My Bright Lipstick Of Choice

If anyone reading this post knew me at Uni in Aberystwyth and ever went on a night out with me you may well have seen me wearing a bright pink lipstick. It might seem like an unlikely choice for someone as naturally shy as I am, however I'm not scared of wearing this colour - in fact it makes me feel more confident! Alcohol also helps.

MAC Show Orchid Lipstick

As you can see, it's a beautiful bright fuchsia pink. It's bold and definitely a night time shade, and I've worn it on countless nights out.

Here is a picture of me wearing it in my first year at Uni:

I took this photo in a nightclub and apparently didn't think to move my hair out of my face first! Haha. This is such a throwback. It was when I first started 'coming out of my shell' I suppose, both in terms of wearing brighter makeup and my all together more outgoing personality when I started going out more at university.

To be fair I was already quite late to the party when it came to makeup, as I don't think I started wearing it regularly until I was 16-17. (And then getting kind of obsessed with it from 17 onwards) Before that, I'd only dabbled with lip smackers, lipglosses that I got free with teen magazines and an eye shadow palette shaped like an Ipod that a friend got me when I was 14.

Anyway, while I definitely wouldn't say I *need* this lippie to feel confident, it certainly does help with making me feel good about myself - something which doesn't happen too often. I think it compliments my fair skin nicely, probably because of the blue undertones. So if you're fair skinned like me and are looking for a new bright lipstick, this one is a great choice! It's definitely one of my favourites.

This lipstick used to only be available at MAC PRO stores (I bought it when it was available with a limited edition collection) but I just looked on their website and found it's being sold there! Eee! The only snag is that it's quite expensive at £15.50 (ouch. MAC lipsticks were £13.50 when I first started buying them 3 or 4 years ago.) 

So if you're on a budget and would like to buy a dupe, I have a lippie in my collection which is very similar, just slightly darker - L'oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick in 202 Impulsive Fuchsia.

Comparing swatches on my arm

I don't know why I bought it really considering how similar it is to the one I've already got, but oh well! It's not that different from Show Orchid in terms of formula. Both are quite shiny and I would say the L'oreal one is a little bit more nourishing on the lips, but Show Orchid is by no means drying.

Sometimes I like to use this as a 'base colour' to help Show Orchid stay on better. Or other times I might not want to take Show Orchid out with me and risk losing it (yes, I'd be kind of upset - is that sad?!) so I take this for top ups instead.

Personally I like both a lot but prefer Show Orchid's ever-so-slightly lighter colour - not to mention I love the vanilla-y smell that MAC lipsticks have!

The L'Oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick is £7.99 available from Boots and Superdrug. MAC Show Orchid is available here.

Do you like bright lipstick? If so, what's your favourite? x