I used to think I’d rather rub a dry stick on my lips rather than use a matte lipstick.  And then I met NARS’ Pure Matte lipstick in Valapariso and fell totally, utterly and deeply in love with it.

Launched in the NARS Spring 2012 line, this is a matte berry lipstick that it is very pigmented and goes on smooth without any skipping whatsoever.  It feels a bit tacky going on (in a good way and probably due to the wild mango butter in it) but the finish is still matte.  Color payoff is very good and the color goes on opaque and nicely without lipliner.  I got a good six hours worth of wear with this.  Even after having coffee in the morning and lunch, the color faded somewhat but not so much that I had to immediately apply more of this.  When I did touch it up I needed very little to refresh the color.

The closest color I own that looks like this, interestingly enough, NARS Damned Velvet Matte lip pencil.  Both look very similar but the lipstick has more tackiness while the pencil is more dry.  Guerlain Rouge G in Greta looks more red next to it but you can tell it still belongs in the ‘berry’ family.

Valparaiso Pure Matte lipstick retails for $24 and is currently available at most upscale retailers such as Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus Sephora and Beauty.com.