Doesn’t the packaging and colours of the new Maybelline Vivid Matte Liquids take your breath away? I kind of see this launch as an extension of the Vivid lipstick launch (what was that… four years ago? Eek!) and I LOVED that launch so, so much.
So the new Vivid Matte Liquids are essentially a lipstick with a “creamy liquid base that creates a soft, cushiony feel that glides on smooth to a matte finish”. But… they’re not actually matte. And they don’t dry matte. The only way to get them to turn matte is to actually blot them down with a tissue.
This isn’t going to be a terribly positive review, so please let me start out with what I DO love about the Vivid Mattes before I get into all of my negatives. Number one is the applicator. This thing is pure gold for applying lip colour. It’s long and slanted and because of its length, it does a phenomenal job of creating straight lines as you apply colour (drag the edges across your lips in one smooth motion). I’m fairly terrible at applying lip colour without causing skipping and this completely stopped that from happening. Love!
The other aspect I’m in love with is the colour range. They have some neutrals, but I was drawn to the bold, vibrant shades. The colours above are just BEAUTIFUL!.
Rebel Red is a lot of fun and this one applied the most consistently.
Berry Boost was the best shade to blot down to create a matte texture.
Vivid Violet was fairly patchy, but there’s no denying that colour impact.
However… like I said… this isn’t going to be a positive review. So let’s dissect why:
- The formula actually creates a numbing sensation on my lips. And we’re not talking “plumping” either. It’s like I applied Orajel on my lips – they feel NUMB! The sensation does disappear after about an hour, but it’s not a comfortable feeling. (And I’m definitely not the only person that’s noticed this.)
- The scent on these is very unpleasant to me. I like the scent of the Maybelline Vivid lipsticks (although I don’t really know how to describe it… slightly sweet?), but these smell nothing like those. This has a wickedly strong floral/old lady/potpourri scent that lingered the entire time I wore these. DO NOT WANT.
- These aren’t matte, and so, matte should not appear in the name. You can blot them down so that they become matte, but you lose a lot of the pigmentation that way.
- The formula moves around on my lips. Even with lip primer and invisible lip liner, these still bled outside my lip lines and (worse) started to smear on the outside corners of my mouth. (Think fruit punch mouth.) This required constant maintenance and I was eternally worried that I looked like I had no idea how to apply lipstick.
- There’s inconsistencies in the formula: Rebel Red was the smoothest to wear, Vivid Violet was fairly patchy, and Berry Boost wore best when blotted with a tissue.
Thoughts on how you can possibly make these work:
- I only wore the bright shades, maybe the lighter ones are less obvious to smear/move around?
- I didn’t try this, but I imagine a lip liner in the same colour as the Vivid Matte would help control the product.
- …and that’s all I’ve got.
Final Thoughts
I’m so sorry to say that I really can’t with this product. It smells bad, it numbs my lips (like what??? No Maybelline product has ever done that to me!) and it won’t stay put without leaking out the sides of my lips. I know this is a very strong “NO” review, but it’s not like it’s fun to come down so harshly on products – and I really, REALLY wanted to love these. I love Maybelline as a brand, and I still love and use many of their products (like seriously, go look at the epic-ness of their new eye primer) but this was just a total miss for me. 🙁
The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration.
THAT PURPLE! But yes it is patchy, not sure why they called these matte … So odd about the numbness, I shall pass
The purple colour is incredible, and I felt like a badass wearing it. Till… it started smearing around the corners of my mouth. 🙁
I kept hearing that these had a lot of shine, which I found so weird since the shade I got actually has a matte appearance even though it doesn’t set, but seeing these the finish looks COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than the one I got. Serious formula variation. I actually don’t mind the smell, but holy shit with the numbing.
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That is so freaking bizarre! I wanted to love these because the colours are so beautiful but the formula is just too freaking strange.
Ah, too bad these are a dud! The shades really are gorgeous, but numbing and smudging? No thanks!
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And like why numbing? Plumping would work… but nothing should make my lips numb!
I was really only interested in the nude shades from the reviews and I *think* those apply more evenly, but obviously scent and numbing sensation would probably be the same which is too bad. Bad reviews aren’t fun but unfortunately even a brand you love has occasional misses!
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Rebekah tried the more nude shades and she said she didn’t notice the numbing so now I don’t know. It’s mixed reviews across the board regarding the numbing though – some people feel it, some don’t! 🙁
So weird!! The ones I tried I didn’t experience any of that – especially the numbing feeling. Really unfortunate because the shades are stunning!
Yeah I don’t get it – it seems to be different for different people – someone even told me they felt like it was BURNING, which I definitely didn’t notice… but eek!
You’re not the first who has problems with this range, many have said the same thing so I steered clear of them. And thank you so much for an honest review!
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Yeah there’s been a few others… the biggest one I noticed was Tati of GlamLifeGuru made that comment about numbing about a week or so ago and I was like OMG IT’S NOT JUST ME!
Honest reviews are tough when they’re fairly negative (and even more awkward when it’s a PR sample when you really, REALLY want to love it). But I wouldn’t want someone buying this thinking it worked for me!
SO GLAD I READ THIS. I was trying to find a purple to replace my NYX Liquid Suede Amethyst (since it crumbles on my lips, ew) and was going to snag this violet, BUT NO LONGER.
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I wanted to love them. 🙁 But hard pass for me on these – I was constantly paranoid about what my lips looked like. To the point where I was telling people at work “don’t look at my lips, I’m testing something and I know it looks bad”. Like… that’s not good!
oh my god NUMB? God. Maybelline is usually so good with lipsticks I’m so sad! But yeah that’s an absolute deal breaker.
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I know – it was REALLY FREAKING WEIRD. I love their lipsticks… LOVE them. Love the Vivids, love the mattes – they’re just amazing. But this was way too weird for words.
I’ve read so many other reviews that talked about the numbing effect! I wonder if Maybelline purposely wanted that? Seems weird in a product like this though!
I’m not sure they’d want it… usually brands will advertise for something if it’s a cool “new” thing. However, it seems like not everyone has this problem. It was just so strange!
It’s too bad that they’re not good because the colours are beautiful. But by the sounds of it I don’t think I’d like them either – who wants numb lips??
Chantal recently posted…Cuccio ”Gazing In Genoa” Nail Polish – Swatches and Review
I know – super disappointing. 🙁
I knew you had done this review so I read through it as I was applying the one I got free from fashion week. Pretty much hit everything right on. It really does give the weirdest feeling to the lips. I can totally see how they would slide too. Really glad I got Berry boost at least so I can maybe wear it blotted down. I do notice that it’s hard to get an even blot. So my lips end up looking pretty uneven. :/
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I’ve also started getting search terms for “maybelline vivids makes my lips numb” so I know it’s not just me!
And yes, it definitely blotted unevenly. 🙁 These are just a total pass for me.
It’s also nice to hear you have the same experience as me (like… reassures me I wrote an appropriate review!).
They also taste like shit. Not that I´m going around licking them, but if they get on your tongue when applying, oh you better be prepared for one of the worst tasting things ever.
I totally agree. They had this weird perfume taste that was just awful. So sad about these. 🙁
Omg so i seen the commercials for the new bold ones sent my fiance in and he came out with the ones I request plus the liquid mattes okay step 1 super smudgey I’ll agree too and step 2 my lips were literally ON FIRE like they burned so much they turned red lol my first thought was is there plumping in here I’m not aware of but even waking up today my lips are still red from whatever it did to me but never again .. compete miss
It’s comments like yours Mimi, that made me very, very glad I posted this review. I find it completely astonishing that these products basically had some kind of allergic to some ingredient in there. I’ve been allergy tested before and I’m not particularly susceptible to anything so it was a total shock to me. (And lip plumpers aren’t especially burning to me either!). I hope your lips have since recovered!