Review & Swatches: em michelle phan Creamy Color Classic Lipstick

I Purchased This

I meant to post this earlier but I'm glad I'm able to now while their Cyber Monday (Buy one product, get another in that shade for free!) sale is going on today! I'm reviewing the em michelle phan Creamy Color Classic Lipstick in Nude Lace. I've already reviewed the Matte Lipstick in a previous post so I'm covering the classic lipstick today. I wanted to get an idea of the brand's lipsticks and since I don't really have a place in my collection for a sheer lipstick, I got the Classic formula.


To save space on my blog's front page, I've put everything under a cut~ 
Where to purchase: EM Cosmetics (the brand is called em michelle phan but oddly enough the website URL is different)
Price: $16.50 for 3.5 grams/0.123 oz
Do they test on animals?: The company itself does not however keep in mind that they are a L'oreal subsidiary and L'oreal does conduct testing on animals.
Packaging: The lipsticks come in a metal tube with a metal cap painted white and printed with the em michelle phan name and words starting with "em". I know people have mentioned that the lipstick packaging looks cheap but when you see and hold them in person, they're not. The lipstick cap isn't thin or lightweight and the tube itself feels hefty. The tube also closes with a nice click so you won't have to worry about the cap falling off. 

The color Nude Lace is a warm rosy beige. There was no color description given on the website.

Here's a full face photo so you can get an idea of how the color looks on my skintone and a lip swatch of the color so you can see details. As always, the photos were taken in natural daylight with no flash.

The lipstick is darker and rosier than the website swatch which looks like a pink toned beige. 

Formula and Wear Time:

The website describes the lipstick as having a "lightweight creamy texture, sheer buildable color quality, and a smooth, high gloss finish".
I was pleasantly surprised at the creaminess of the lipstick. I didn't find the lipstick to be sheer actually, there's plenty of pigmentation in a swipe. The color glides on smoothly with no dragging or skipping and there is a shiny finish that eventually goes satin as it wears down. I didn't find it drying nor did I feel like it moisturized my lips. I do wish the lipstick was closer in color to the product swatch but it is a flattering shade on me.
I tested the wear time for five hours and by then lipstick hadn't budged in color. I'm sure you could wear it for a few more hours. The scent is sort of sweet, maybe an amped up vanilla or cupcake scent? Thankfully I couldn't discern a taste.
Regarding the product photography:

Unfortunately the photos are obviously photoshopped. I've gone back and forth about whether this is something I should hold against the brand since other brands are just as guilty of this but nonetheless this is something you want to keep this in mind before you purchase. I know they have arm swatches available on the website (and I commend them for swatching on three different skintones) but none of the swatches are labeled so you can't even tell with certainty which colors are which making the swatches somewhat useless.

Is it worth it to purchase?
Compared to drugstore brands, $16.50 is pricey but compared to mid-end brands (like MAC, Clinique, Stila, LORAC, Tarte), the price is on par. I do think it is expensive, especially considering her youtube channel's audience. 
I've been trying to figure out whether I like the lipstick formula enough to pay the price and while it is a good lipstick formula (it's creamy, pigmented, not draggy), I don't think it's particularly exciting or unique enough for me to purchase at full price. $16.50 is a little hard to swallow. I'm much more inclined to recommend and steer you towards the matte lipsticks which I think had a much more unique formula (it's hard to find mattes that were that easy to apply!).
I will say that considering some of the reviews I've seen on their eyeshadow, you're better off picking up a lipstick, their waterliners, or their contouring and highlighting stick.  They seem to have sales quite often so I think it's unlikely in the near future that you'll be paying full price anyway.
Disclaimer: I purchased the lipstick myself. There are no affiliate links in this post. All opinions are my own. I wasn't compensated for this post.