Last week, when Fenty Beauty dropped four new Stunna Lip Paint shades out of nowhere, fans everywhere rejoiced — especially women of color, who felt Rihanna had finally made the nude liquid lipsticks they'd been looking for all their lives.
The four new shades, titled Unbutton, Uncuffed, Unveil, and Uninvited were touted by the internet as one of the most universally flattering lipstick collections ever made. This seemed too good to be true, so two Revelist staffers with completely different skin tones tried them together to put them to a quick inclusion test.
How'd that go? Keep reading to find out.
Upon swatching each shade on their arms, Nicola (left) and Kala (right) immediately knew they were going to have two very different experiences with the new Stunna shades.
For Nicola, the one thing about Unbutton she wasn't completely stoked on was its undertones, which translated slightly orange against her naturally flushed skin.
"It's not that I don't love this shade itself, but I think it would be more flattering on someone who isn't as pink as I am," she said. "I feel a little washed out by this shade, but that also can be attributed to the fact that I rarely wear shades you'd classify as peach. That being said, the formula's really soft and pigmented."
For Kala, Unbutton's undertones were just right for her skin tone, but she still thought it would've been more flattering had it been slightly darker.
"Looking at this shade in the bottle, I thought it would be a great neutral color for my skin tone," she said. "However, because of my red undertones, I think this color was a bit too light. The formula is highly pigmented and it almost clashes with my complexion. I do like the shade, but I would most likely wear this peachy nude with a liner to give my lips a bit more definition."
Uncuffed's rosy hue was a perfect match for Kala's deep, warm skin.
"Now, this is a great shade for everyday wear. It's not so neutral that it's barely seen, yet it's not too bold that it could be classified as straight-up pink," she said. "I love the way it looks on my skin, and I think it will look great with any makeup look whether it is bold or natural."
Nicola also fell head over heels for Uncuffed, which played off her pale and pink skin like a dream.
"This registers way more pink on me than it does on Kala, but that's not a bad thing at all," she said. "In fact, this is a very similar hue to Fenty's Spanked Mattemoiselle, just more matte — Kala and I both consider that one a favorite, and I think the same goes for Uncuffed. I'd wear this every day."
Unveil ($24, Sephora) is a "chocolate brown," the first of the collection to be released.
Nicola was shocked that her favorite of the entire collection was Unveil, given that it was made with deeper skin tones in mind.
"I don't know what it is about this lipstick, but it just works," she said. "The warm undertones make this the richest brown I've ever tried, but the formula is soft enough that it doesn't look to intimidatingly dark. I rarely wear browns, but this is changing my mind."
Kala's high expectations for Unveil were completely warranted — in fact, it was her favorite of the entire bunch, too.
"This is the shade I was most excited to try," she said. "It appeared to be a brown that was made uniquely for brown girls. After drying it definitely appears darker than in the bottle, but I do love the chocolate hues. This will definitely be a go-to in my fall lippie routine."
Uninvited ($24, Sephora) is a "smooth black" that threw everyone for a curve ball.
Kala never wears black lipstick, but Uninvited's sheer and soft formula convinced her to step out of her comfort zone.
"I'm not a fan of black lipstick at all, so naturally I assumed this would not be flattering on me," she said. "After applying the lipstick and letting it dry, I turned to the mirror and was shooketh by the results! The formula has deep blue undertones which makes it look less like a harsh black and more like a cool blue black. I’m actually going to step out of my comfort zone and wear this shade. Its just in time for the fall season. "
Nicola, an occasional black lipstick wearer, was initially confused by the formula's sheer consistency but eventually learned to love it.
"This lipstick goes on way more sheer than the opaque black lipsticks I'm used to," she said. "But I think that's the whole point. You can build Uninvited up as little or as much as you want, and that makes it far less intimidating to wear if you're not used to seeing yourself in something so dark. It also has a noticeable blue undertone, and that's rare in shade such as this one."
The final verdict? Rihanna fucking DID THAT.
Each of these shades had a soft yet long-wear formula that doesn't budge yet also doesn't flake. On top of that, they had a wide variety of hues that make it possible for babes of every skin tone to hop on the Fenty train if they please, and that's really what this entire collection's goal seemed to be.
TDLR: You NAILED IT, Rih. Really, what else could we have expected?
