So I purchased a Chanel lipstick a couple of weeks ago.

The specific lipstick that I purchased was a Chanel shade 442/Dimitri ROGUE COCO ultra hydrating lip color.

I purchased the lipstick online via Nordstrom.com for $36. It was my first time purchasing a lipstick at that price. I won’t say it’s my last time because I do want to buy a Christian Louboutin lipstick and those cost $90. But it could be my last time purchasing a Chanel lipstick.

I just wasn’t impressed enough with my ROGUE COCO ultra hydrating lipstick to want to make it a habit to spend $36 to collect Chanel lipsticks.

I think when you spend $36 for a lipstick you shouldn’t have any trouble being able to pinpoint exactly what makes it superior to a $5 lipstick. And I just didn’t find that the lipstick did anything that my cheaper lipsticks don’t do. But maybe it’s just that I have no idea what to look for? Because to read the reviews from other Nordstrom customers, this is “the most perfect lipstick“.

The lipstick details…

via Nordstrom.com – CHANEL ROUGE COCO ULTRA HYDRATING LIP COLOUR is a reinvented version of ROUGE COCO and is more expressive than ever with a new formula and vibrant color spectrum with shade names inspired by Coco Chanel’s closest friends. The bright lip color features an exclusive complex with jojoba and mimosa butters, sunflower wax and silicone for lasting hydration and luminous results.

My impression of Chanel ROGUE ROUGE COCO ultra hydrating lipstick…

**Update 2022 – After all these years it has just come to my notice that I misspell the word ROUGE more than half the time in this article. It is even misspelled in the title, indicating not a dyslexic glitch but a pure error of thinking the word was rogue when it was rouge. Oh well. Embarrassment hasn’t killed me yet. And I’ve been embarrassing myself my whole damn life. I bet some so-called friends noticed and didn’t bother to tell me while being embarrassed on my behalf.

Back to the article…

Like I said, I’m not a lipstick expert so it could just be that I don’t know the difference between a quality lipstick and one that is not. For an experiment I applied Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick and Maybelline Moisture Extreme lipstick to compare how they look and feel on my lips to the way the Chanel lipstick looks and feels on my lips.

The Chanel felt and looked a lot like the Maybelline. They both felt kind of slick when you’re putting them on. They have a greasy feel to them. And they both have a glossy, shiny look. In fact they look and feel so similar it wouldn’t be a surprise to discover that the only real difference between them is their applicator and the color of the lipsticks.

I’m guessing the “hydrating” part of the Chanel lipstick is the part where my lips felt sticky and wet. I guess that’s supposed to indicate that they are being moisturized rather than being zapped of moisture. But that’s not a particularly pleasant sensation for me personally. It’s very distracting being so aware of my lips and the fact that they have something on them. I prefer a lipstick that feels as natural as my bare lips even while it provides a full blast of color.

Although it feels somewhat similar going on, the Revlon did not feel as slick and greasy as the Chanel. It felt lighter, and while it did have a gloss, the gloss was more subtle than the Chanel. I actually prefer the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick over the Chanel lipstick. And the Revlon cost me only $5.

I did not find that the Chanel lipstick was particularly long lasting; but maybe I did not put on enough?

All in all, the Chanel lipstick (specifically  the Chanel shade 442/Dimitri ROGUE COCO ultra hydrating lip color) did not impress me. For $36 I expected to see an obvious difference between it and the rest of my lipsticks. But I saw no obvious differences.