MAC was founded in Toronto in 1984 by a makeup artist and a salon owner, and the MAC Locked Kiss 24hr lipstick is the brand's longest-wearing lip color to date. This edit pairs four Locked Kiss shades with the pencils, primer and Ruby Woo that MAC artists reach for, then sets them beside long-wear lip colors from Fenty Beauty, Urban Decay and Nars.
The MAC Locked Kiss 24hr Lipstick and the Two Franks From Toronto
MAC Cosmetics began as a fix for a photographer's problem. Frank Toskan was a makeup artist and photographer, Frank Angelo ran a salon, and in 1984 in Toronto the two of them made the first MAC line out of their home and business, because the makeup Toskan could find did not photograph well on set. That is the DNA behind the MAC Locked Kiss 24hr lipstick. MAC calls it its longest-wearing lipstick to date, a kissproof lipstick with a full-coverage, ultra-creamy matte finish in a slim, precise stick. I like that it comes with passion fruit oil in the formula, so the promise is comfort as well as staying power. The brand is also honest about the routine. Apply to clean lips, wait two to three minutes for it to set, and twist the stick down until the cap clicks, because this formula does not like air. Grid one has three Locked Kiss sticks in Mischief, Ruby True and Extra Chili, plus the liquid cousin, Locked Kiss Ink in Bodacious, a deep-toned beige for an easy nude lip.
The lip system around it
MAC's lip range is best understood as a system, and grid two is the system. Prep + Prime Lip is the color-free base under any lipstick, and MAC describes it as adding light moisture while smoothing and refining the lips. The Lip Pencils in Spice and Chestnut come from a range of 35 shades, and their job is to shape, fill or line without dragging. Then there is Ruby Woo, which has its own good story. In the late nineties MAC's product team tried to make its best-selling red, Russian Red, a little less matte, the new base made the pigments brighter, and Ruby Woo was released in 1999 as part of the Retro Matte collection. It is the only one of that original set still around. My pairing tip is simple: line first, fill the lips in with the pencil, then press Locked Kiss or Ruby Woo on top so the color has an edge to sit against.
Three brands, three lip origin stories
Grid three is the comparison shelf, and every brand on it started with a lip idea. MACximal Silky Matte is MAC's gentler option, with up to 12 hours of color and up to eight hours of moisture. Fenty Beauty launched in September 2017, and its first Stunna Lip Paint, a single red, followed on November 23 of that year. Urban Decay opened in January 1996 with ten lipsticks and twelve nail enamels named things like Roach and Smog, so Vice Lip Bond, a glossy liquid with up to 16 hours of wear, is a rebellion in a friendlier format. Nars began in 1994 as twelve lipsticks at Barneys New York, and Powermatte is a long-wearing matte lipstick with a transfer-resistant finish and up to ten hours of comfort. What I would skip is dabbing a second coat of Locked Kiss over lips that have already set. MAC says to start on clean lips and let the formula settle, so a fresh start beats a layer on top.
Keep the cap clicked
I keep coming back to the click. It is a small, physical reminder that this formula was made by a brand that started with people who work on faces, for faces that have to go the distance. Start with one Locked Kiss shade you would wear on a normal Tuesday, add a pencil in a matching tone, and keep the primer in the same pouch. The rest of the shelf is for days when you want a different finish. Twist, wait, click. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together A Backstage Blur Trick Became the MAC Powder Kiss Lipstick and MAC Velvet Teddy Lipstick and the Matte Nudes Like It.
