Beauty lovers, rejoice. After three long years, the mask mandate has officially ended, coinciding serendipitously with a number of new lipstick launches. To prep your pouts and help you live your best mask-free life, we put six of them to the test.
Liquid lipsticks fell out of favour in the last few years, with many swopping the drying, crackly formulas for more comfortable, hydrating lip balms. But we’re intrigued by the brand’s new offering – a supposedly kiss-proof, transfer-proof and waterproof matt formula said to last 24 hours.
M.A.C’S lip products rarely disappoint, and this one is no different – lightweight and feathery soft upon application, without overly emphasising lip lines. With a lip balm underneath, it wears comfortably throughout the day. There is some fading off in the centre after eating, but without the unsightly patchiness of some older formulas.
Could this be the product that reignites our bygone love of liquid lipstick?
Everyone loves a good nude (lipstick), and Make Up For Ever has obliged with a new range of seven shades designed for every skin tone. It glides on like butter, smoothing over lips for a pouty, softly blurred effect. One swipe is all you’d need for intense colour pay-off. And you might even forget you have product on because of how weightless it is.
As a fun packaging detail, the cap reattaches to the end of the bullet to form a weapon-like lipstick for you to brandish while applying – which may make one feel powerful, as all make-up should. Be prepared to make this a new MVP in your stash.
The cosmetics brand has added new nude shades to three of its existing lip ranges: Matte & Satin Velvet Lipsticks, Lip Liners and Lip Glosses. If you are massive fans of the lip liners ($32), do try one of its lustrous, vanilla-scented lip glosses. After all, there is nothing like a glossy lip to truly celebrate the death of masks, especially on the train.
Goldy, a metallic warm gold, is the perfect topper, adding an instant metallic sheen to any matt lipstick. It envelops lips comfortably without being gloopy. Catching the light at every angle, the shimmery finish has a distinct ’90s look to it.
In 20 shades across two textures – plush, velvet matt for the New Bold Velvet and shiny satin for the New Bold Sheer Glow – these new lipsticks from South Korean brand are formulated with eight types of oils rich in vitamin E to keep lips moisturised.
It feels heavy when held, plus it has a pleasing scent – a nice surprise given the more accessible price point. The first application of the New Bold Velvet feels very similar to the Make Up Forever lipstick – light and velvety soft.
Over the course of the day in an air-conditioned office, it may dry out lips a tad and reapplication gets a little crumbly. It is still a vividly pigmented lipstick that does the job, but perhaps its Sheer Glow counterpart would make a better purse staple.
The Japanese brand’s newest lip formula is one for the chapped-lip gals. Comprising more than 68 per cent skincare ingredients, this satin lipstick uses Stretch-Flex technology to wrap lips in cushiony, comfortable colour that does not crack.
To hydrate lips, the formula contains moisturising benibana (safflower) oil, which is said to be used as a lipstick base in the beauty rituals of kabuki theatre and geisha culture – and hence a nod to Shiseido’s Japanese heritage.
The angled bullet delivers glossy, buildable colour. Even if you chomp through lunch, the lippie will stay intact, fading gently from its slight shiny finish to a matt one.
Reapplication is smooth and gives the lips a slight plumped effect, while the fuss-free, all-day comfort makes this a reliable option to toss into the bag without a second thought.
Fans of Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty will already have had this new addition to the Fenty Icon bullet lipstick family on their radar.
The pop star debuted it during her widely talked about performance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show earlier this week – a floating stage-worthy, blue-toned red called MVP.
This velvety liquid lipstick lives up to its claims as a creamy, whipped formula that keeps fine lines and dryness at bay, while the pointed doe-foot applicator paints lips with precision. A one-swipe wonder, the colour pay-off is rich, almost intimidatingly so. It boasts a mousse-y texture that on application becomes one with you lips – and somehow makes them look fuller. Lip lines who?
You will also have no qualms about it not being transfer-proof since reapplication is so comfortable. There are just five shades available right now and we already cannot wait for Riri to release more.
This article is adapted from a story that first appeared in The Straits Times
Text: Amanda Chai/The Straits Times and Female Singapore