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MAC Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour – Are They All That?

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I’ve become a bit of a liquid lipstick addict without even realising it. Day-to-day I tend to pick up something easy and glossy for my lips, but if I fancy something bold then I tend to go for either my NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencils *insert angels singing* or a liquid lipstick purely for the reason of longevity. I’m low maintenance in the makeup touch-up department so I like things that last and mean that I don’t have to carry a kitchen sink-size makeup bag around with me, let alone a mirror and liquid lipsticks tend to fare pretty well, just needing a bit more colour in the centre of the lips after I’ve gone to town on a slice of pizza (or six).

Now I have my favourites when it comes to formulas. Drugstore-wise you can’t beat the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvets which now come in a glorious range of shades and glide onto the lips with one of the most hydrating liquid lipstick formulas out there. Though I feel like Kat Von D make some of my favourites, purely for their colour range (A Go Go rocks if you’re into orange reds) and I’ve recently discovered the Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks which are floating my boat too (especially the colour Ricco). All of the aforementioned apply well, don’t crisp up on the lips and despite being matte, don’t make my lips shrivel up like a cat’s behind.

Having tried a fair amount of formulas, I’ve finally got round to testing MAC’s offering – the Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour. Now it’s taken them a while, but they’re here; 15 high-pigment colours, ranging from nudes to deep wines and everything in-between with a liquid-suede finish. I’ve seen a few reviews pop up here and there and it seems like it’s a bit of a Marmite thing – you love ’em or you hate ’em. Now I wouldn’t say that I hate them per se, but I definitely fall into that end of the spectrum unfortunately.

It’s worth saying that I’ve only given one colour a go – Fashion Legacy – so I don’t know if my experience is a colour-contained one, but compared to other formulas I’ve tried, this just doesn’t have the ‘yes I really, really want to wear it again’ factor. Firstly, the colour is great – a blue-based red – I was feeling it. Secondly – the applicator is amazing. It’s a diamond shape that comes to a point which means that it can tuck right in to the corner of your mouth and you can get a really smooth finish and line without the need for a lip liner. So far, so good, right? The issue comes with the actual texture of the product. It all seems fine and dandy when you apply it, but once it’s dry it starts to roll off the lips and crisp up, kinda like the H&M Liquid Lipstick did on me. It very quickly became patchy and dry, within the hour, therefore breaking my low maintenance touch-up requirement. Game over. I think I’ll be sticking to my aforementioned favourites for now.

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