Maybelline Color Drama lip pencils

I love a good drugstore (or budget) dupe as much as anyone, so when I started to see these Maybelline lip crayons crop up in countless YouTube videos, being touted as better than NARS, I was intrigued. And then I found out that for the time being, they were exclusive to the UK, at which point I managed to convince one of my besties living over there, to haul a few of these lip crayons back to Sydney, just so I could try them out (thanks Em!).

I ended up rounding out my collection (read: buying every possible shade available) while back in New Zealand due to a fortuitously timed 3 for the price of 2 sale on Maybelline, and after having these lying about in my dresser for a good few months now, I figured it was as good a time as any to share my thoughts on these wallet-friendly lip crayons.

Firstly, it’s probably worth pointing out that Maybelline have (one of) the best lipstick formulas available at an affordable price point, so from the get go, I knew these were going to be good. They’re reasonably priced at $9.95 (AUD) a pop, compared to $39 (AUD) for a NARS velvet matte lip pencil. These are a fair bit smaller that the NARS pencils, however they do have pretty good lasting power that the smaller product size doesn’t weigh too heavily in forming my opinion (plus, they’re cheaper!).

The finish of these pencils varies depending on the shade; some appear more satin than others, whereas others dry down to more of a semi-matte finish. From experience, I’ve found that the shades with a more satin finish don’t have quite the same wear time as the semi-matte shades, and are more likely to require a complete reapplication after eating a meal and consuming a few beverages.

There is a little bit of inconsistency between the shades when it comes to creaminess and pigmentation, with some being easier and more comfortable to apply than others. However once these are on the lips, it can be quite easy to forget that they are even there. The formula is not very drying at all, although I would recommend prepping your lips prior to application with a little bit of lip balm or a lip primer.

The wear time with these pencils is pretty good; I found that after about four hours, I start to get a little bit of fading, so these definitely aren’t a swipe and leave your lipstick at home type of product. The fading is pretty even across the lips although with the darker colours in particular, you will end up with a lip liner effect if you forget to touch these up.

Even after several hours of wear, these didn’t settle into any fine lines on my lips, nor did they bleed around the edges, even with the darker shades.

So are these better than NARS? Well… no, not quite. Like NARS, the formula of each shade seems to vary slightly, with pigmentation and creaminess being more present in some shades than in others. The other issue, for me particularly, is that these very unfortunately resulted in an allergic reaction to my lips, which is something I don’t experience when using the NARS lip pencils. It’s probably worth pointing out that I have extremely sensitive skin and only after a reaction to a FRESH lip balm have I started to have this issue with lipsticks.

It truly is disappointing as otherwise, these are really the bargain that they’re been touted as being, and for someone who isn’t in the market to blow a bit of money on NARS – because let’s face it, shopping at the NARS counter can quite quickly get a little spend-y – this is such a great alternative.

L to R: Nude Perfection, Minimalist, Love My Pink, Fuchsia Desire, In With Coral, Fab Orange, Light It Up, Red Essential, Pink So Chic, Berry Much

While these lip pencils are long-lasting, they aren’t quite able to completely endure a full meal and several drinks (like my NARS lip pencils can); these tend to wear off to a slight lip liner effect, so you will need to carry the pencil in your purse for any necessary touch ups. I put this mostly down to the fact that these are much creamier and softer on the lips, and don’t have that same matte finish.

Given I’m partial to a bold lip, it’s probably no surprise that the shades that really stood out to me include Light It Up and Berry Much; which I’d also argue are those which have the better formula (and colour) of the lot. I’d advise steering clear of In With Coral and Nude Perfection as these were less even in application or would sit on the lips and emphasis any natural lines.

Rather than let mine creep to the back of the beauty drawer, I’m going to be sharpening them and passing them on – a little sad given how excited I was to stumble across these. All in all, it’s a good product from the drugstore, but not one for those with sensitive lips like mine (and trust me when I say, eczema on your lips is not a fun thing…).

Is this a product that you’ve tried out and if so, what were your thoughts? x

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