Haven’t you heard? Matte liquid lipsticks are in, and NARS Cosmetics has gotten in on the trend too. Its new line, the Powermatte Lip Pigment (S$40), will blow your mind with its combination of lightweight application and long-lasting formula.
As a lippie girl myself, I’m always on the lookout for new lipsticks to add to my expanding collection. Tip number one: lipstick instantly improves your makeup look, even if everything else is minimal.
With 20 different shades, NARS Powermatte ranges from natural nudes and sweet pinks, to brilliant reds and vampy blacks and purples. Talk about range!
To test it out, I picked Starwoman, the closest to my go-to shade – a deep red that’s bright and bold enough for daytime wear, but sultry enough for that sexy date night feel.
First of all, let’s talk about packaging. Understated and minimalist, the sleek and square lipstick has a matte black exterior. Of course, the logo is emblazoned across the cap.
I admit to having a weird habit: I sniff at my makeup. So sue me, but I feel that whatever goes on my face, especially my lips, should at least smell good. I’m going to be smelling that for the whole time I’m wearing it, after all.
And NARS Powermatte? It smells absolutely amazing. Most lipsticks are, at best, odourless, and, at worst, somewhat waxy and metallic. But NARS seems to have overcome this issue, because its liquid lipstick smells like vanilla.
The formula itself is also nothing short of lightweight and smooth. Touted by NARS on the website as having a “zero-gravity feel”, I’d say they aren’t far off from the mark.
Extremely light on my lips, this formula was not tacky at all once it set. Unlike some liquid lipsticks that feel cakey and crumbly, NARS Powermatte felt like a natural layer atop my lips.
The liquid lipstick comes with a doe-foot applicator, and such a smooth, liquid application that just glided onto my lips easily.
Of course, that comes with pitfalls as well – it’s easy to make mistakes and smudge the colour outside of your lip contour. Especially since it’s so liquid, it takes a while to set. Not waiting for it to set properly can be really disastrous!
My solution was to draw on the lip outline with a lip pencil in the same shade first. That way, I knew exactly where to apply the liquid lipstick, and there’d be no danger of overdrawing my lips and looking like I’d been stung by bees.
The true test of a good liquid lipstick (any lipstick, actually) is the transfer and fade.
I’ve had problems with liquid lipsticks leaving stains everywhere: my mug, utensils, my boyfriend’s shirts, you name it. I was hoping the NARS Powermatte would solve this issue, because it’s advertised as smudge-resistant and also claims to lock in the lipstick formula.
Unfortunately, there’s still a fair bit of transfer.
Despite being mostly smudge-proof throughout the day, a kiss on the cheek proved to be too much for the formula to withstand.
Even worse, the formula’s vibrant colour and intensely pigmented colour worked against it here. Long-lasting as the lipstick was, it made the stain all the more stubborn.
Next up was the fade test.
After 12 hours of wear without touch-ups, the lip colour was still as vibrant as ever. Time for a more drastic test!
Greasy food is the bane of liquid lipsticks, because everything just slides right off. I tried eating fried chicken while wearing the Lip Pigment. One of my gripes about darker shades of liquid lipsticks has always been that it fades unevenly. The centre of my lips usually ends up with crumbly jagged patches devoid of colour, while the outer edges remain fresh as ever.
With NARS Powermatte, this was less of an issue.
Although the lip colour still faded in the centre, it did so more evenly. There was a gradient fade from the centre outwards, instead of a patchy fade that looks horrible.
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My verdict? Fairly resistant with an amazing range of shades, NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment is an excellent addition to any lippie lover’s collection. Just don’t expect it to work as a miracle lipstick – it’s still subject to some of the same old liquid lipstick issues, albeit fewer of them.
Price: S$40
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