Nikita

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita Shade & Illuminate Lips ($60.00 for 0.12 oz.) contains a bold, medium red and a reddish-burgundy. The red applied nicely, and it wore well, but the burgundy had a lot of slip and feathered on me.

Shade & Illuminate Lips is a lipstick duo that features a formula that is supposed to have “rich color” and “adherence” with a “velvet matte finish.” The duos are designed to have a lighter shade and a darker shade, and they can be worn alone, mixed, or as an ombre lip look. There was also a dual-ended applicator–a sponge on one end and a brush on the other–but the sponge really did not work well to apply the color, as it yielded sheer coverage and seemed to suck all the emollient qualities out of the formula and left behind a drier, almost powdery texture on the lips. The lip brush worked, but for me, the tiny applicator was harder to control and took me three to four times as long to apply compared to a traditional lip brush (which has a longer handle). The actual formula felt like there was a powderiness to it that is not present in any of Tom Ford’s other lipstick ranges, though the formula felt lightly creamy, thin but not too thin, and smooth. Once I applied the color and actually wore it for a few minutes, I did not notice the powderiness that was there when I was initially applying the lipstick.

Nikita (Left)

Nikita (Left) is a bright, medium red with neutral undertones and a cream finish. It had rich, opaque color coverage that applied evenly and smoothly on the lips. The consistency was creamy, moderately emollient, and comfortable to wear. I noticed a smidgen of color sat in my deeper lip lines, but the richness and depth of the color made it hard to see even in the close-up photos. The color wore nicely for five hours, left a stain behind, and was hydrating.

Nikita (Right)

Nikita (Right) is a medium-dark burgundy with warm, red undertones and a glossy finish. It had medium coverage, which wasn’t buildable to opaque coverage, as this shade was very, very slippery. It felt more like a lipstick/lipgloss hybrid than a true lipstick. The color applied evenly for the most part, but I experience feathering after two hours of wear (which isn’t too common for me). The color lasted well for five hours, and the formula was moisturizing.

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita Shade & Illuminate Lips

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita Shade & Illuminate Lips

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita Shade & Illuminate Lips

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita Shade & Illuminate Lips

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Left) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color

Tom Ford Beauty Nikita (Right) Shade & Illuminate Lip Color