NARS Flamenco Lipstick

NARS Flamenco Lipstick ($24.00 for 0.12 oz.) is described as a “sheer candy apple red.” It’s a faded watermelon red. Milani Bing Cherry is a bit more vibrant and redder but similar. It is very close to Guerlain Grenade with less of a creamy finish.

It’s not really sheer–you can see my lip freckle peeking through, but it’s still hidden a fair amount. This lipstick’s color coverage is closer to semi-opaque, so it’s not the sheer it’s described as. It’s part of the Sheer Lipstick formula, which is designed to be sheer and long-wearing with a healthy shine in the finish. This is my only issue with the product; it’s great in every other way, and ultimately, whether it’s not sheer enough or just pigmented enough for you, is just part of your rationalization process.

For me, however, I have to look at what the product is supposed to do, because personally, I love more opaque lipstick, but this just shouldn’t be, since it should be sheer as described. While we often have pigmented products that are sheer, this is a sheer product that’s too pigmented! It’s not totally opaque, and there is some translucency to the finish, but if you’re wondering why the pigmentation score is low, now you’ll understand. Thankfully, the extended wear of this shade helps this shade bounce back.

The formula is lightweight, comfortable to wear, and surprisingly long-wearing for as sheer as some of the shades can be. The wear with Flamenco was six hours, which is great wear, though not entirely unexpected with the redness of the shade. While it’s not very moisturizing (and it does claim to be), it’s also not drying, and you can always tell just how bad a lipstick is if you only wear that for six hours! It stains ever-so-slightly after wearing for more than a couple of hours. I did not notice any scent or taste, which is such an improvement from NARS’ lipsticks a couple of years ago that had a very waxy scent. Flamenco should be flattering across skin tones; the pinkness will make it workable on cooler complexions while the red will be workable on warmer complexions.

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NARS Flamenco Lipstick

NARS Flamenco Lipstick

NARS Flamenco Lipstick

NARS Flamenco Lipstick