Review | MUA Lipsticks

Hello, lovelies !

Since I started my blog back in June and began reading all of your fabby blog posts, I’ve seen a lot of you guys raving about how great the MUA (makeup academy) lipsticks are ! Up until now, MUA was a make-up brand that I had never tried – I’d always have a little peek at their stand as I passed by it in the drug store, but I’d never stopped to have a proper look or pick up any of their products. I think that their super cheap prices made me question how good the quality of the products would actually be !

Anyhow, after hearing all the great things that you guys had to say about these lipsticks, I decided to pick up a couple whilst I was in Superdrug (at only £1 each, I figured that I didn’t have much to lose if I didn’t really like them !). I posted a picture of the two colours that I chose on my twitter, and the lovely Daphne from Peanut Butter and Chocolate Life commented saying that she’d love to see a review on them as she can’t buy the MUA products where she lives !

So, here you have it – a quick post on what I thought of the MUA lipsticks !

First off, there were so many pretty colours to choose from – I had a hard time picking these two out ! As you guys know, I’m a sucker for bright lip colours, so the first shade I choose was ‘shade 3’, which is a super bright pink colour. I’ve been on the hunt for a new coral coloured lipstick, so I also picked up ‘shade 12’, which, in the packaging, appears to be a soft pink-y orange colour. 

When I swatched ‘shade 3’, it came out as the perfect bright pink, as expected ! It glides onto the lips super easily -  the colour comes out very opaque and pigmented, meaning that you only need one coat, it’s not sticky, and it doesn’t smudge. Also, the formula is not at all drying, and so it doesn’t show any tiny cracks on your lips, which would leave them looking dry – this is a huge problem that I’ve had with a lot of cheaper lipsticks. The formula is actually fairly smooth and glossy when on the lips, making them look and feel hydrated.

As for the staying-power of this lipstick… well, it’s pretty average. I found that I had to touch-up the colour every few hours, even if I hadn’t eaten or drank anything – a lot of it seems to wear off even just from talking! Ach, well – I suppose that you can’t expect it to check every box, in the end, it was only £1 ! I can definitely deal with having to reapply it every now and then just because it’s such a fab lipstick ! 

I was slightly less impressed with shade 12, however, I’m sure I’ll still find a way to put it to good use ! As I said, I was looking for a coral shade, and, from what I could see through its packaging, shade 12 appeared to be the perfect pink-y coral. There was no tester for the shade, and, being the silly, indecisive person that I am, I decided to take the lipstick anyway, instead of looking for another shade that had a tester – oops ! Anyhow, when I got home and actually opened the lipstick up, I found that although the lipstick itself looked to be the perfect colour, when I applied it to my lips, it came out as an almost transparent pink, which was a bit of a disappointment as I was looking for a more opaque colour. It also has tonnes of sparkles/glitter in it, which isn’t really my thing. Oh well – I only have myself to blame ! Despite all of that, it’s not all doom and gloom – shade 12 has the same smooth, glossy formula as shade 3, which was a nice surprise, so I’m certain that I’ll find a use for it, whether that be wearing it under a lip gloss, or using it alongside another colour !

As a cute little extra, each lipstick has a tiny pot of the product which unscrews from the bottom ! I actually noticed it completely by accident when I was fiddling around with the packaging ! I’ve not used either of these yet, but I think they’d be great for when you need to touch-up your lip colour but don’t want to have to take your mirror and lipstick out as you could just apply with your finger, like you would with a lip balm !

I’ve actually been pleasantly surprised by these lipsticks. As someone with an interest in ‘beauty on a budget’, I’ve tried out a few lower priced lipsticks and been super disappointed with the quality of the product, but these lipsticks are definitely a must have for anyone – particularly those who are shopping on a budget !

Let me know what you guys thought of the MUA lipsticks ! I’m definitely going to try out some more of the colours and see what I think – what colours would you guys recommend ?

See you all next time !

Much love,