Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Makeup Revolution Drops Kylie-Inspired Lip Kits!

Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Can’t deal? Then fake it ’til you make it! We’ve all had those moments in life where we had to “fake it” to get through. Fake a smile and good demeanor at work. Fake your brain into thinking you really afford that hot new palette that just dropped. We all fake it! That’s why I wasn’t the least bit surprised when I came across these Kylie Jenner inspired lip kits from Makeup Revolution at Ulta.

Makeup Revolution is known for taking popular high end makeup releases and duping them into cheaper, more affordable versions that’s easily accessible. Some people see it as stealing. Or being a cheap knock off. Makeup Revolution simply believes in providing hard core makeup junkies with the hottest new beauty trends at a price that’s less intimidating to your wallet. You may not like it, but you can’t knock it either!

Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Dupes are just a way of the world! For every great invention or product release, there’s bound to be a million clones at a cheaper price ready for the taking. Including the current beauty cult classic Kylie Jenner Lip Kits. Kylie took the beauty industry by storm when she dropped her iconic Lip Kits. Since then, other brands (like MAC and Urban Decay) have jumped on the Lip Kit wagon offering matching lip liner and lipstick sets of their own.

Sadly, these lip kit alternatives cost just as much as the Kylie Jenner ones. So it’s still off-putting to give one a try. Especially if you’re new to whole lip kit craze. Here’s where Makeup Revolution comes in to play. Makeup Revolution is the first drugstore brand to offer Kylie Jenner inspired lip kit dupes for under $10 a pop! That’s right. You can get a liquid matte lipstick with a matching lip liner all for just $9 at your local Ulta.

Makeup Revolution Echelon Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Sounds good right? I thought so too. I’ve had pretty good luck with Makeup Revolution’s products before so I was eager to try the Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits. I’m not much of a Kardashian/Jenner fan anymore so Kylie’s lip kits don’t interest me at all. Not to mention they’re quite expensive at $30 a pop. It’s really not so bad considering you get a lipstick and lip liner for about $15 a piece. However, my melanin filled lips can’t pull off identical lipstick and liner unless it’s vampy. And even if I could, I still wouldn’t buy a Kylie Jenner Lip Kit. To be honest, I can think of many other brands more deserving of my hard earned cash than some rich culture vulture.

Makeup Revolution Echelon Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit ($9)

Like Makeup Revolution! Echelon was the first Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit I spotted hiding in the shelves at Ulta. It’s quite hard to decipher what the colors truly look like from the pictures on the box. So I took a peek inside to see what Echelon was all about. The Echelon Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit comes with a matching liquid matte lipstick and lip liner in a soft rosy pink nude. Echelon is a very pretty nude that’s simple without feeling too boring. It’s a flattering nude for a variety of skin tones. However, chocolate cuties will need to grab a deeper lip liner because the one included won’t cut it. The Echelon lip pencil is a bit too light for my brown skin and easily washes me out.

Makeup Revolution Regal Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Makeup Revolution Regal Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit ($9)

You can’t go into summer without a new bold lip! I love me some nudes but a girl needs a little color now and then too. So I scooped up the Regal Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit. Regal is a saucy brick orange-red combo that’s perfect for summer! The color is a nice cross between a poppy red and coral-orange so you get the best of both worlds with Regal. A fierce red and a playful coral all in one! The lip liner is still a fail for brown girls though, sadly. Regal doesn’t come off pale (like Echelon) but it’s not enough definition for such a bold color. My lips get lost in Regal when paired with the lip liner but a slightly darker or straight up vampy liner makes it look sexy and defined.

How’s the quality?

Shoddy. I have to be honest here. For under 10 bucks, you can’t beat a matching lip liner and liquid matte lipstick. Right? However, you shouldn’t go into the Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits expecting top notch quality. I’ve never tried a Kylie Jenner Lip Kit so I can’t directly compare the formulas. But I can tell you that the formula of the liquid matte lipsticks are a bit disappointing. Especially if you’re a liquid lipstick junkie.

The Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits are a little difficult to work with. At first, I thought they were going to be a dream because liquid matte lipsticks glided across my lips like butter with an ultra creamy plush texture. The Makeup Revolution liquid matte lipsticks are so creamy that they feel like a traditional lipstick melted into a tube. I just knew the Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits would be amazing! But that wasn’t the case. After a minute or so, the liquid matte lipstick dries to an ultra matte finish that’s actually not too drying.

The issue comes in when you try to eat or drink with the Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits. When paired with the matching lip liner, the liquid matte lipsticks perform just fine. They hold up through a meal without much fading, flaking or crumbling apart. Without the lip liner, the liquid matte lipsticks don’t perform so well. The liquid matte lipstick quickly becomes patchy and begins to crumble with even a few sips of water or coffee. For $9, I wasn’t complaining at first. It wasn’t until I tried to touch up the Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits that things went left. These lipsticks don’t layer well at all! The formula practically crumbled as I swiped another layer over the patchy parts. Not good!

Bottom line

The Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits are somewhat doable if you can manage to pull off the matching lip liner. Otherwise, I’d say avoid the Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kits altogether and try ColourPop or Wet n Wild instead! Their liquid lipsticks are way better and you can grab a matching (or coordinating) lip pencil for about the same price as a Makeup Revolution Retro Luxe Kit. Save your money and try something else, girl!

Makeup Revolution Echelon Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Makeup Revolution Echelon Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit

Makeup Revolution Regal Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit Swatches on Dark Skin

Makeup Revolution Regal Retro Luxe Matte Lip Kit