The price on L'Oréal's website is $9.99. I paid $10.49 because I (stupidly) picked this up at Walgreens (and they rip you off!).
Let's compare this to MAC Matte Lipstick in Russian Red. MAC lipstick retails for $14.50 and the price doesn't change from one MAC to the next (pro!).
The pigment in the L'Oréal lipstick is nice. It does last quite awhile. But, it is not smudge-proof, as the commercial would have you believe. The Ravishing Red is a nice classic red color, just like MAC's Russian Red.
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| Wearing L'Oréal Infallible Le Rouge in Ravishing Red |
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| Wearing MAC matte lipstick in Russian Red and MAC lip pencil in Redd |
I struggled with what rating to give the L'Oréal Infallible lipstick. It was either the "bank" rating I decided on, or a "break" rating. I felt that for a drugstore brand, I should be saving more than $4 (or $4.50 if I had purchased elsewhere (i.e. not Walgreens)). The reasons I went with "bank" are:
1. I like the size of the stick. It's small enough to get a precise application without the use of a pencil.
2. I like the texture. While it has lasting power, it's not overly dry. (I have to admit, the MAC matte is dry, but it's the only way to get staying power. If you go with a Cremesheen, for instance, it will not last very long, for me anyway.)
3. I had to consider that while it's not a great savings, it's more accessible, being that it's available for sale at Target, CVS, Walreens, Wal-Mart, etc. (you get the point). Therefore, there may be more savings in time or gasoline to pick up a tube of L'Oréal lipstick as opposed to MAC, which is only available at MAC stores or department store counters.
Since I've owned this lipstick (about a week), I've worn it 3 times. That's about as much as I've worn my MAC and I've owned that for at least a year. I think that says a lot.
