A lipstick a day: 6 new lippies to try now that you can go mask-free

To prep your pouts and help you live your best mask-free life, The Straits Times puts six new ones to the test. PHOTO: MAKE UP FOR EVER

SINGAPORE – Beauty lovers, rejoice. After three long years, the mask mandate has officially ended, coinciding serendipitously with a number of new lipstick launches.

To prep your pouts and help you live your best mask-free life, The Straits Times puts six of them to the test.

1. Mac Cosmetics Locked Kiss Ink, $49

The Locked Kiss Ink is supposedly kiss-proof, transfer-proof and waterproof matt formula said to last 24 hours. PHOTO: MAC COSMETICS

Liquid lipsticks fell out of favour in the last few years, with many (including myself) swopping the drying, crackly formulas for more comfortable, hydrating lip balms. But I am intrigued by Mac’s new offering – a supposedly kiss-proof, transfer-proof and waterproof matt formula said to last 24 hours.

I need my eight hours’ sleep, so I will not be testing that last claim.

Mac lip products rarely disappoint, and this one is no different – lightweight and feathery soft upon application, without overly emphasising lip lines. For my skin tone, the shade 62 Bodacious is the perfect everyday nude, especially when paired with a brown lip liner.

With a lip balm underneath, it wears comfortably throughout the day. There is some fading off in the centre after eating, but without the unsightly patchiness of some older formulas.

Could this be the product that reignites our bygone love of liquid lipstick?

2. Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Velvet Nude, $39

The Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Velvet Nude range. PHOTO: MAKE UP FOR EVER

Everyone loves a good nude (lipstick), and Make Up For Ever has obliged with a new range of seven shades designed for every skin tone.

For a friend’s lunchtime wedding, I go straight for 103 Warm Mocha, a rosy peach with just the right hint of terracotta. I am taken by surprise by how it glides on like butter, smoothing over my lips for a pouty, softly blurred effect. One swipe is all I need for intense colour pay-off.

Throughout the meal, I keep forgetting I have product on because of how weightless it is. Even when my day bleeds spontaneously into the night, the lippie holds up – and reapplies without a hitch after a cheeky round of drinks.

As a fun packaging detail, the cap reattaches to the end of the bullet to form a weapon-like lipstick for you to brandish while applying – which I must confess makes me feel powerful, as all make-up should. A new MVP in my stash.

3. Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss, $35

The Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Gloss in Goldy, which is a perfect topper. PHOTO: ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS

The cosmetics brand has added new nude shades to three of its existing lip ranges: Matte & Satin Velvet Lipsticks, Lip Liners and Lip Glosses. I am already a massive fan of the lip liners ($32) and so settle on trying one of its lustrous, vanilla-scented lip glosses.

After all, there is nothing like a glossy lip to truly celebrate the death of masks, especially on the train.

Goldy, a metallic warm gold, is the perfect topper, adding an instant metallic sheen to any matt lipstick. It envelops lips comfortably without being gloopy.

Catching the light at every angle, the shimmery finish has a distinct 1990s look to it, and I cannot help but feel like a Spice Girl. Apologies in advance to anyone I blind with my lips on the train.

4. TheFaceShop fmgt New Bold Lipstick, $22

TheFaceShop fmgt New Bold Lipstick has a pleasing scent. PHOTO: THEFACESHOP

In 20 shades across two textures – plush, velvet matt for the New Bold Velvet and shiny satin for the New Bold Sheer Glow – these new lipsticks from South Korean brand TheFaceShop are formulated with eight types of oils rich in vitamin E to keep lips moisturised.

I chuckle at the packaging, uncannily similar to the luxurious ones from Hermes. It even has the same magnetic snap closure. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I suppose.

That said, it does feel heavy when held, plus it has a pleasing scent – a nice surprise given the more accessible price point. The first application of the New Bold Velvet feels very similar to the Make Up Forever lipstick – light and velvety soft.

Over the course of the day in an air-conditioned office, it dries out my lips a tad and reapplication gets a little crumbly. It is still a vividly pigmented lipstick that does the job, but perhaps its Sheer Glow counterpart would make a better purse staple.

5. Shiseido TechnoSatin Gel Lipstick, $48

The Shiseido TechnoSatin Gel Lipstick gives the lips a slight plumped effect. PHOTO: SHISEIDO

The Japanese brand’s newest lip formula is one for the chapped-lip gals.

Comprising more than 68 per cent skincare ingredients, this satin lipstick uses Stretch-Flex technology to wrap lips in cushiony, comfortable colour that does not crack.

To hydrate lips, the formula contains moisturising benibana (safflower) oil, which is said to be used as a lipstick base in the beauty rituals of kabuki theatre and geisha culture – and hence a nod to Shiseido’s Japanese heritage.

The angled bullet delivers glossy, buildable colour. I chomp through a three-course lunch that includes steak, but the lippie stays intact, fading gently from its slight shiny finish to a matt one.

Reapplication is smooth and gives the lips a slight plumped effect, while the fuss-free, all-day comfort makes this a reliable option to toss into my bag without a second thought.

A couple of beauty editors compliment me on the shade Voltage Rose, so I know it must be a winner.

6. Fenty Beauty Fenty Icon Velvet Liquid Lipstick, $43

The liquid lipstick lives up to its claims as a creamy, whipped formula that keeps fine lines and dryness at bay. PHOTO: FENTY BEAUTY

Fans of Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty will already have had this new addition to the Fenty Icon bullet lipstick family on their radar.

The pop star debuted it during her widely talked about performance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show earlier this week – a floating stage-worthy, blue-toned red called MVP.

This velvety liquid lipstick lives up to its claims as a creamy, whipped formula that keeps fine lines and dryness at bay, while the pointed doe-foot applicator paints lips with precision. A one-swipe wonder, the colour pay-off is rich, almost intimidatingly so.

It boasts a mousse-y texture that on application becomes one with my lips – and somehow makes them look fuller. Lip lines who?

Post-meal, I have no qualms about it not being transfer-proof since reapplication is so comfortable. There are just five shades available right now and I already cannot wait for Riri to release more.

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