HAUL: MUA & NYC LIPSTICKS

l-r: nyc 'blue rose', mua 'juicy', mua 'bare', nyc 'air kiss'

A spending ban has been imposed on me whilst Dave and I sort out our finances. My hours at the pub were cut considerably (apparently this is my own fault for being paid so much whilst Uni students on their summer breaks will settle for minimum wage) which has meant that a few luxuries have faced the axe. 

No more expensive products for me for a while!

In light of this I have been forced to look around the high-street stores more than I usually do. I have to admit I am rather limited in my choices where I live. There is a teeny-weeny Superdrug, a medicocre Boots and an independent perfumery that contains counters for Estee Lauder, Christian Dior and Clarins. Anything else has to be left to internet offerings or timely trips into the nearest 'big' town. 

I have read several reviews on budget beauty lines 'MUA' and 'NYC' on blogs and have spent the bare minimum to get hold of these four lipsticks. I can't complain about the prices - MUA came in at £1 per product whilst NYC was £1.49 per product.

I ordered these colours more because I was feeling frivolous than anything else.

mua 'bare'

mua 'juicy'

These are the swatches for the MUA lipsticks. Both were scarily plastic-looking in their tubes. The bullets were so shiny they looked as though they were toys not cosmetics. They applied very nicely but took more than one slick to build up the colours shown here. 'Bare' is a gorgeous nude that will look great with a smokey neutral eye - I will try to get a FOTD up soon to prove my theory. 'Juicy' is more of a take-it-or-leave-it colour for me. Its a bright peach based coral which doesn't particularly compliment my skin tone but I will no doubt where throughout summer with some gold accessories and a white t-shirt.

These lipsticks also smell like they're good enough to eat as they smell like vanilla and taste a bit like it too (no I didn't lick the product but I could have done - as it happens I got some on my teeth and that is how I managed to taste it).

nyc 'air kiss'

nyc 'blue rose'

These lipsticks are a great purchase and I am sorely tempted to throw my spending ban out the window to buy the entire set right now. I love them. They apply very smoothly and are incredibly highly pigmented which was a genuine surprise. The bullets look so strongly colored that they're almost intimidating. I like 'Air Kiss' more than 'Blue Rose' but I will definitely wear both. 'Air Kiss' is a rosy pink that really warms up my skin. 'Blue Rose' has an almost iridescent finish. In some lights its a hot pink and in some lights it's purple.  

There doesn't appear to any scent or taste to these lipsticks but I don't think that that matters because the colors are so lovely.

I think that I personally prefer New York Colour from my judgement of these lipsticks but I can't moan about either at their purse-friendly prices and luscious long-lasting wear. Hmmm, maybe there is something to perusing the budget brands then?

Do you own any of these products?

Which other budget brands should I try next?

Let me know - all comments loved and appreciated!