MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquers!

‘Velvet’ lip products are going absolutely nowhere this Spring/Summer! If you haven’t already spotted an influx on your high street, keep your eyes peeled with MUA, Topshop and Bourjois bringing the formula down to a more accessible level than the slightly more expensive and harder-to-get Lime Crime Velvetines. MUAs offering, the MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquers, come in at a measly £3 each and are available in in 5 shades, four of which I have for your visual pleasures today.

L-R: Kooky, Atomic, Funk, Criminal

The lip lacquers are house in a matt-effect tube with posh-looking gold print on the caps. These apply with a typical doefoot applicator.



’Kooky’



’Atomic’



’Funk’



’Criminal’

Swit-swoo! Aren’t these colours gorgeous?  Out of the four shades I have (I’m missing Reckless, a blue-based red) Criminal is definitely my favourite – it’s a bright, clean, butt-kicking pink. If you’re a fan of Candy Yum Yum by MAC or OCC Nylon Lip Tar, this is the sort of shade for you. Kooky is almost a true purple and if you like the 90’s goffik sort of look that Lorde sports, this is the shade for you. Funk is bright and vibrant without being too neon or overpowering – it’s perfectly girly.

The formula for these is creamier than other versions of this type of product, meaning you have to be very careful not to apply a thicker application on one part of your lips than the other as it can dry in streaks. If you look at my swatch of Kooky, you can see why you need to go slow and steady on these! Wear time is, as expected, pretty darn good! I do find they come off when eating most things (you’ll have to have a touch-up after a big meal or oily food, but a snack or a cuppa would be fine) and that I have to be careful when I apply to the ’waterline’ of my mouth, making sure this area is dry otherwise the product doesn’t adhere well. Rather than wear away evenly, these can feel  a little ‘gummy,’ which I’m not a huge fan of. They remove easily with an oil-based remover though (a micellar water probably won’t cut it!) and if you’re just having a cheeky drink or giving someone a peck on the cheek, they’ll sure as hell stay put! The only shade I had a problem with in regards to wear was Atomic – I really don’t like how it felt on the lips compared to the others and it was a bugger to get off, feeling almost clumpy while I was removing it. As expecting, these will feel dry on the lips, but if you want the wear from a lip product, it’s pretty much tough shit!



L-R, MUA Atomic, Lime Crime Suedeberry. MUA

I can’t complete this post without comparing to the Lime Crime Velvetines. In my opinion, these aren’t dupes for the LC shades. Atomic is a much brighter, truer orange as compared to the more peachy Suedeberry, and Atomic makes Pink Velvet look dull in comparison. I actually prefer the MUA shades! As mentioned, the formula for the the MUA version is much creamier and I find that makes it a little more difficult to neatly apply a second layer, especially considering the fact it takes longer to dry. As noted, I also find that the thicker formula makes it harder to apply neatly with the applicator compared to the Lime Crime, although I’d recommend using a brush for both – the look of both the products is so matte and dense there’s not much room for error.  The Lime Crime wears longer and more evenly, and feels lighter on the lips without the ‘gummy’ feeling as they wear. I can’t lie and say I prefer the MUA formula over the LC, but the differences are small. I’m a beauty blogger, I *will* find the differences!

To sum up? All of the colours are gorgeous and they’re certainly long wearing, but the formula isn’t up to par with the Lime Crime one which in my opinion is much more sophisticated. For £3 though, I can’t complain too much at all and I can only hope that MUA bring out some vampier or more unusual colours!