Milani Amore Matte Lip Crèmes

Today I am bringing your way a truly exciting post. If you follow beauty blogs, instagram and other social media you know all the hype about liquid lipsticks. Pretty much every brand is coming up with their version. I am all about matte lips regardless of the trend or season, therefore I am the first to jump on the matte liquid lipsticks bandwagon. The ones I have tried come at a relatively high price point since they are not from a mass market. Imagine me going all bananas when I heard that finally a mass market brand was coming out with matte liquid lipsticks, I just could not resist. I am referring to the Milani's Limited Edition Amore Matte Lip Crèmes. If you want to know if you need to run out and get them, then stay tuned!

Milani Amore Matte Lip Crèmes

Milani is an affordable USA brand. I haven't tried a lot of their products, just the Shadow Eyez, because it's not readily available where I live. I was very happy to discover that Milani has an actual European website, so there is no need to order directly from USA. Amore Matte Lip Crèmes come in 8 shades and they are limited edition. This means if you want to get your hands on these you need to be quick. They are cruelty-free and infused with Vitamins A & C for added hydration. I picked up two colours: Lust, a muted-pink and Crush, a brownish-red shade. I figured for me to make a proper review on these I need to try both lighter and darker shades. I honestly think these are the two stand out shades from the entire collection. 

L-R: Milani Amore Matte Lip Crèmes in Crush and Lust

Milani Amore Matte Lip Crèmes in Lust and Crush

Now let's start with the packaging. I personally like it. It's sleek, non-bulky and doesn't feel cheap. You get 6g of product which is a standard amount. For comparison Sephora Cream Lip Stains contain around 5g of product, while Sleek Matte Me Lip Creams have 6g of product. Milani Amore Matte Lip Crèmes come with a flat doe foot applicator which I find easy to work with. You need just a tiny bit of product, therefore prior to application I suggest you wipe off the excess from both sides. The consistency is quite liquidy compared to some other formulas that are creamier or mousse-like. In my opinion it's most similar to La Splash Lip Couture's and Aromi Liquid Lipsticks textures. They have a sweet vanilla butter cup scent to them which I don't mind. I much prefer it to the La Splash chemical scent, which puts me off every time I use their products. 

When it comes to longevity they work really well. I have been wearing Lust for the whole day including drinking and eating. It did fade a little bit in the centre of the lips but nothing major. Since it's such a "my lips but better" colour you don't really notice the stark line as much. With Crush it's way more noticeable. In my opinion these are not as drying as for example the La Splash Lip Coutures and feel comfortable on the lips. Both colours applied beautifully with one coat and no streakiness was detected. I would say that you need to exfoliate your lips especially if you are planning on wearing darker colours. This is applicable to all liquid lipsticks brands. You will see why in the lip swatch below. 

Milani Amore Matte Lip Crème in Crush

Milani Amore Matte Lip Crème in Lust

Overall I am very content with these lippies. Would I recommend them? Hell, yes! I have been wearing Lust non-stop for the past few days and I just can't get enough. The formula is comfortable, cruelty-free, stays all day and is affordable. I wanted to get this post out as soon as possible so you could have a chance to try these out before they are gone. If you have been wanting to try liquid lipsticks but could not justify spending twenty euros and maybe not liking it at the end, give these ones a go. They retail for only 7,16€ and have a pretty good colour selection. If I had to recommend one, Lust would be it, as I think it's a universally flattering shade. If you want something more unique and bold, Crush fits right that bill. I would not suggest Flirt just because I read some negative reviews of it being streaky and hard to work with. I like these so much that I am contemplating of buying a backup of Lust and that's unlike me as I think there will always be something better.

Let me know if you have been converted to the liquid lipsticks and what are you favourites! 

Cheers,
Muffy

Mac Paint Pot vs Milani Shadow Eyez Pencil

If you want to get into Mac and don't know where to start, Mac Paint Pots are among the first things you should go for. They are very common in the beauty world and many people swear by them. I was very intrigued to try them for myself and after careful deliberation I decided to go with Mac Pro Longwear Paint Pot in Groundwork. I was looking for an everyday eyeshadow base with a slight hint of colour that I can just slap on and go. Little did I know that I could have saved pennies big time!

Mac Paint Pot in Groundwork and Milani Shadow Eyez in Cafe Au Lait

In a nutshell Mac Paint Pots are cream eyeshadows that can be worn alone or used as an eyeshadow base. They come in an array of mostly neutral colours but you can find some really unique shades like sea foam (a.k.a Mac Paint Pot in Clearwater). Finishes vary as well from matte, to shimmery, to frost, to metallic. Mac Paint Pot in Groundwork is a matte neutral taupe colour. It is not too warm and not too cool, it gives just enough colour to make your eyelids look more put together. I really enjoy this colour. I usually wear it on its own. It would work especially well as a base for cooler shadows, since it has that taupe hue. Mac Paint Pots claim to be long-wearing up to 15 hours, water-resistant, stay-true to colour and crease-proof. I do not completely agee with that. In terms of staying true to colour it is so, what you see is what you get. However, long-wearing and crease-proof, not so much. When worn on its own it creases on me after maybe 5 hours of wear. However if used as an eyeshadow base it creases on me within a couple of hours. I need to use a separate eyeshadow primer like Nars Smudge Eyeshadow Base underneath to ensure it stays all day.

Mac Paint Pot in Groundwork

Milani Shadow Eyez in Cafe Au Lait

Now let's look at Milani Shadow Eyez in Cafe Au Lait. Milani is a US based affordable makeup brand that offers a wide range of products, among which are Shadow Eyez. They are eyeshadow pencils that can be worn alone as an eyeshadow base or as an eyeliner. I picked two colours: Almond Cream and Cafe Au Lait. They do have a decent selection of colours and finishes (matte & shimmery), but nowhere near to that of Mac's Paint Pots. Cafe Au Lait is a matte mid-toned, brownish-taupe colour. It is extremely similar to Groundwork. It might not look like it when swatched but on the lids when blended they look identical. One day I wore Mac's Groundwork on one eye and Milani's Cafe Au Lait on the other and nobody told me I look crazy. Shadow Eyez are not as creamy in consistency so you have to work a little bit harder to blend them out. They claim to be long lasting up to 12 hours, water-resistant and crease-proof. Here again I would disagree, as with Paint Pots they last around 5 hours on me until I start seeing a slight creasing. 

L-R:Milani Shadow Eyez Cafe Au Lait and Mac Paint Pot Groundwork

Mac Paint Pot in Groundwork and Milani Shadow Eyez in Cafe Au Lait are dupes in my eyes. They serve the same purpose, the colour is spot on and the longevity is the same. The only difference is that Mac's Groundwork comes in a pot, while Milani's Cafe Au Lait is a pencil which you need to sharpen. It is worth pointing out that the glass jar is not particularly travel friendly, while a pencil you can just throw in your bag. Another substantial difference is that Milani is a cruelty free brand and these pencils are paraben free. In terms of price Mac Pro Longwear Paint Pots retail for 20,50€, while Milani Shadow Eyez are sold for 6,99$. You do get 5g of product in Mac Paint Pots and only 2,8g with Shadow Eyez pencils. That being said, for you to use up an entire Mac Paint Pot before it dries out you have to use it every single day. 

I enjoy both products and iterate depending on my mood. If you have been wondering what is all the rave surrounding Mac Paint Pots and wanted to see for yourself, I say try Milani Shadow Eyez first. I would imagine Milani's Shadow Eyez in Almond Cream to be a great alternative to the very popular Mac Paint Pot in Painterly. You can get Milani products from BeautyJoint. 

Let me know if you will be giving Shadow Eyez by Milani a go!

Cheers,
Muffy