Cruelty Free Makeup Look and Review of Luscious Cosmetics

Luscious Cosmetics is a cruelty free and vegan makeup brand. The founder, Mehr, wanted to create a line of cosmetics that could withstand the heat and humidity of the South Asian climate she grew up in, as well as compliment a range of skin tones. The Luscious Cosmetics product development team now spans 3 continents and 12 ethnicities. The line features bold shades and waterproof or smudge-proof formulas. I got a chance to test drive some of these products recently. Here are my thoughts and lots of swatches for you!

Let’s start with the lipsticks. Luscious Cosmetics has three types of lippies: creamy mattes, moisturizing bullet lipsticks and contour crayons. If you follow my blog, you know I’m partial to hydrating lipsticks, so the Super Moisturizing Lipsticks were my faves. There are 18 shades of these easy to wear, super hydrating, highly pigmented lipsticks. These are their best sellers and the lipsticks that made them famous. The formula is enriched with Vitamin E and grapeseed oil to hydrate lips (especially important in the winter). They are paraben-free and come in satin, glossy or shimmer finishes.

I tried Flirty Fuschia (not a typo – that’s how they spell it) and Just Peachy. Both are satin finishes. Just Peachy is a pretty peachy brown. It’s darker than I would normally wear and has what I would consider a modern spin on a ’90s vibe. I’m wearing Just Peachy in these photos and it’s my favorite shade of the bunch! Flirty Fuschia is too bright for me, but it would look great on a blonde or someone with a darker skin tone.

The Luscious Cosmetics Heartbreaker Creamy Matte Lipsticks have completely opaque color payoff. They are made with illipe butter, cocoa butter and antioxidants to moisturize lips and they have great staying power. They aren’t as moisturizing as the others, but they don’t dry out my lips like liquid matte formulas do. Pictured from left to right: Daredevil (black!), Cassanova (bright true red) and Warrior (a salmon peachy pink – OMG this shade is everything!). Even though I’m not usually a matte lipstick girl, this formula has made me a convert. They are SO easy to apply and you get a ton of color in just one swipe. I wouldn’t say they are transfer-proof, but they adhere to your lips very well and not much comes off in a kiss. They’re not messy or slippery, and unlike liquid lipsticks, you can easily fix any smudges while you’re applying. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m seriously a convert to the matte lipstick world because of these babies!

You can get a more precise line with the Pout Maker Lip Contour Crayons. In the pic above are Queen Bee (true red) and Perky (mauvey brown). I have never dealt with feathering until recently. Not sure if I’m getting old or if it’s the super dry winter weather (hoping it’s the latter!). So I’ve never been a big lip liner girl, but now I’m embracing it. These lip crayons come in fourteen shades to match just about any color lipstick. You can use them as liner or use them alone as lipstick. They are made with argan oil to hydrate and they come with built-in sharpeners (why doesn’t every brand do that?).

The Angel Eyes Primer has a great formula that helps to make your eyeshadow pop, stops creasing, and helps with blending. It’s a slightly dark tan, matte shade so it’s perfect for medium skin tones. If you have more melanin than me, and you’re tired of all your eyeshadow primers giving you a white cast, you’ll love this one!

There’s really nothing better than a good contour. The vegan Face Contour Kit from Luscious Cosmetics comes with four shades: a dark contour, a light contour, a highlighter and an illuminator. These shades are perfect for a tan skin tone with yellow undertones. I was able to wear them, but I generally need a cooler-toned contour for it to look natural. Yellow tones can look a little muddy on me. What I love about this set is that the colors go together so well. I was able to sweep the darker shade in my cheek hollows, then the lighter shade right above that, the highlighter above that and the illuminator last. It gave me a really easy, natural-looking contour without a lot of blending necessary. You don’t have to be a contouring or highlighting expert to use this palette. If Luscious Cosmetics ever comes out with a cooler-toned version, I will buy it without hesitation.

The Brow Luxe Tool Kit is definitely a winner. Each kit comes with a light shade and a dark shade, a brow setting wax, a small brow brush, a small spoolie, mini tweezers and brow stencils. I tried the Medium kit (it comes in light, medium and dark) and I’m wearing the lighter brow color in the photos at the beginning of this post, but I think I may need to line and fill in sparse areas with the darker shade. My camera/lens tend to give me a heavy contrast for some reason, which looks like there are gaps, so you’ll have to trust me – the lighter shade looks better on me in person. Next time I’ll use them both – for an ombre effect. This is a great little set to throw in your purse or travel bag for brow emergencies or vacations.

The Luscious Cosmetics Camera Powder has adorable camera lens packaging. It’s got a retro vibe that I just love. More importantly, the powder is selfie-friendly. It gets rid of the shine in places that I’m not covering in shimmery highlighter! I love that you can apply it with a brush or with the enclosed sponge (in the lid). It’s a translucent powder and should work for all skin tones. I didn’t get any flashback with this powder, which is a huge plus.

You can purchase Luscious Cosmetics products online (shipping is only $5 for most purchases in the US) or in Sephora and other stores in Hong Kong, Malaysia, The Phillipines, Singapore and Pakistan.