Make Up Forever: Rouge Artist Intense #40, #37, #42

Working at Sephora has exposed my cheap self to a lot of fabulous products I would have passed on before simply because of the price tag. Case in point, Make Up Forever.

I may get a discount for being an employee but that doesn’t stop me from being El Cheapo. $19 is expensive, but when you compare it to other lipsticks Sephora carries, it’s actually on the lower end of the scale.

A few qualities that make the price tag justifiable;
-the amount of pigment is awesome. I only need to put it on once and go! No layering, no half-assing.
-the staying power is phenomenal. Obviously lipstick will always look better with a touch up after eating or drinking, but if I’m in a rush I don’t even bother and it still looks neat and bright
-a little drying, but no where near as drying as other lipsticks (looking at you, MAC) and when you consider the pigment and longevity, it’s totally doable
-the color range: not many lines carry bright orange or black,!

Some things to consider:
-I recommend using a lip liner with this product, otherwise after a few hours it will creep into every fine line you didn’t know you had!
-MUFE packaging is not sexy 😦
-in a perfect world this would hydrate like lip balm while retaining all the positive qualities, but I guess that’s asking for too much
-I have warm/yellow/olive undertones and although I can get quite dark with sun exposure, I am fairly light these days (usually around the lightest or second lightest warm foundation shade in a line)

#40

This color, described on Sephora’s website as “satin bright orange” is pretty accurate. Sitting in the tube on the shelf the lipstick looks noticeably tangerine in a sea of otherwise standard reds, pinks, and burgundies.

Bright orange as a lip color sounds heinous to a lot of people. But let me tell you, this is magic. Quite simply, #40 when layered with hot pink gloss on top is fiiiiiiiiiiiyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaah!

Every time I wear this combination WITHOUT FAIL clients beg me to tell them what I have on.  Many of them are surprised to find out it’s orange and not in fact red, but that doesn’t deter them from RUNNING to the Make Up Forever gondola to try it on themselves!