MAC Lipstick Samples from TheBodyNeeds

Some genius at thebodyneeds had an idea to sell Mac lipstick samples. There is not a lot of opportunities for us Slovenes to see Mac lippies in person, let alone test them, and since they are not the cheapest, especially if you're not from Canada or USA, the decision to buy one unseen and based just on online swatches doesn't come lightly. I sure have made some fail purchases in the past. I got Viva Glam V and Honeylove, which turned out to be a complete miss for me. I saw in Mariounaud, Gradz that they currently retail about 19€. Madness, I tell you. Anyway, thebodyneeds had a sale on 12/12/12 with an offer for 36% off entire purchase. Naturally, couldn't let it pass and I got 9 of them. On the first picture from left to right are: Shy Girl, Overtime, Please Me, Coral Bliss, Impassioned, Lady Danger, Russian Red, Ruby Woo and Mac Red. Isn't it a pretty collection?

Edit: You can find five more shades here (Peach Blossom, Sunny Seoul, Full Speed, Relentlessly Red and Dangerous).

One sample costs 3.79$ (normal price) and you get 0.5g of lipstick. Considering that a full size Mac lippie is 3g, it's not such a small amount. If we take the prices in Austria, one 1g is 6,33€, while 1g at thebodyneeds is 5,6€, which is not that bad. Of course, if we compare it to US/Canadian prices, it's a completely different story.

Now on to the swatches (just for reference, I'm very pale, NC15 or Healthy Mix 51):

Please Me, Overtime and Shy Girl:

Shy Girl (cremesheen) - a peachy nude. I see it as a peach equivalent to Hue.

Coral Bliss (cremesheen + pearl) - light coral pink gorgeousness. My absolute favourite. I need this in full size.

Overtime (pro longwear lip cream) - light baby pink. The formula is very opaque and a bit sticky. It's incredibly beautifull in person. I like it a lot more than Creme Cup, which people say it's a dupe, but for me they aren't that close. The finish is matte.

Please Me (matte) - pink rose. Looks quite dark on me, but it's a nice everyday colour.

Impassioned and Coral Bliss:

Impassioned (amplified) - bright fuchsia. I tried to find dupes in my collection. Kiss Kiss Hibiskus from Catrice is the closest, but the formula is different (glossier) and the colour is brighter and a hint more coral/watermelon. 

Beauty UK Passion, Maybelline Color Sensational Vivids Shocking Coral, Catrice Ultimate Shine Kiss Kiss Hibiskus compared to Impassioned:

These are more like cousins than dupes. A dupe for me is if the colour is exactly the same. Kiss kiss Hibiskus comes closest on my on the lips, but I wouldn't call it a dupe. Beauty UK has a similar formula, but it's slightly darker and more of a true fuchsia. Maybelline Shocking Coral is a lot lighter.

Lady Danger, Russian Red, Mac Red, Ruby Woo:

Lady Danger (matte) - vivid orange red. Not as matte as Ruby Woo, it's more creamy.

Ruby Woo (matte) - bright true blue based red. Very matte. So beautiful and bright  in person. I wouldn't mind having a full size lipstick in my collection.

Mac Red (satin) - blue based red, but more of a burgundy red.

Russian Red (matte) - blue based red. Creamier than Ruby Woo, with a similar texture as like Lady Danger. It looks quite dark on my lips, but very beautiful nonetheless.

Comparison swatches an potential dupes:

For Russian Red, I find Manhattan Soft Matte Lip Cream in 45H to be very close, almost a dupe. Ruby Woo's closest dupe is Bourjois Lip pencil in 20 Rouge Soyeux. As for Lady Danger, Lobster Love from Catrice (discontinued, sorry) is close, but lighter, less opaque, glossier or more creamy.

I'm very happy with the purchase and they even wrote a little thank you in Slovene (Hvala vam) on the invoice. I will order some more, especially now that I've had a bit of luck and I got a 5$ voucher in a little competition on their Facebook page.
Thanks for reading!