After applying, you can be sure that this lipstick won’t budge on your lips – it doesn’t feather or bleed. Don’t expect a longwear formula, though. The shine will wear off. It’s also not transfer-proof. But it’ll leave a lovely stain (that’s where the six hours claim might come in) and you won’t need to top off that stain with gloss or something, because your lips will still feel moisturized.
If you’ll have a look at the formula, you’ll see a lot of polymers that are usually used as film formers, for example in waterproof sunscreen. Hexadecene Coplymer for example makes water slide off your sunscreen so that you don’t have to reapply every time you leave the pool. There’re others in there that form a thin film over a surface and help to keep moisture from evaporating.
I got three of the new colours: Dramatical, Flaming Lips and Play it Soft.
Let’s see how they hold up to their claims and how they perform in comparison to the old ones!
Dramatical (bright cherry red) is a striking neutral, clear red. It leaves an incredible stain on the lips – I did the arm swatches in the evening and that was how my arm looked like the next morning!
I usually wear my Huggables without liner or primer, because they don’t feather or bleed – if you don’t overapply them. I packed them on for my pictures and noticed that you shouldn’t do that. These are rich in pigment, so no need to pack them on!
Flaming Lips (deep creamy red) is a beginner red. Not at all like dramatical Dramatical! It’s a very pretty look and I get the Asian vibe a bit that MAC likes to credit this line-up with because it’s soft, girly and youthful. No need to be afraid of red lips with this one! It doesn’t stain as good as Dramatical. Pity, but I guess the lighter the colour, the less staining.
Play it Soft (bright coral red) is bright, light coral that reads more pink than red on me. It doesn’t stain my pigmented lips that much, but it’s a nice summery coral that will see lots of use come summer.
All of them have a lot of shine and make my lips just look smoother and plumper. When MAC will release them properly next month, I’ll check out some of the other shades as well for sure! What disappoints me though is the lack of staining with two (the lighter ones) of the three shades I got. Instead the colour didn’t fade evenly but left the dreaded ring of colour around my lips. Weartime is around three hours for me if I don’t eat anything. But still, it’s astonishing how moisturized my lips feel after everything have worn off. I don’t feel like I’ve to slather on something immediately, and that’s absolutely great.
Here’s the whole line-up (20$/23€)
Bare Hug – Soft peach/orange
Dramatical – Bright cherry red
I’m Game – Rasberry
Soft Talking – Warm peachy nude
Play It Soft – Bright coral red
I’m In – Warm rose
Love Feeling – Vibrant deep orange
Glamorized – Vibrant pink
Flaming Lips – Deep creamy red
Fashion Force – Soft tangerine orange (repromote)
Will you check them out?
1 Comment