I’ve been testing a lot of lip products because I’m always looking for shades that are interesting, a little grungy, and not secretly orange. A shade can be described as cool nude, mauve, taupe, plum, brown, berry, or purple, and then somehow it turns into a warm peachy/orange on my face. So I keep buying blue glosses, purple adjusters, cool browns, blackberry lipsticks, and anything that looks like it might help me get the lip color I wanted in the first place.
It turns out MAC has actual blue, purple, blackened, grungy, makeup artisty colors, which I love. But they also have easy everyday shades that actually stay the color they’re supposed to be on me. Cool pinks that don’t turn coral. Mauves that don’t turn peach. Browns that don’t go orange. Glosses that add shine without warming everything up too much. *I did also grab some really cool and interesting lip products from Yesstyle that y’all recommended so more reviews coming soon.
In this post, all links are affiliate links (thank you for your support!), but all opinions are my own. Swatches are under a ring light to show true to color (photo #1) and then standard lighting to show the formula a little better (#2) for all the products.
Here are all the bullet lipsticks together just so you can see the formulas and colors all together in both lightings.
Lustreglass Sheer-Shine Lipstick in Alone Time, Signature Move, and Succumb to Plum – This is my favorite MAC lip formula and the one I reach for the most overall. It’s balmy and glossy, but it still gives enough color that it feels like a real lipstick. It’s easy to throw on, it makes my lips look better, and it wears surprisingly well for something this comfortable. I also recently compared Alone Time to the Clé de Peau Cocoa Dahlia lipstick, and they were shockingly close. So if you want that sheer, balmy, shiny, expensive feeling lipstick effect, I would absolutely look at MAC Lustreglass before spending $70 on Clé de Peau.
Alone Time is the best mauvey brown I’ve found. It stays mauve on me instead of turning orange, even in different lighting, and it has that grungy tan mauve quality I’m always looking for. This is one of the MAC lip products I reach for the most. Signature Move is similar to Alone Time, but a little more brown and a little warmer. It has more red in it, and it can lean slightly more orange by comparison, though it’s still very wearable. I like it, but if I were only choosing one, I’d choose Alone Time. Succumb to Plum a deep, saturated cool plum that actually stays cool toned. It’s the boldest of the Lustreglass shades I have, but the formula keeps it glossy and soft enough to wear all the time. This is the one I reach for when I want something darker, more blackberry, and more interesting without going all the way to black lipstick.
M·A·Cximal Sleek Satin Lipstick in Pink Peppermint and Tilted Denim and M·A·Cximal Silky Matte Lipstick in Caviar – These are my go to adjuster shades. I use them less as traditional lipsticks because they’re really amazing problem solvers. If a lipstick is too orange, too yellow, too bright, too dark or too light, or just not quite right on me, these are the shades I start tapping on top.
The M·A·Cximal Sleek Satin formula feels like the most traditional lipstick formula of all of these. It’s full coverage, very pigmented, and comfortable, with a little bit of shine so it doesn’t look flat. It’s not as balmy or glossy as Lustreglass, but it gives much more opacity. Caviar is in the M·A·Cximal Silky Matte formula, so it’s flatter and more matte than Pink Peppermint and Tilted Denim. In the swatches, you can see the satin shades have a little bit of shine, while Caviar is much more matte.
Pink Peppermint is described as a dusty lavender, but on me it reads more like a cool pink with a little purple in it. I use this all the time to transition lipsticks that are too yellow, too orange, or too dark. It’s my quick fix shade when I don’t want to do a whole mixing experiment, because it makes almost everything look better.
Tilted Denim is blue, but it has some lavender/periwinkle tones in it, so it works really well as a cooling adjuster. When I have a lipstick where I like the general tone but it pulls too orange, especially with reds, I can tap on a little Tilted Denim and mix it in. It’s not an everyday lipstick shade on its own for me, but as an adjuster it’s so incredibly useful.
Caviar is a black with some green/blue/olive in it, and I use it when something is too bright or needs more depth. A tiny amount tapped in can make a lipstick look cooler, moodier, and more like the deep blackberry, purple, blackened lip colors I’m always trying to find. I also like wearing it lightly with gloss over top because it gives that sheer blackened lip effect without needing a separate lipstick.
M·A·Cximal Silky Matte Lipstick in Smoked Purple and Mehr and Powder Kiss Hazy Matte Lipstick in Good For You – These are the matte lipsticks I wear as actual lipsticks. MAC has a lot of matte lipstick formulas, and these three feel very different. As I mentioned with Caviar, the M·A·Cximal Silky Matte formula is matte, full coverage, and almost drying. For some reason, Mehr formula feels creamier and more traditional satin lipstick that just dries down a little matte than Smoked Purple and Caviar, maybe because it’s a mini. Either way, I’m not sure I agree with their description that these are “creamy” but they are a comfortable matte. The Powder Kiss Hazy Matte formula gives a very soft, blurred, diffused effect that’s really trending right now without being too drying.
Smoked Purple is a gorgeous deep cool purple that actually stays purple on me with no orange at all. If I want a true dramatic deep purple lip, this is the one. Mehr is a classic for a reason. It’s a really easy cool toned pink with a bit of blue in it, and it actually stays cool on me. Good For You is a cool toned brown that stays brown instead of turning orange, which makes it basically the perfect 90s brown lipstick for me.
Powder Kiss Lip + Cheek Mousse in It’s Personal, Velvet Teddy, and Rekindled – This is one of my favorite soft focus, blurring matte liquid formulas. It works well on lips and cheeks for a super quick and easy monochromatic look. It has such a pretty diffused finish without feeling dry or reminding me of a flat liquid lipstick. It’s much softer and easier to wear than the liquid lipsticks of yesteryear.
It’s Personal really surprised me. Everyone said it was the perfect light beigey pink nude, and even though it’s described as cool, I assumed it would somehow still turn orange on me. But it actually stays a really pretty light beigey pink. In very warm light, it can go more beigey brown, but it never turns into that bright neon orange Cheeto dust I hate. Especially if you’re a fair olive and want an easy nude in this formula, this is the one I’d absolutely recommend.
Velvet Teddy is a super easy to throw on cool toned pink. It’s simple, flattering, and very wearable, especially if you like having a dependable muted pink around. It doesn’t go orange, it doesn’t feel too warm, and it’s just pretty.
Rekindled is a dark purple brown, and it definitely brings more drama. It’s grungy, moody, and really pretty, especially if you like deeper lip colors or have more contrast. I wouldn’t call it the easiest everyday shade (you can see in the swatches I had a little trouble getting it to blend cleanly), but if you want a purple brown that’s grungy and still pretty, this is great. Just be a little careful applying – I’d recommend putting some on the back of your hand and then using a brush.
Lipglass Cushion High-Pigment Lip Oil in Yum Yum and Dressed To Dazzle – This formula is so, so good. It has solid pigment payoff without being too much for a gloss, it’s high shine, and even though it’s described as a lip oil, it feels more like a cushiony liquid lip balm. It’s comfortable, moisturizing, and glossy without being sticky. Both shades I have also have these pretty iridescent sparkles running through them, but they’re still smooth instead of obvious gritty glitter. I’ve used both of these a ton already even when I was trying to test other things (oops!). I’m honestly about to buy Pulse and Mauvement as I’m looking at the listing for these so let me know if you want me to report back!
Yum Yum is a classic cool toned pink with a purpley blue sparkle, and it’s so easy to wear. I like it on its own, but I also use it to top off lipsticks that are a little off, especially if I want to cool them down slightly or brighten them up without changing them too much. It’s pretty, fun, and one of those glosses I can throw on without thinking. Dressed To Dazzle is described as a taupe lilac with iridescent pearls, but on me it reads more like a rosy brown than a lilac. That said, it’s beautiful and extremely wearable. If I want an easy beige-y glossy lip, this is the one I reach for all the time.
Squirt Plumping Gloss Stick in Violet Beta and Nova – These are the other glossy balm type products I have from MAC, and I mostly bought them because they come in fun colors that actually stay that color. Instead of using a clear balm or clear gloss for moisture and shine, I like being able to add a little purple or blue to tone down lip colors that pull too yellow, too orange, or too warm. As a very green olive person, it’s one of the things that I’m always looking for more of.
Violet Beta actually looks purple. I can wear it alone because I like cool toned lips, but it’s also useful layered over lipsticks that need a little cooling down. It adds shine and moisture while also making other colors more wearable for me. Nova really does show up blue and doesn’t turn pink or do anything weird – it’s just blue. Like Violet Beta, I can wear it alone, but I mostly like having it as a glossy blue adjuster instead of reaching for a clear balm. It’s great when something is too yellow or orange and I want to shift it cooler without doing a full lipstick mixing situation.
The main thing to know is that these are definitely tingly and plumping. That sensation doesn’t bother me personally, but I would skip these if you hate plumping glosses or if your lips are dry and sensitive.
Lip Pencil in Whirl – I’m including this mostly for completeness because it’s the only MAC lip liner I have. I swatched it next to the other lip liners I reach for most (in this order): Merit Brownstone, Merit Bauhaus, Maybelline Gone Greige, Thrive Kackie, Glossier Buff, Ravie Almond, and Ravie Mocha.
Next to those, Whirl is much pinker. If you collect grungy brown, rusty beige, cool contour, or purple lip liners and you want something that reads more like a true pink, Whirl is your girl. I tend to prefer cooler browns because they actually add shape to my lips, so this one wasn’t quite what I wanted. I thought it would be deeper and more contoury because it’s described as a “dirty rose”, but on me, it’s just pink.
The formula is fine and very much in line with a classic lip pencil. If MAC lip liners are on sale and you already know you want a shade, I don’t think it’s bad. But personally, the Merit lip liner formula is still my favorite because it’s easier to use, blends out nicely, sets, and doesn’t get as dry as some traditional liners. If I lost Whirl, I wouldn’t replace it, but if I lost my Merit lip liners, I absolutely would.
What fun lip products should I check out? As always, all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.
Makeup and Skincare Reviews 