Say hello to my second MAC lipstick purchase ever in my entire lifetime, yes, I currently only own two, the other is a Pro Longwear shade which I’ll review if I get it back from my friend (Hello, Krista). Two others I have owned in the past were gifts, a Viva Glam from my godmother and “Amorous” an earthy berry hand-me-down from mom. It doesn’t matter that cranberry and ox-blood shades come off as stereotypical during the ‘Ber months…, no matter how stereotypical dark lipstick may be towards the end of the year women will still get those Tom Ford “Black Orchid” inspired shades. This is nowhere as dark as “Black Orchid” but it swims in the same hue pool. Megablogger Christine of Temptalia.com gave this one an A-, she likes that though like any other matte lipstick it can tend to get patchy at the end of the day it’s still a creamier, silkier texture than the other permanent retro mattes in MAC’s lippie dynasty.
Now, I didn’t look up the meaning of “Heaux” before I bought it, I naively thought it meant Hue (since it’s from a summer collection) and when I looked up the meaning now (just now, give me a gold medal), I cringed. Lord, protect me, it means a number of things like hex (ugh…in JESUS’ name!), or someone else online said “heaux” (prostitute) but I’m not entirely sure if that’s accurate, it probably is. I didn’t stop to think that the name might mean anything remotely dark because MAC Riri Hearts is a limited edition SUMMER collection for crying out loud. I’d rather think about the third less harmful translation of Heaux which is “of or pertaining to a number system having 16 as its base”. There…whew, seriously not kidding, had I known most likely I may not have gotten it. To those who are thinking I’m overreacting, I’m not, things like that really matter to me. I just really went for it after seeing via instagram what a lovely crimson berry it is.
I purchased this lipstick from the Instagram seller @maquillajeonlinestore for Php1100 (free shipping). It would have arrived within a day or two if it weren’t for the Maring Monsoon, it got to me within about 5 days and that’s forgivable. The lipstick looks a little more vampy when the sky is overcast or beneath white light. During warm daylight it wears a bit more crimson, but you’ll notice when you apply the first layer that it has a strong magenta undertone, a plummy cranberry sort of fusion but I like that it still contains a lot of red so you can still consider it a rouge. The texture is a true retro matte. Matte lipsticks in humid countries can also tend to sometimes ball up in bits around the lip or get a bit more patchy. Compared to Ruby Woo this one does it less, full wear after one meal shows little damage, just remember not to rub your napkin across your mouth and blot over the lips instead, then touch up a bit direct from the bullet. Primary application of matte lipsticks is best with a lip brush, laying down an even stain first before adding the thicker 2nd layer to complete opaqueness. Then seal the deal by a good strong blot with tissue. Watch how Lisa Eldridge does a proper matte lip with MAC Ruby Woo here.