Ulta Beauty emailed me a 20% off coupon last week that was good for most prestige brands and products.
I needed to buy a gift for a friend, and far be it for me to not take advantage of a beauty sale to replace a staple and/or try something new. I did both. I’m nearing the end of my tried-and-true Urban Decay Anti-aging Eye Primer, so I picked up another tube. I’ve heard great things about Anastasia Liquid Lipstick, so I thought I’d buy one. I can’t wear matte liquid lipstick so I looked at the Anastasia glosses. Unfortunately, none of the shades really suited me. So I wandered over to the Fiona Stiles section and checked out her liquid lipsticks called Ultrasuede High Intensity Lip Color.
Described as “mattine” (matte satin, ya think?), I thought the formula might work for my dry lips. I found a shade that I adored, Lenox, a peachy dusty rose neutral shade.
I tried a swipe of the lipstick on my arm and I was sold: opaque, highly pigmented color that dried down somewhat but not completely matte but left a nice glossy look. Seemed like the perfect hybrid formula in the perfect shade for me.
So I thought I’d test it out immediately. I wore it to the beach. I decided to do the torture test – skip the lipliner. Also, you can see that I didn’t exfoliate my lips first. It went on with no trouble. Pretty, isn’t it?
It was hot at the beach and I was thirsty so I drank a bottle of water. My cousin Gordon kindly pointed out to me that my lipstick bled: both the upper and bottom lip. Ugh. I resolved that this liquid lipstick must be worn with a lipliner, but then I knew that even before I decided to skip it.
Next day, I wore the same lipstick back to the beach, but this time I paired it with Tarteist Lipliner in Latergram, a deluxe sample that I received in my May Sephora Play bag.
Although the shade was not the exact match for the Fiona Stiles Ultrasuede in Lenox that I thought it was going to be, it wasn’t awful, almost close enough (and on its own, it’s really pretty).
Same thing as the day before, I grabbed a bottle of water, drank half of it, and my cousin again pointed out that my lipstick was feathering. Now, I was embarrassed. I did what I was supposed to do, but it still didn’t stay put.
Yesterday, I wore a different, regular bullet lipstick to the beach. No problem.
Today, I’m at home and I decided to try Lenox again, paired with Tarteist Latergram, the closest match I’ve got – I probably should’ve used Milani’s Anti-Feathering universal lipliner, but that’ll be tomorrow’s experiment. Not too long after I applied the liner and liquid lipstick, I noticed a little bleeding at the tips of my cupid’s bow. I’ve been drinking water from a glass, and unless you wait about a half hour till it dries completely, the lipstick comes off on the glass. But I still love the color, and it is a semi-long-wear liquid lipstick, leaving behind a lot of color as it fades. A lighter version of the shade was still on my lips about 6-8 hours after I first applied it and after eating.
Do I recommend Fiona Stiles Ultrasuede Lip Color? I wish I could recommend it without reservation, but I cannot. I recommend it if you don’t mind fussing a bit. I’m keeping and wearing Lenox because I love the non-drying formula, and I especially love the color. I’ll make do. But if you’re looking for a low maintenance liquid lipstick, this isn’t it.
The Tarteist Lipliner is fine, and the shade Latergram is a pretty nude shade.
Postscript: I tried wearing Fiona Stiles Ultrasuede with Urban Decay Ozone Lipliner and the waxy universal lip pencil did the trick in terms of stopping feathering or bleeding during normal wear. I still found that I can’t drink from a bottle or cup while it is still on the wet side which can last for about an hour and a half. Today’s National Kissing Day, and unless you want to leave a lasting impression, no kissing with Fiona Stiles Ultrasuede Lip Color, lol. xoxo
Has anyone else tried this lipstick yet? Please weigh in if you have.