Make-Up Monday: Working Those Morgana Cryptoria Gel Lipsticks

In my initial first look post I mentioned how the gel lipsticks I got from Morgana Cryptoria were a bear to use and I'd play with them first before giving final verdict. This is my final verdict post. And the score did better for my experimentation. Please remember that these photograph darker on their own, in real life they are lighter and... luminous. They kind of have a metallic glow to them.

I forgot to take a pic of the packaging for this post but they are in foggy colored slim lip balm tubes. I normally prefer a lipstick tube but this product needs the support of the tube as it is so airy and as other people have said like mousse.

About the lipstick in general, it is insanely moisturizing, I'm pretty sure these started out as an attempt at a super moisturizing lipstick. A lot of times I'll get off work and go home and slap some on like a lip mask. They are also easy to remove which is a plus. There is this fine balance of staying power vs easy removal. I want a lipstick that won't transer onto my coffee cup too much but one that will come off in a few seconds at the end of the day with a paper towl. The staying power is decent as is the ease of removal but the product shifts on the lips wile wearing it which is where the trouble comes in.

There are ways to make these things work though.

First and foremost, after applying rub it into the lip with your finger. This is most apparent in person but you can kinda see it in photos.

I've tried smacking my lips, using a lip brush, using a q-tip, etc but a finger really works best.

So that gets the color even but there is still the issue of it leaving your lip and moving around. Put a gloss on top of it. I learned this because I was trying to make Amphitrite not so... carroty (light orange looks weird on me). I figured popping either Pimped Out Pumpkin or Fallen Leaves would darken it up nicely. It was only after wearing it for a day that I realized the gloss made a barrier that protected the gel. And it doesn't even have to be a Morgana gloss. My clear gloss is that Bonnebell frosting scented one, though a slightly more goopy gloss works better and is easier to apply.

This is over Persephone. I prefer Fallen Leaves of these two but that is probably because I feel Persephone and Pimped Out Pumpkin on their own are too light so together they obviously wouldn't be darker. Also, more of the green shift of Fallen Leaves seems to come out here.

And here is Amphitrite. I like all of these options which is weird since it is the same two lights don't make a dark thing for both the clear and the Pimped. But it works. Then again I am a sucker for orange lip products.

And last but certainly not least, 13th Hour. I like it best with the clear gloss, and only did Pimped because I was wondering if maybe a mircle or something would happen. I now really was a clear gloss with green shift though. You know why. *cough Riddler cough*.

So, here we have it.

Price: $4 for a tube tomorrow until she runs out is what I've heard.
Packaging: 3/5
The slimline tube is practical and I like being able to see how much product I have left but it doesn't feel as cool as a lipstick tube.
Quality: 3/5
It is moisturizing as all get out and the colors are very pretty. They just move around a bit too much for me though.
Value: 3/5
It is average in price for a not amazing product. So average score.
Overall: 3/5
If you treat it as a base layer, for say under a gloss, then it is an okay product. Other than that... I won't be ordering it again unless there's a new formula and several other people review it as better first.