Review: MAC ProLongwear Lipstain

A couple of weeks ago, I picked up one of MAC's new release ProLongwear Lipstain markers.  Having owned (and mostly liked) a couple of CoverGirl's OutLast Lipstains, which are of a similar felt-pen format, I was quite curious to see what a more high end brand would make of the concept.  I was particularly interested in some of the shades which, according to the website colour swatches, were quite subtle and almost neutral - but I found that in person, they most definitely couldn't be classified as nude.  All of the nine shades are intensely coloured - if you're not a lover of bright, intense lips, then this isn't a product for you!

I chose Runway Ripened, which is described as a berry plum red, which is a pretty accurate description of the colour.  The application is pretty easy; simply draw around the lips, then fill in, and (hopefully) enjoy a long wearing colour.  I found that although the product is simple to apply, it's also quite easy to overapply - if you accidentally go a little over an area you've already coloured in, you quickly get a sticky effect that doesn't dry down properly.  It's also a little bit too dry to wear alone, once it does dry down - a bit of gloss or balm is required.

I usually wear lipstick and lipliner, and can get a good 4 hours out of that combination, even when I've had some lunch in the middle.  The wear time on this product is about the same; after lunch, I found that the colour in the centre of my lips was starting to look a little patchy, and after four hours in total, I was starting to veer towards a not-very-nice level of contrast between the outline and the centre of my lips.

The biggest problem is the combination of the lack of a particularly long wear time alongside the fact that you can't layer the product.  Once the centre of my lips faded, trying to selectively top up the colour resulted in a lot of stickiness.  I felt like I'd need to fully remove the product and reapply to get even, comfortable coverage, which isn't particularly feasible on the go.

So, unfortunately I've found myself a bit underwhelmed by MAC's lipstain.  That's not to say that it's inferior to the CoverGirl product - they also suffer from the same dry feeling, and the same layering problem, although not quite as much as the MAC.  While certainly suitable for a night out, or an occasion when you have time to fully reapply halfway through the day, this isn't a product you can maintain through a busy day at work.  I'll keep using mine, but I think I'll stay away from this kind of product in the future.

If you'd like to try MAC's lipstains for yourself, they're available online at £14.50 for 2.5g.