High vs Low: New Urban Decay vs Wet ‘n Wild Liquid Lipstick

Love it or hate it, liquid lipsticks are having a moment right now. I mean, they have their place in my makeup drawer, since it’s a great choice when you need a long wearing, super pigmented, transfer-resistant lip color. The downside is that they can be drying, too matte, crumbly, and a mess to take off. Truth be told, my bar on liquid lipstick is set pretty high- I know what the gold standard product is, and everything else falls short. With that in mind, though, let’s test out two new products that launched this month:

Urban Decay Vice Liquid Lipstick $18

Urban Decay makes up the vast majority of lipsticks in my collection- their Vice Lipstick (formerly Revolution Lipstick) is THE BEST, so I had super high expectations for this launch. I planned out my purchase a few days in advance (with 30 shades to choose from, I needed to strategize), and decided to go with two shades that were exclusive to Urban Decay’s website: Brat, a “warm baby pink” and Crank, a “bright berry fuchsia”. In the days between placing my order and getting the lipstick in my hands, I watched a few YouTube reviews. They were wildly mixed- everything from “uuugh” to “best lip product ever!”, and to be frank, I was a bit suspicious about how few reviews were even out there- are they so bad that people aren’t even talking about it?? My package came just as I was getting ready to go out for dinner to celebrate my husband’s birthday, so I was pumped to try them out. First, I tried Brat, and it was…. weird. The color looks like I smashed up some Pepto tablets and smeared them on my mouth. The formula was a bit streaky going on, but not un-workable, and felt comfortable and not too dry on my lips when it dried down. The color though… yikes. Lyn actively recoiled when I snapped her a picture of me wearing it. The next one, Crank, was definitely straight up purple, not berry as described. Not a bad color, actually, just… not what I was expecting. This one also went on pretty streaky, and the pigment would bunch up in places, and if I went back over to try to blend out or add color, it would just make it worse. Also worth noting for both shades? I had to re-dip into the tube quite a few times. I got it to “good enough” and, after realizing it was also all over my teeth, headed out the door to dinner.

Now, these lipsticks are described as “life proof”, and given the amount of oil cleanser and effort needed to switch them out just during my initial try-on earlier that night, I was inclined to believe it. My lips did not transfer onto my wine glass, which I felt was impressive. But, two hours and one dinner (which I tried to eat daintily!) later, I was left with a purple ring around my mouth. Not cute.

I’m sending these back- luckily Urban Decay has a great return policy. I am curious about some of the metallics and a few other unique colors, and might check them out when they hit stores this week, but my hopes are low. Honestly, though, I was surprised to see how many shades in the new collection already exist in the Vice Lipstick collection, so really, just stick with those. They are SO GREAT, and the lipstick version of their comfort matte formula performs and looks SO MUCH BETTER.

Wet n’ Wild MegaLast Liquid Catsuit Matte Lipstick $4.99

Well well well, what do we have here? Wet n’ Wild launched a short run of these liquid lipsticks at Halloween, and I was super impressed with the wear, so I was stoked to see they brought this formula back in new shades for their Spring launch. Let me tell you, friends- this is a good product. First off, the component (tube and applicator) are EXACTLY THE SAME as Jeffree Star’s, which is excellent. See how the doefoot is curved there? That applies the product so nicely. Second, this formula is a little more… mousse-like? So it goes on in one swipe. The color is bold and pigmented. Now, it does feel a little more dry on the lips, but not so much where it feels like tempra paints (looking at you, Milani!)- there is still some flexibility, and it doesn’t get chunky or flake off. For the price, I’m willing to put up with it. I would go back to Walgreen’s and stock up on more colors, except…

… I don’t think liquid lipsticks are for me. Like I mentioned above, there is a time and a place and maybe a unique color, but overall, I think I prefer a matte cream formula. With a lipliner, they are just as long-wearing, and fade rather than crumble. Besides, isn’t sneaking off to the bathroom to reapply your lipstick part of the fun?

No one ever sends me free stuff, so no one is paying me for compliments. I should also note that both products were tested with the same lip liner base (UD Ozone) for fairness, and to save my winter lips. Seriously, why are we even wearing liquid lips in the winter?! Tell us what you think about liquid lipsticks in the comments!