Mua Lipstick Haul.

Shades L-R: 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 12, 15 Juicy & 16 Nectar - Mua £1 each.

For one reason or another i had never shown much interest in the lipsticks by Mua. Although i have perused the Mua counter endless times, and made purchases of other items in the range, i was never drawn to even looking at the lipsticks. I can only put it down to the simple fact that they were not displayed at eye level, as silly a reason as that might be. It was actually just before Christmas that i treated myself to 9 out of the 16 shades available. I was looking to throw ten pounds at them, but wanting to avoid anything that looked too red based (i already own more red lipsticks then i need), i only managed to get the 9 (as some shades were sold out) and opted for a blusher to make up the difference.

After excitedly buying these, they have just been sat waiting to be put to use in my make-up drawer. It is only in the past few weeks that i have been able to put some time aside to have at look at these properly. I have to admit I'm really not keen on the packaging, it doesn't feel too stable and the silver inner is a real turn off for me personally. Although I'm also not a fan of the clear base with the colour showing through, its not all bad, as picking out the shade you want is a speedier process because of it. Especially if you own allot of lipsticks. It is a real shame that Mua didn't give each shade a name from the get go alongside the shade numbers. Fortunately for us it seems they are working in that direction, as the newest additions entitled; 'bare', 'juicy' and 'nectar' suggests.

The actual lip product is nice. Appreciating that these are only one pound a piece they are definitely up there with the best of the budget lipsticks. They apply well and are all fairly punchy with the colour pay off bar one. Shade 4 is very sheer and fairly difficult to get a colour out of. I might have overly pigmented lips, but for me this shade is almost bordering on a clear gloss with the faintest hint of light pink. Had i known this before purchasing i don't think this one would of made it to the till. Most of the 9 i own have shimmer running through them with a glossy finish. Whilst juicy and nectar lack any shimmer and are more of the matte variety, but not a complete true matte. All the lipsticks give off the same pleasant scent, a lovely sweetie almost strawberry smell. Could very well be the nicest smelling lipsticks i actually own.

The variety of wearable shades in this lot did surprise me, but in a good way. I can see myself easily wearing all of these (except 4 as mentioned above), although some may be more suited to evenings out alone which isn't a bad thing at all. My preferences tend to lead me to brighter deeper shades for the evening and the paler nude toned pinks for daytime. My only slight concern is that there is some variation in the colour of the lipstick in the tube and the colour once applied, which for now, means i am struggling to remember which lipstick is which in terms of my faves. But I can live with that.