NARS Too Hot to Hold & Highway to Hell Powermatte Lipsticks Reviews & Swatches
Too Hot to Hold
NARS Too Hot to Hold Powermatte Lipstick ($34.00 for 0.05 oz.) is a medium-dark red with moderate, warm undertones and a matte finish.
- Opaque color coverage
- Lightweight, velvety texture (silicone-like), thin but not clingy
- Applied evenly but can emphasize lip texture slightly
- Transfer-resistant until a meal
- Long-wearing until a meal (6 hours), non-drying
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- Sephora Aries (89) (LE, $8.00) is warmer (95% similar).
- NARS Immortal Red (P, $26.00) is darker (95% similar).
- Tom Ford Beauty Best Revenge (P, $55.00) is lighter (95% similar).
- NARS Carmen (P, $34.00) is lighter (95% similar).
- Hourglass I Still (P, $34.00) is lighter, warmer (90% similar).
- Chanel Camelia Rouge (357) (LE, $40.00) is more shimmery, lighter (90% similar).
- Fenty Beauty HBIC (P, $29.00) is lighter, warmer (90% similar).
- MAC Lee Hi (LE, $19.00) is darker, warmer (90% similar).
- Melt Cosmetics Miss Argentina (LE, $19.00) is lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- ColourPop Kismet (P, $7.00) is lighter (85% similar).
Formula Overview
$34.00/0.05 oz. - $680.00 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "10-hour wear" that has "one swipe, instant payoff" that is "transfer-resistant" and "lightweight" with "all-day comfort." Those are some big claims, and while I think the formula is solid--lightweight, longer-wearing, and semi-opaque to opaque in coverage--they don't quite last 10 hours (more like five to six hours, which is good just not ridiculously long as claimed).
They have a lightweight, more of a velvety-cream feel that helped them apply comfortably without dragging and be somewhat forgiving of lip texture, but I would recommend proper exfoliation prior to wearing these. They were somewhat transfer-resistant but lost most of that resistance after a meal, and they tended not to last that well through a meal in general (part of why they don't get to 10 hours). The formula felt more non-drying to barely-hydrating, so comfortable as claimed.
Worth mentioning, they did not swatch so well on my arm but applied significantly better on my lips, which is something I have found to be true with more silicone-heavy lipstick formulas. They had no discernible taste or scent.
Note: The lipsticks are in a slim-style bullet, which is typically much smaller than the average lipstick (often around 0.07 oz. for a slim lipstick vs. 0.10 oz. for a standard tube), but these are 0.05 oz. a pop, so they are quite small.
Browse all of our NARS Powermatte Lipstick swatches.
Ingredients
ISODODECANE · SYNTHETIC WAX · POLYGLYCERYL-2 TRIISOSTEARATE · CAPRYLYL METHICONE · OCTYLDODECANOL · DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE · HYDROGENATED MICROCRYSTALLINE WAX · LAUROYL LYSINE · TRIMETHYLSILOXYSILICATE · POLYETHYLENE · HYDROGENATED STYRENE/ISOPRENE COPOLYMER · POLYSILICONE-11 · PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRA-DI-T-BUTYL HYDROXYHYDROCINNAMATE · POLYHYDROXYSTEARIC ACID · TOCOPHERYL ACETATE · [+/-(MAY CONTAIN/PEUT CONTENIR): BLUE 1 LAKE (CI 42090) · IRON OXIDES (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499) · RED 28 LAKE (CI 45410) · RED 6 (CI 15850) · RED 7 LAKE (CI 15850) · TITANIUM DIOXIDE (CI 77891) · YELLOW 5 LAKE (CI 19140) · YELLOW 6 LAKE (CI 15985)] ·
Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.
Too Hot to Hold
PPermanent. $34.00.
Highway to Hell
NARS Highway to Hell Powermatte Lipstick ($34.00 for 0.05 oz.) is a deep, reddish-berry with subtle, cool undertones and a matte finish.
- Nearly opaque color coverage
- Lightweight, velvety texture (silicone-like), thin but not clingy
- Applied evenly but can emphasize lip texture slightly
- Transfer-resistant until a meal
- Long-wearing until a meal (6 hours), non-drying
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- NARS Red Lizard (P, $26.00) is lighter (90% similar).
- NARS Force Speciale (P, $26.00) is lighter, brighter (90% similar).
- Sephora Cherry Moon (94) (P, $14.00) is lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- Anastasia Vida (LE, $18.00) is lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- Charlotte Tilbury Screen Siren (P, $34.00) is lighter (85% similar).
- Tom Ford Beauty Stiletto (P, $60.00) is lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- ColourPop Take a Bao (LE, $9.00) is lighter (85% similar).
- Guerlain Cherry Red (219) (P, $36.00) is lighter (85% similar).
- Fenty Beauty Unmatched (LE, $24.00) is lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- MAC PattyPout (LE, $21.00) is lighter, brighter (80% similar).
Formula Overview
$34.00/0.05 oz. - $680.00 Per Ounce
The formula is supposed to have "10-hour wear" that has "one swipe, instant payoff" that is "transfer-resistant" and "lightweight" with "all-day comfort." Those are some big claims, and while I think the formula is solid--lightweight, longer-wearing, and semi-opaque to opaque in coverage--they don't quite last 10 hours (more like five to six hours, which is good just not ridiculously long as claimed).
They have a lightweight, more of a velvety-cream feel that helped them apply comfortably without dragging and be somewhat forgiving of lip texture, but I would recommend proper exfoliation prior to wearing these. They were somewhat transfer-resistant but lost most of that resistance after a meal, and they tended not to last that well through a meal in general (part of why they don't get to 10 hours). The formula felt more non-drying to barely-hydrating, so comfortable as claimed.
Worth mentioning, they did not swatch so well on my arm but applied significantly better on my lips, which is something I have found to be true with more silicone-heavy lipstick formulas. They had no discernible taste or scent.
Note: The lipsticks are in a slim-style bullet, which is typically much smaller than the average lipstick (often around 0.07 oz. for a slim lipstick vs. 0.10 oz. for a standard tube), but these are 0.05 oz. a pop, so they are quite small.
Browse all of our NARS Powermatte Lipstick swatches.
Ingredients
ISODODECANE · SYNTHETIC WAX · POLYGLYCERYL-2 TRIISOSTEARATE · CAPRYLYL METHICONE · OCTYLDODECANOL · DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE · HYDROGENATED MICROCRYSTALLINE WAX · LAUROYL LYSINE · TRIMETHYLSILOXYSILICATE · POLYETHYLENE · HYDROGENATED STYRENE/ISOPRENE COPOLYMER · POLYSILICONE-11 · PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRA-DI-T-BUTYL HYDROXYHYDROCINNAMATE · POLYHYDROXYSTEARIC ACID · TOCOPHERYL ACETATE · [+/-(MAY CONTAIN/PEUT CONTENIR): BLUE 1 LAKE (CI 42090) · IRON OXIDES (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499) · RED 28 LAKE (CI 45410) · RED 6 (CI 15850) · RED 7 LAKE (CI 15850) · TITANIUM DIOXIDE (CI 77891) · YELLOW 5 LAKE (CI 19140) · YELLOW 6 LAKE (CI 15985)] ·
Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.
Highway To Hell looks gorgeous, but I do have MAC VG I, which I believe is my perfect dark red. But the 6 hour wear time for HTH sounds great for a dark/deep berry infused red!
Both are gorgeous shades, but it’s the matte finish that puts me off.
Highway to Hell is a beauty!
And yay! I have a dupe, UD Love Drunk, a favourite I use quite a lot, I used it yesterday actually.
Too Hot looks up my alley as a light red, but Christine classifies it as dark, hmm.