Long-Lasting Lip Color: Laura Mercier Lip Velvet

Laura Mercier Mocha Rouge Lip Velvet ($22.00) is a brightened up adobe brown–there may be a little redness to it, but not too much warmth–it’s not the easiest color to describe. It’s very neutral, despite its richness in pigmentation.

Lip Velvets are long-wearing liquid lipsticks. If you’ve been around the beauty-sphere for a bit, MAC’s Lac Lusters, which have been long discontinued. I know some of you are wondering how it compares to my beloved Chanel Rouge Allure Laques, and I don’t think they’re the same product. Oh, they’re most certainly similar–but they have different qualities that may appeal to you.

Lip Velvet is lightly creamy, very smooth, and intensely pigmented. It comes with a doe-foot wand applicator that’s fairly easy to use, but with the color richness, it’s best to apply with a mirror. The formula is also much more matte (I’d call it semi-matte, though) with some of the dryness associated with mattes. The product feels fairly dry on the lips, but it’s not actually drying. It’s not particularly hydrating, but it seems to retain whatever moisture you already had in your lips before applying it–making it no better or worse.

The color hugs and clings to lips and gives me around six hours of wear, plus a residual stain that lingers thereafter. This really is a long-wearing product that doesn’t dry your lips out (but just be prepared for it to feel a little… well, matte and dry!), which is a huge plus and often a failing of long-wear products. It goes on opaque in just one swipe, so you don’t need much product at all to get full-coverage color. The finish isn’t quite matte, as it does have a slightly glossy sheen, but it’s mostly matte.

Chanel Rouge Allure Laques are more moisturizing and not quite as thick, plus they’re very much glossy. There’s no “matte” in Rouge Allure Laque; it’s shimmery, glossy color. I think just the difference in finish really makes them two different products, or at the very least, products to consider together rather than trying to pick one over the other.

Lip Velvet’s do beat Chanel on wearing time, though – they certainly last longer, and even the lighter shades tend to persist for hours. I hope Laura Mercier will add some more shades that *pop* during 2010–the existing shade range is a bit everyday, neutral, and work-safe. (Not bad things, but I’d love to see more variation!)

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• Product: 28/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 4/5

Recommendation: For long-wearing lip color that doesn’t dry out lips but lasts for hours, Laura Mercier’s Lip Velvets are a good place to start.

Availability: Blue Mercury

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