NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil Review, Photos, Swatches
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil ($24.00 for 0.086 oz.) is described as a “siren red.” This is an extremely intense, vibrant cherry red with pink undertones and a blue base. It’s very cool-toned and equally bright. It’s bluer than Maybelline Very Cherry. It’s more vibrant than Giorgio Armani #406. CoverGirl Hot has a similar brightness level but not the same blue undertones. Chanel Rouge Byzantin is darker. MAC Ruby Woo is redder and darker.
The Velvet Matte Lip Pencil formula is designed to allow you the precision of a lip pencil with the ease of all-over application like a lipstick. It’s supposed to be opaque, matte, creamy, long-wearing, and non-drying. Dragon Girl wears and wears and wears; its strongest suit is in how well and long it wears–a full six hours of excellent coverage and looks good enough not to need a reapplication until eight hours. It hardly transfers, so it lasts through a cup of coffee with ease. It’s not moisturizing, but it isn’t drying; you’ll want to properly moisturize and prep lips in advance (or just have a good lip health routine), since it’s not adding any moisture over the course of the day.
Dragon Girl has to be one of my favorites within the range, because it applies evenly and easily without tugging or pulling on the lip, so there’s just enough glide and waxiness in the base to get that even, opaque color, but it clings to lips so it wears a long time (not in a bad clingy way, though). It has a matte finish, but it appears so bright that it almost has a sheen.
The Velvet Matte Lip Pencils are large, jumbo-sized crayons, and you’ll need to sharpen them periodically. You will lose some product, but because the texture of this is fairly dry and firm, there is less product loss than from the brand’s Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils. Many readers have suggested freezing a pencil briefly prior to sharpening to help minimize waste.
Dragon Girl
PPermanent. $27.00.
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil (Diffused Flash)
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil (Studio Lighting)
NARS Dragon Girl Velvet Matte Lip Pencil
Looks beautiful on you! I’ve been loving matte finishes lately. How does it compare to MAC Cherry lip liner?
Holy crap, I’m pretty sure I need this in my life!!!
This was maybe my first high end makeup purchase, and I’ve loved it ever since. In college I was known for my red lipstick, and I was always wearing this product. It’s definitely a keeper.
Because it wears for so long, I would recommend taking EXTRA care of your lips beforehand. Exfoliate, moisturize, etc. It can start to look patchy if you don’t.
I *love* the intensity, but I think it may be a little too pink… This is definitely something I’ll have to look at in person, though. I lean more towards crimsons.
Gorgeous!! I think I need this.
I’ve been eyeing this for MONTHS! Thank you soooo much for the review, it validated my purchase LOL
wow, you look amazing in this color, Christine.
You look beautiful in red!
Ohhhh, I adore this product. It has to be my favorite NARS product and has been my secret weapon for a few years now. It gave me the confidence to rock a VERY bold red lip, during the day or to a wine tasting, because it will last for hours! I really recommend it to someone that is longing to wear bright lips, but isn’t sure where to begin. It can be worn alone, rubbed into the lips so it becomes a stain, or layered with a lipstick or gloss over top.
o/ A couple days ago, I was scouring the web trying to find reviews for this, and I was surprised to come up short. 😀 Very thankful to see it pop up on here. It looks gorgeous on you!
Wow, I LOVE this! When Nars gets it right, they really get it right! I need this in my life! Thanks for the review x
Oh my god, this looks GORGEOUS on you, Christine! You wear reds so well.
I really like that whole makeup look on you. I love that subtle pop of purple on the waterline. And I’m looking forward to your review on the Tom Ford blush you’re wearing, I have a very similar skintone to yours and I’m liking how the color looks on you!
I never knew someone could get freckles on their lips until i found christine
There’s just something about a matte finish that screams sophistication.. This has plenty of wow factor!
I’m so incredibly happy to see such a great review for a NARS matte. SO happy at the unexpected surprise. And, honestly, it looks simply STUNNING on you! I mean, really, bloody hell!!! Not just the colour but also the matte look itself really, really suits you, imo. As for the lipstick itself, I’ll always be torn on this. You know I love NARS like no other, and predominantly for their mattes, but something just….. pencil form….. just…. <twitches> I guess I just have a mental stumbling block when it comes to the pencil form. It seems so much less convenient, less aesthetically ideal, less financially practical, less facile and less substantial. Dragon Girl will always be on my list of things I’d like, but it will never be at the top because of the form. Dammit, François, couldn’t you have put some Kardashian shade in the pencil and put this one in a lipstick instead??! <shakes fist>
I’m so incredibly happy to see such a great review for a NARS matte. SO happy at the completely unexpected surprise. And, honestly, it looks simply STUNNING on you! I mean, really, bloody hell!!! Not just the colour but also the matte look itself really, really suits you, imo. As for the lipstick itself, I’ll always be torn on this. You know I love NARS like no other, and that their matte lipsticks in particular are my HG, but something just….. pencil form….. just…. <twitches> I guess I just have a mental stumbling block when it comes to the pencil form. It seems so much less convenient, less aesthetically ideal, less financially practical, less facile and less substantial. Dragon Girl will always be on my list of things I’d like, but it will never be at the top because of the form. Dammit, François, couldn’t you have put some Kardashian shade in the pencil and put this one in a lipstick instead??! <shakes fist>
I had one of these in Bahama but it was very dry and hard to apply. I didn’t know what was doing and butchered it trying to sharpen it, and butchered it pretty badly. I am wondering besides freezing it are there any hints for sharpening this pencil? Any particular sharpeners work well with it?
The NARS sharpener is perfect for this.
well it does look just like chanel’s ‘dragon’ rouge allure laque wich is such a sexy red…
@Jessica1985 Dragon is very different on me! 🙁
HOLY BAZOOKA. I WANT. THIS IS INCREDIBLE
NARS Heat Wave is the HG lipstick for me….its so so pretty..I got that recently after 5 Mac Red lipsticks, 8-9 drugstore ones & Chanel Dragon…Dragon is another HG one,I preserve it only for special occasions.
this is so beautiful!
I love this on you, and the Velvet Matte Lip Pencils are one of my all time favorite lip formulas – Cruella is my favorite color!
@Emi at Project Swatch I agre eon all counts!
This is one of my earliest gems from NARS, and I still go for it when I want to get that muted sexy red lip look. This is the most flattering red for Asian with Yellow undertone. As its not moisturing (not in a bad way), the pen does not melt like other crayon-type products.
feel like i should get it since i was born on a dragon year…
completely unrelated to the lipstick, but your eyes look amazing here – I love those colors on you!
Now that is the kind of matte i love.
<3
This has been on my wish list for ages.
now i need this too lol if you say its great it means i need it now lol
It seems so beautiful
I have it and love it.
So beautiful!
my lipstick of tonight
Will you be reviewing “Cruella”?
I have one of these in a hot pink, can’t remember the name of the color. I can’t wear it because it tastes so horrible to me that I want to gag. I absolutely love everything else about it, but it’s on my lips so I taste it and that’s a deal breaker. I feel like I just ate a bar of soap when I’ve tried wearing it.
This looks absolutely sensational! added it to my Lust list right now 🙂
Okay, I need this.
Looks glorious. I have never tried these before, but I will check them out sometime SOON!
I swear by this red lip color. EVERYONE needs it.
Have it and love it!
Need it o.
Looks like Wet N Wild Cherry Picking.
It looks incredibly similar to my Smashbox Legendary Lipstick in Infrared Matte!
Oh, now this is absolutely gorgeous. I love the look of velvety matte reds, and the intensity and wear time – well. *tiny flail* I’m just sorry that I don’t have the guts to wear them out & about most days! 😛
Such a gorgeous colour! I’m in love!
I’ve been told I need this red. it’s drop dead gorgeous on you.
Would this suit more olive skin tones. I’m a NC40?
@Lola2 It would work!
Aside from the matte finish how would this compare (color-wise) to urban decay f-bomb lip penncil?
Christine,
What do you use to moisturize and prep your lips for these type of lip products?
Thanks!
I just regularly use lip balm whenever I’m not using lipstick/gloss (which is typically at night). If I haven’t done any lip swatches in awhile, I will exfoliate using a sugar scrub – a lot of times regular lip swatching is enough exfoliation (manual exfoliation by removing the product), though.
I tried this on at Sephora yesterday, and then realized that I had a VERY similar shade at home: MAC Tassle. Tassle is a bit more shiny, and slightly less pink, but when I did one half of my lips in Tassle and the other in Dragon Girl, there was no difference other than shine.
So, I was just looking through some of your older posts (I’m kind of new here), and I came across this one, and your skin looks amazing! Would you mind sharing what foundation and powder (if you’re wearing any) that you are wearing here? Thanks!
I don’t remember!
Hey, if I mix this lip pencil with MAC’s Redd lipliner, would it make it look more like Ruby Woo?
Yes!
Would you recommend Dragon Girl or Cruella for a fair-skinned girl? I’m a little afraid of bold colors and want to ease my way into a matte red lipstick?
Dragon Girl!
This looks like exactly the red lip colour I’ve been looking for, I love the super matte look of Ruby Woo but I’ve heard a LOT about how drying it is. I’ll go and try it on for wear next time I’m at Mecca 😀