REVIEW: MAC x Mia Moretti Spring 2015 Lipsticks – High Tea & Maria Moretti

Hey guys!

New York-based deejay Mia Moretti seems to be working a lot with MAC lately with THREE collaborations under her belt to date – once in summer 2014 and twice this spring. So far, nothing really new and original has emerged from the partnership which makes me wonder if it’s just a smokescreen for MAC to repromote obsolete products though I’m sure these products would still sell (provided that they were popular in the first place) without the backing of a celebrity.

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This collection includes 2 lipsticks, Who’s the DJ? Lip Palette X6, 2 Mia Moretti Casual Colours (cream blush-lipstick in Puttin’ on the Spritz & P.S. I Like You), Mia Moretti Creme Colour Base (in Desert Roadtrip & Summer Wind), Mia Moretti Makeup Bag and a Mia Moretti Tote.

I almost wanted to give this collection a miss until I stumbled upon an article about a new limited edition lipstick shade – or so they say – that was going to be launched in this collection. And then the rest is history. 😉

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Overview

I also got myself High Tea because as a hoarder, one lipstick is never enough.

A part of me actually also wanted to review the entire set of lipsticks from this collection so that you guys know what to avoid when they’re released internationally this month.

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Official swatch

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My swatch. They differ a lot from the official swatch if you ask me 😦

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Pretty obvious which is the new product here.

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But nope, it’s still in regular packaging and I couldn’t help but feel a little cheated. For a moment I thought there was a glimmer of hope 😦

Unboxing these lipsticks started out as a happy affair and I remember being so excited when I saw the colour on the bullet. They looked pretty and promising, especially High Tea. “It’s gonna be my next go-to nude!” I squealed with delight. Then my joy dissipated and everything inside me crumbled into dust at the sight of the swatch on my hand. *cries* Okay drama much. But yes, as you can see from the pictures above, the colours – both of them – are clearly nothing extraordinary. *cries some more*

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High Tea is a beiged pink with pearl with Lustre finish. (US$16)

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This is another repromote (argh MAC stop it already) but I feel that it shouldn’t be brought back at all! Look, it’s terrible. It’s so sheer, I doubt you can see anything on my lips because I couldn’t even see it in the mirror except for the slight sheen because the sunlight was beaming right on me. It felt a little drying and I tend to lick my lips a lot when they’re dry. So this definitely wouldn’t stay past an hour.

This colour is as invisible as both lipsticks from the Cinderella collection, as well as Romantic Breakdown from Bao Bao Wan. Lipsticks are supposed to complete looks, but these obviously don’t do the job. There have been a lot of nudes with Lustre finish lately and I’m sure many MAC users share the same sentiment as me. Hopefully we’ll get to see less of them in the future!

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It’s funny how these Lustre nudes appear so differently on plain skin but totally camouflages themselves on the lips. So yes, never swatch these kinda colours on your hand before purchase. Instead, wear them on your lips. You’ll be shocked at the difference.

And lastly, the highlight of this review.

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Maria Moretti is a cherry red with Amplified finish. (US$16)

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Decided to spice up the shoot with some props HAHA. No prizes for guessing whose cap I was wearing. (Hint: Gotta catch’em all)

I was really looking forward to this colour because the official swatch looks slightly darker? It didn’t occur to me that it would turn out to be another dupeable red. *face palm* Criticisms aside, this has very good colour payoff and I’m very pleased with the creaminess. It applies very evenly with a single application. It’s also very similar to Cardinal but this has a little more shine and perhaps less opaque.

Of course, choosing this shade over High Tea is a no-brainer decision. Unfortunately this colour is already sold out online. But it’s such a common red, I believe there are cheaper and equally durable dupes out there in the market. I say save the money for upcoming launches like Wash and Dry or better yet, the Giambattista Valli collection!

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Reposting this from the Philip Treacy review because it’s essentially a very common shade of red.

All in all, it’s another disappointing collection. And I kinda regret not getting the lip palette because the colours look really fun to play with. I’ll probably get that when it’s launched here, if that’s ever gonna happen. Haha!

 

What do you think of this collection? Did you get anything? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! 🙂

Thanks for reading! ❤

MAC x Mia Moretti Spring 2015 is now available on MACCosmetics.com. Release date in Singapore is not known.

REVIEW: MAC x Mia Moretti Lipstick in Media

Hello ladies!

I’m back with yet another lipstick review. This time, it’s going to be a lot shorter than usual because there’s only one lipstick in this collection. And it’s a dark shade! *beams with joy*

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Mia Moretti is a New York-based DJ and apparently a BFF of Katy Perry

But as some long-time MAC users might already know, Media isn’t an entirely new shade having first launched more than 10 years ago as part of the permanent range. I’m not sure why the sudden re-promote now when it’s practically still the same thing (by that, I mean the packaging). Hence, I was puzzled for awhile. Is this a collaboration or a feature of the DJ’s favourite MAC products (something like Artist Faves)? Whatever it is, I’m very glad that MAC/Mia Moretti had decided to put a spotlight on Media amongst the hundreds of lipstick shades that the cosmetics giant offer. Without it, I probably would have given it a miss because I’m more compelled to spend my money on limited edition shades since they won’t be available for long.

Do follow my brand new Twitter account for more bite-sized beauty updates! 🙂 I will occasionally post beauty deals as well (for both international and Singapore makeup junkies). It also makes asking questions and sharing even easier!

Anyway, that was Mia’s second collaboration (if you’d call it) with MAC. She had one last July which also featured permanent MAC products. Needless to say, I passed on that one too, also partly because I’m not really a huge fan of Sheen Supreme finish.

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Normal packaging

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Media is an intense reddish-purple with Satin finish (US$16)

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A closer look

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About 2 layers

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I have a love-hate relationship with lipsticks that have a Satin finish. It is a great alternative to Matte because of the added sheen that makes the colour pop. Satin lipsticks are known for their conditioning formula that prevents them from being too drying on the lips. It gives a very greasy feel and the colours tend to slip into my lip lines after awhile so unless I want a lip stain effect, I have to keep touching it up every now and then. Satin colours also don’t usually come out entirely opaque on the first application. You’d need to apply crazy amount of layers (at least 4 from my own experience) to get that kind of opacity on Mia. I don’t really have the patience for that lol. Nevertheless, this is a really nice colour although it’s quite a dupable shade. It’s not too dark and it eventually fades into a really nice wine colour.

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Swatch comparison with some purplish shades. A close dupe is probably Dark Side, a shade which I absolutely adore 🙂

I hope MAC repromotes more dark shades like this. I know there used to be one called Dramatic Encounter but it was a Limited Edition shade released under the Glamour Daze collection back in 2012 when I wasn’t so cray-cray about lipsticks yet. It’s so gorgeous goddammit. Bring it back!

Ah okay, that’s all about this uber short review. Thanks for reading guys 🙂

Media is currently available on MACCosmetics.com. It is however not available in Singapore.