The Hunt For The Perfect Lipstick -- M-A-C Satin Lipstick #A76 ("Cyber")

I'm about to head out shopping, but first, a couple of quick lipstick reviews. This one's about M-A-C Satin Lipstick #A76, "Cyber".

The short review: The color absolutely blew me away in a good way--I really liked it. It's shocking because it goes on so differently than what's in the tube, and the finish is excellent. But it's not for everyone--if you aren't a fan of really dark lipstick, this one isn't for you.

Longer review follows the jump-cut...


Candidate: M-A-C Satin Lipstick, #A76, "Cyber" (Make-up Art Cosmetics, Inc.)

Purchased: M-A-C Store, Columbia, MD

Cost: $14.00 per tube

Brand Info: M-A-C Cosmetics, Inc.
Founded in 1985 by Frank Toskan (a Canadian photographer and makeup artist) and Frank Angelo (Canadian salon owner). Both men shared a frustration with the quality of cosmetics available to customers and even noted major weaknesses in so-called "professional" cosmetics that didn't hold up under bright lights, hot sets, TV appearances, etc. Together with Toskan's brother-in-law, chemist Vic Casale, the three men began designing a new line of high-pigment and long-wearing cosmetics for "All ages, all races, all sex" (the company's first motto) that would later grow into the fashion industry product of choice. (It's a dirty little secret that most celebrities and models who appear on magazine covers wear M-A-C cosmetics, even if another name, such as the brand said spokesmodel/celeb is supposed to be promoting, is credited.) M-A-C was bought by Estee Lauder Cosmetics, Inc., in 1994, and today M-A-C is the "fashionista/edgy" arm of ELC.

M-A-C's lipsticks are mostly wax-based, making them far more durable than the petroleum jelly/lanolin/water/touch-of-paraffin lipsticks other companies make. They also come in over 120 colors and 8 formulas:

-- Amplified (lip plumper + matte finish)
-- Amplified Creme (lip plumper + creme finish)
-- Frost (intense color pigment + high frosty pigment content)
-- Glaze (sheer)
-- Lustre (intense color pigment + lower frosty pigment content)
-- Matte (intense color pigment and no shine)
-- Retro Matte (intense color pigment, no shine, harder and waxier formula--think 1940's red lipstick)
-- Satin (high pigments, creamy texture, no frosty pigments, more water content for shine)

The Tube: Black plastic, matte finish, tubular shape a bullet-shaped top and a silver ring at the mid-tube join. The letters "M-A-C" are written around the top at the join. A pewter sticker with black lettering on the bottom bears the company's official name ("Make-Up Artist Cosmetics"), their country of origin ("Canada"), and the color and color number ("Cyber") (A76).

The Product: Can you say "black"? Thought you could. Seriously, I looked at it a half-dozen times before I finally figured out that it was really just a very deep eggplant purple. The product itself is a traditional bullet shape with a tear-shaped delivery point.

The Application: Very smooth application. Perfect point on the tip makes sculpting around the corners and cupid's bow easy. Because it looks black in the tube, it almost has to go on lighter than it looks, and it does...but not by much. It's still a dark eggplant purple, and has a very light shine due to its water content.

The Taste: Mild vanilla.

The Blot: The first blot removes most of the shine, making the final product appear more matte. Purple lip print that's slightly less shocking than how it first appears as you put it on. A second blot produces only about half the color I expected give the increased water content, which is nice.

The Wear: Typical edge of the cup, top of the chewed-on pen, bite of sandwich stains, but other than that, it wears like iron but feels really light for such an intense lipstick. It fades off gradually but evenly--no blotchyness. And it's really amazing to see that someone with pale blue-red skin like me being able to wear something that dark and not look "goth". The purple gradually mellows as it fades, becoming a pleasant plum, then a wine-stained look, then gone.

The Verdict: If you've got the right skin tones for this (blue-red, on the lighter side of any skin tone spectrum), this lipstick is a great night-time dramatic color selection. The feel is great, and the price is not bad at all for a high-quality lipstick (plus, M-A-C has an environmentally friendly recycling program: Return your empty tubes/eye shadow containers/etc. for a discount off a replacement). This isn't for the faint-of-heart, but if you'd like to be a little daring and dramatic, have at it.