Matte Crème (de la Crème)

Trends in makeup seem to arrive in a blaze, often only to exit just as swiftly, overtaken by the next "big thing". I don't know if time's up on matte liquid lipsticks (are we onto lip oils now?), but for a period, they seemed to be all the rage. I was tempted by the Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipsticks, hyped by many a beauty YouTuber, but $17.95 USD shipping (plus $20 USD for a single lipstick) was not happening. Especially not with the Australian dollar flopping — I'd be paying $50 to have one lipstick shipped to me. Enter Australis Velourlips Matte Lip Cream, a local "drugstore"/affordable alternative to satiate my matte liquid lipstick curiosity. At $9.95 a pop, and often on sale at Priceline, they're cheaper than the similar NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams which retail for $12.95 each at Target.

l-r: Pa-ree, Hon-o-loo-loo, Lun-dun

Bottom to top: Pa-ree, Hon-o-loo-loo, Lun-dun

l-r (top row, then bottom row): Pa-ree, Hon-o-loo-loo, Lun-dun

These Velourlips aren't a new release (I remember reading about them all the way back in November 2013), but they didn't grab me when they first launched. Perhaps they were ahead of their time, or took a while to gain traction. I was finally motivated to take a closer look after Australis released several new shades and Shaaanxo featured the Velourlips in her 2014 Drugstore Favourites, calling them "basically the same as Lime Crime". On a recent trip to Priceline, I was playing around with the vibrant purply-pink shade Lun-dun and became hooked. I then read on a random forum that the shade Pa-ree looked close to Lime Crime Velvetines in Cashmere, so naturally I had to get it. The bright-but-pastel peachy nude Hon-o-loo-loo was my next pick since I had to take advantage of Priceline's 40% off cosmetics sale.

What has most impressed me about these Matte Lip Creams are the colours. Just how flattering a shade of lipstick is when applied is surprisingly easy to overlook, especially when one has far too many lip products, but I genuinely like the way all three appear on my lips. In particular, Pa-ree has been a revelation, in that the colour (combined with the ultra matte finish) is entirely unique to my overstuffed collection. It was very hard for me to get an accurate lip swatch because it's toned down and paler than my natural lip colour, while not being overly nude. It's also fairly neutral in tone (not too cool, not too warm). The relative lack of contrast between my skin and lips, and the muted, slightly reddish beige proved a challenge to photograph. I guess I'm between NC20 and NC25, your typical sallow Asian complexion with possibly slight olive tones (but who really knows), and Pa-ree is probably the single most flattering nude I have encountered. I'm reminded of just how good it is every time I wear it. It's also apparently more or less identical to Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick in Pure Hollywood.

Apart from the colours, the formula of these is virtually faultless. They're a tad drying, yes, but I think that's the nature of the beast. You can't really have a transfer-proof, long-wearing, matte finish lip product without some kind of dryness happening. It's not to an intolerable level, so I don't mind. They're so pigmented that I usually only apply one layer to my bottom lip, then press my lips together to transfer the pigment to my top lip and blend. I then use my finger to dab and pat away any unevenness and diffuse any wonkiness or excess product around the outline of my lips. They set fairly quickly and then stay put, however they're not staining and are easily removed with some lip balm and a tissue.

The Velourlips are entirely matte and opaque in pigmentation, but the lips still retain a soft poutiness to them. Your lips don't look like they've been painted onto your face. The colour seems to be part of the lip itself, melding completely with the lip rather than looking like a layer of product is sitting on top. Once applied, they don't settle, split or separate into lip lines, not even when you smile. Australis nailed it.