LAVENDER LOVE: MAC Viva Glam Nicki 2

Now that headline might be a little bit misleading, because my relationship with the new Viva Glam Nicki lipstick is definitely a love-hate relationship. Kind of like my feelings for Nicki Minaj. Anyway.

After last year's bright coral pink, Mac decided to go a little cray and go for an all-out lavender lipstick. And they aren't skimping on the pigmentation. No lustre or glaze finish here - nope, it's a full on Amplified finish, which is both a good and bad thing.

The swatches below are one swipe on the right and built up on the left. As you can see, there isn't much of a difference in a swatch. It's pretty much the same on the lips. So this color is a very difficult one to pull off by itself. You either have to be ridiculously pale (even paler than me) or have a darker skin tone where this contrasts really well. Most other skin tones, from fair to medium, would want to definitely wear this with a lip liner, lip gloss, or layer it with another purple or pink color.

Here I have just lightly patted the color on my lips, giving it a nice cool lavender pink stain. Because of the incredible pigmentation and creaminess of this color, patting it on works quite well without it looking too patchy. You can definitely wear it this way without a lip liner, as it lets some of your natural lip color show through.

 

Now the next lip swatches are full on applied.
And while I have a cool skin tone, the base is so white that it's still just a little bit too much for me.

 

Had some issues here applying clearly. I was looking in the reflection of my camera, not a mirror, okay?

 I said that the Amplified finish is both a good and bad thing because while it is so pigmented if you apply a full coat, it will last for such a long time because you barely have to pat it on to get color. I personally like products that are really pigmented that I can sheer out how I like it - blush, eyeshadow, foundation, and lipstick as well. This is a perfect example of that. You use less product that way and you get more bang for your buck!

 Swatches below are compared to Mac Creme Cup (left) and Pink Nouveau (right). I realize neither of them are similar in the slightest, I just wanted to get a comparison to see how light it actually is. And I thought Creme Cup was light!

While it is such a difficult color to wear by itself, it's a fun color to have in your collection to mix with other colors. Plus, all the money you spend on a Viva Glam lipstick goes to the Mac AIDS Fund, so I don't feel bad in the slightest paying the $15 for a lipstick that probably won't get a lot of wear from me. But if you're into ombre lips, or super bold colors, I'd go for it.

You can purchase this lipstick for a limited time (I think for a year, not sure) from Nordstrom.com or Maccosmetics.com.

I did a Valentine's Day look with this lipstick (and I did a neat ombre truck with another lipstick), so you can watch it below to get some ideas!

I hope you guys enjoyed this post, and I hope you have a good week!

Best wishes!
-Abby