Maybelline Color Sensational Vivids Lipstick

     For those of you who frequent this site, you know that I love lipstick. There is just something about it that makes it one of those products that I can't leave the house without. Whether it's a neutral or bright shade I will always have something on my lips. When it comes to any product, opacity is a huge selling point. It is talked about with eye shadows, blush, nail polish, eyeliner, and lipstick just to name a few! So when Maybelline came out with their Vivids collection I was very intrigued. However, I wasn't totally excited about this line due to one reason... The shades! I hate to say it but at first glance I didn't see any colors that caught my eye and made me want to purchase, so I held out on the line for awhile. Recently, I have seen gurus and beauty bloggers rocking these. Even though the shades are bright, they look great on them so it sparked my interest. I went out and purchased three shades (two being very similar) and wanted to share them with you.

Maybelline Color Sensational Vivids Lipstick:
Price: $7.49
Size: 0.15 OZ
Shades: 865 Fuchsia Flash, 875 Vivid Rose, 970 Electric Fuchsia
Shade Selection: 10 shades in original line and 4 in the newer Limited Edition Electric Collection.
Marketed As: "Now bright goes gorgeous, never garish. Brighter color from our exclusive vivid pigments. Creamier feel from nourishing honey nectar".
Directions: "Apply lip color starting in the center of your upper lip. Work from the center to the outer edges following the contours of your mouth. Then glide across the entire bottom lip".
Finish: Satin-Matte

Product Photos:

-With flash-

-Without flash-

Application Photos:

865 Fuchsia Flash

875 Vivid Rose

970 Electric Fuchsia

     Man, are these pigmented and bright! For a drugstore price and formulation I was very pleased with this new Maybelline line. Here are my overall thoughts...

Overall Application: Application was very creamy and even. I did not find myself having trouble getting a precise line around my lips and found the formula easy to work with. The fact that it is so pigmented makes getting a bold lip in one swipe effortless! The finish does end up changing after application once it sets from a slightly glossy look to a satin-matte finish. I have heard of some people applying these very subtly and getting a nice wearable color from doing so. To me, if I am buying a lipstick that is meant to be bright, I am going to wear it that way!

Overall Color: Man are these some bright colors, even for me! For some reason when I think of these shades Nicki Minaj pops into my head and that's not a bad thing! I have always loved the fact that she rocks (and can pull off) very over-the-top shades. As for the line itself, I was let down with the color selection. I found that a lot of the shades were too cool for my skin tone and there wasn't much of a variety in my opinion. There was your typical pink, coral, fuchsia, and red shades but that is as far as it went. I understand that this is a "vivids" line and the point was to come out with some crazy shades but I would love to see some more wearable, maybe even peachy colors. I say that because even people who wear more neutral shades would fall in love with this formula. Who doesn't want an easily achievable, opaque lip color! I quickly want to also touch on the shades from the Limited Edition Electric Collection- Electric Fuchsia, Infra-Red, Orange Edge, and Pop of Cherry). Electric Fuchsia and Fuchsia Flash are almost identical so I do not see the point in owning both. As for the other limited edition colors, they don't get me very excited. There are 3-4 shades in the original line that are either red or coral shades so I do not understand why they came out with 3 others in this Electric line.

Overall Formula: I really am impressed with this formulation and am shocked that it comes from the drugstore. It is creamy, vibrant, glossy, and overall comfortable to wear. I would love to see more shades and possibly more finishes come from this line in the future. I touched on it above but anyone who loves lipsticks would love to work with this formulation. What almost everyone looks for is a creamy, easy, opaque, not overly drying formula and this is it! Even though these were not moisturizing, they didn't feel like they were sucking the moisture out of my lips. The product didn't fall into the cracks of my lips very much either and those two things are what I base my opinion off of.
Overall Packaging: I am really pleased with the packaging of this new line overall. The bright lid showcases the "vivid" factor and I like that! The packaging is a typical twist up, lipstick but I find it a little bulky as well. I do not think of these as wearable, everyday shades so I won't be carrying them around in my purse but if you are limited on space in your markup bag, keep that in mind.

Overall Scent: These lipsticks have a very nice, sweet scent that I wasn't expecting. I have to say that these remind me of the cupcake scent all MAC lipsticks have and that is a great thing! It is nothing over powering and something that I find nice every once in a while.

Overall Wear: Being that this formula is so vibrant, they do stain the lips pretty well. Remember, these are not marketed as a stain but if you have experience with bright lip colors you will see that this idea holds true. The staining factor is a great thing if you plan on wearing the same shade throughout the day but if you are someone who switches it up, it can get a little annoying. I did find this lipstick wearing off towards the center of my lips which is typical for most lip products. It looked a little more dry than when I applied it but overall I was pleased with the staying power. I took some photos before and after lunch while I was wearing 875 Vivid Rose. Here is the set lip color before and after lunch...

Bottom Line: I must say that I am very interested in this line but I am not completely sold. Out of the current shades I am not looking to buying any others because I do not see the variety that I am looking for. I will be returning 2 out of the 3 shades and here is why. Even though Electric Fuchsia is slightly darker thus more wearable than Fuchsia Flash, both are too cool for my skin tone in my opinion. If I keep them I will not be getting the wear out of them that I am looking for in a lip product.

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Love, Lacey