MUA Power Pouts | Broken Hearted and Runway

I'll be honest from the get go and say that I didn't have high expectations for these little crayon style lip products from MUA. No particular reason why though, because MUA are one of the very best budget brands for make-up and I've not tried a product from them that I haven't got along with. I just seem to have a snobby preconception in my mind that if something's really cheap in price, that must mean that it is also cheap in quality. I've got to get this out of my head because I've been proven wrong so many times and to say that I love these MUA Power Pouts would be an understatement - I'm well and truly besotted with them.

You'd think that these crayon style lip pens/sticks that every brand seems to be coming out with at the moment would be a craze that would soon die down and everyone would become pretty bored with sooner or later, but I'm actually a huge fan. I find the chunky crayon style much easier to apply and control on the lips and I don't think there's a better combination of formulas than a balm and a stain. Moisturising and long lasting is the perfect pair, but quite hard to come by with a lot of traditional lipsticks. Clinique set the ball rolling for the lip balm and stain hybrid in this format, Revlon soon followed suit and now there's variations from No7, Bourjois, and even Models Own now too! (There is more, they're just the first ones that sprung to my mind). 

At only £3.00 each, these are the most purse friendly variation I've come across and I won't hesitate to let you know that they're my favourite as well. It surprised myself how much I love them, and just how great the quality of them is too. I picked up just two shades: a pink (Broken Hearted) and an orange (Runway). Broken Hearted has stolen my heart because it is the exact shade of pink that is my absoluuute favourite; think MAC Girl About Town, or it's dupe Rimmel Kate Moss - Shade 20 and this is very, very close. Runway looks super orange in the bullet but doesn't translate the same vibrant pure orange on the lips and is more of a pinky/red-orange. Still bright and gorgeous all the same.

On application they're not as sheer as I expected and can easily be built up into a very strong and dramatic colour pay off. Being a balm and stain of course means that the formula is creamy and soft, and needless to say is moisturising. In comparison to Clinique and Revlon's variations I've found these to be the most intensely moisturising, as well as the longest lasting moisturisation before it fades away to leave the stain behind. And it's worth noting that it's one heck of a powerful stain it leaves. I was busting out some industrial strength make up removers to shift the colour stain left behind!

I like to use lip colour as the focus of my make up look the majority of the time and these are just perfect for me. Now two of the most intense and bright shades I have in my collection, in a dinky crayon applicator, with a long lasting glossy finish that fades after a few hours into an equally as bright and long lasting stain, all while moisturising the lips and costing only £3 each?! Woah. I'd say these are ideal for nights out because there's no need to touch up regularly because of the strong stain of colour and they look glamorous because of how glossy they are too (none of the stickiness that comes with a lip gloss though, it's like a high shine balm).

I'm shocked at how underestimated these have been and how I haven't heard more people raving about these. If you've not tried them yet then run down to Superdrug with £3 and grab yourself one - now! I need more shades ASAP!

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