The weather may be dull and dreary but that doesn’t mean your make up needs to be as well! Introducing the Max Factor Velvet Mattes lipsticks, little tubes of sunshine to brighten up your make up with just one swipe. These babies landed on my doorstep last week sometime and I’ve been putting them through some strenuous testing: multiple cups of coffee, too much talking and obviously a lot of eating. Did they pass the test? Will they become top drawer products? Keep on reading to find out…

I’m quite the fan of a matte lip but I’m also really fussy when it comes to which products I use. They need to be non-drying, long-wearing and deliver sensational colour. The non-drying bit is especially important now that we are in winter and every inch of my skin seems to be drying to a prune-like state. If you’re in the same chapped lipped boat as me, mix up a good ol’ sugar lip scrub to use every night, it helps so much.

Right, back to the Max Factor Velvet Mattes; they are infused with oils and butters to help prevent that dried out feeling, and it also really helps them to glide onto the lips smoothly. Once applied, they immediately give a soft, satin matte finish that generally stays put for a good 4 hours, including the odd cup of coffee and cheeky biscuit. There are only 7 shades in the range but they are all really wearable ranging from a mauve-nude to a bright fuchsia and a bold red. In terms of pigmentation, they are amazing; all you need is one swipe. Sometimes I do build it up a little but my current favourite way to wear colour on my lips is to apply one coat and then pat it down so it becomes more of a stain than a flat lipstick.

I have 4 of the 7 shades and I really do love them all! Rose is a gorgeous pinky nude, while Blush is an striking fuchsia. If you prefer peachy-coral shades, you will love Flame and it’s slightly more subdued counterpart, Sunkiss. As always, these swatches have not been edited and were photographed in natural light.

As I mentioned earlier, all of these shades wear wonderfully as both a lipstick as well as patted down into a stain and although the wear time is only 4 or so hours, I still think that that is a decent amount of time considering the price point. Will the Max Factor Velvet Mattes go into my top drawer of products? Yes! And I am seriously considering going to buy the Desire, because you can never have too many red lipsticks, amirite?

*RSP R155,95 at Clicks