Product Review: MAC Fast Play Amplified Creme Lipstick

AKA: I AM SO FRIGGIN' IRRITATED!!!

They* say that MAC is like the gateway drug for department store cosmetics. Nestled next to all the other shiny, exclusive-looking counters, the salespeople (*ahem*, make up artists) know what they're doing, and people rave about the colours/quality/packaging. Yet, the price points are low enough that it doesn't feel like a giant leap from your plebian drug store buys.

And then you get addicted to the helpful MA's who give real opinions (ever tried asking the stock-boy at Shopper's which shade of lipstick he prefers on you??), the neat, clean, and available testers, and the (in some cases) genuinely better products. All of a sudden, $20, $25, even $30+ dollars doesn't seem that much to spend for a good lipstick anymore.


Well believe it or not, friends, I have NEVER owned any MAC lip products, other than a way-too-sticky tube of clear Lipglass back in the 90's, when it was all the rage. That is, never, until last Friday. But this Friday? Back to being MAC-less! Lemme explain...


I had this professional-type wine and cheese thing to go to, and I wanted a subdued but polished look. Red lips were out because they were too attention-grabbing, and gloss wouldn't do because it wouldn't last 3 minutes with all that wining and cheesing going on. All the other lipsticks I had on hand just weren't right... too cool, too bright, too shimmery... arrgh!


And so I decided I'd stop by at a MAC counter on the way, to pick out the perfect colour. I mean, with apx. 13-bajillion shades to choose from, one HAD to work, right? After some deliberation and assistance from said helpful MA's, I settled on Fast Play, in the Amplified Creme formula.



       




Looking at the swatch, I'd never think to try that, as it is rather warmer than I go for. But in person, it was a subdued and neutral plummy-pinky-brown (the most infuriatingly meaningless shade description of all!). This seems like it would go with almost every skintone, save for the palest of the pale. It's a weird shade in a sense -- it looks so different in the tube than it does on my lips, which also looks different than on paper when I blot it off. But it worked!

I happily wore it to the wine & cheese, and I can report that it did a decent job of standing up to all those wine glasses. The amplified creme formula is gorgeous, soft and smooth, and with a very gentle shine that is one step above a matte, but less than a normal creme lipstick. Really a perfect finish for winter and fall.


So why am I so irritated? Because the day right after I bought it, I spewed the contents of my purse all over a parkade when getting out of my car. I thought I had picked up everything. But clearly I did not, as my very first and very lovely tube of MAC lipstick is now nowhere to be found. I can only imagine that some lucky soul happened upon it and is now enjoying** it as much as I did.


They also say that first loves are fleeting, but come on, I didn't even get a chance to fall in love before it was lost to me. How maudlin! So yeah, I'm pretty pissed, irrationally more so than if I had just dropped a $20 somewhere (which is more than the lipstick actually cost). It was a week a go, and I'm STILL ruminating over it. The only thing that brings any solace is the fact that at least I didn't lose the P.S. Kiss! (Well, that and the fact that I might just go back to MAC and buy another one. Or 5. Because they had the Mattenes out and they feel SO much nicer and plusher than one might expect, and... See what I mean? Gateway drug!)


So yes, hope you all enjoy your weekends, and don't be surprised if I come back next week broke in money, but rich in MAC!


[EDIT: DARN you, Karen, and your amazing and photo-licious review of the Mattenes. Now I must own Rougette, and maybe also Composure. So yum!]



* The voices in my head.

** But, ew, who wears lipstick that they found in a parking lot?!?! Even if it looks brand spanking new. WHICH IT WAS.