Lips: MAC's Lipstick in "Styled in Sepia" (LE) [The Matte Lip 2014]

PURCHASED

Hi! Can you believe Halloween is in less than 2 weeks? October has been flying by for me..and with it, so is the decent weather. And the sunlight. The precious sunlight.

I really wanted to review "Fashion Revival" for you today, or both that and "Styled in Sepia," but it's already 9:15 and I didn't realize that the pictures for "Fashion Revival" have yet to be edited. It looks like "Styled in Sepia" is next on the list, then, not that that is a bad thing. "Styled in Sepia" is one of my favorite lipsticks from this collection. 

Which brings me to the fact that I purchased one more, "Damn Glamorous," which I probably won't be able to take pictures for until Saturday, if luck is on my side and, with it, the sun.

Really, though, let's talk about "Styled in Sepia." Let's talk about the collection's brownest lipstick, since I just said in my last post that brown is my least favorite color family for lipsticks. Remember? =D




Name: Styled in Sepia
Net Wt.: 0.1 oz./ 3 g.
Price: $16.00
Finish: Matte

On the MAC website, "Styled in Sepia" is described as a "dirty cement beige." I can see that. What I also see in is a kind of grayed taupe. Taupe, in my eyes, is typically a brown with a kind of ashy purple base to it. With "Styled in Sepia" the ashy quality is still there, but it's in the form of a rainy gray rather than a smokey purple. Honestly, if this was a purple-taupe, I'd look dead wearing it.

When shades like "Styled in Sepia" were released in the past, I didn't even give them a second look. I suppose I still wouldn't have considered this color if it wasn't for the word "cement" in MAC's description, and the gray tone that became apparent as pictures started surfacing online.

I know this is strange, but ever since I purchased NYX's Macaron Lippie in "Black Sesame," I realized that I like the way gray looks against my skin tone. Of course, "Black Sesame" is not the least bit wearable without the aid of additional makeup, but that's where "Styled in Sepia" really won my attention. It has a gray cast to it but is still a wearable color. 

The matte formula here is, like the other recent mattes I've reviewed, creamy, smooth, opaque, and comfortable on the lips. It starts off with a slight sheen but eventually sets into its matte finish. And damn, I must say: I really love having the soft, full look of a matte finish without the drying, cracking side effects. I still prefer glossier lipsticks as my favorite finish, but the mattes I've been getting from MAC are wonderful. I've been impressed with the look and feel of them over and over with this collection especially - "Pander Me" being the slight exception.

I think I hesitate when I see brown lipsticks because of my coloring. Having brown hair and eyes, I almost feel like some browns have the potential to clash with my natural features, at least in terms of color. The brown of "Styled in Sepia," however, really compliments my coloring. It almost makes me think of another form of black and white. Rather than varying intensities of black, we have varying intensities of brown. It gives a very sculpted, polished look that, with a bit of contour around the cheeks and eyes, would be quite beautiful, in my opinion. Too bad I don't contour my cheeks, lol.


Overall, "Styled in Sepia" is a lovely gray-toned brown that applies smoothly and opaquely, and wears comfortably despite its soft matte finish. It may not be a color for everyone, but I really think it's worth trying out if it has your curiosity. And if you happen to know that you love the look of gray makeup on your face, then definitely give it a try.

I will say that I expect this to pull warmer on some complexions, mainly because even in my filtered-sunlight-lighting the color has a tendency to pull warmer than it actually wears on me. On my NC15-20 skin, this lipstick is warm enough to leave my face looking healthy, but not so warm that it pulls orange or red. It's also not so cool that it sucks the life out of me. It's a nice balance of brown and gray that I really, really like.

Do I recommend this color? Yes! Would I repurchase? No.

I'm not sure what the availability of this color looks like at counters, since it is limited edition, but it is still online on the MAC website, and is sure to be available on most department store websites, too.

Thank you for stopping by! 'Til next time. ('<>')>

~nikki