I don’t get along with mattes – I just don’t understand why you’d miss an opportunity to shine but I know not everyone is as averse as me. The new Givenchy Le Rouge Interdit Cream Velvet Lip is, I would say, next level on formula. It’s whippy light – they call it ‘air kissed’ and I’d kind of agree with that term by way of description – and settles to a cushiony, plump look for the lips.
The thing I can’t get along with is the applicator. I don’t know if it’s just me but the ‘waist’ in the middle doesn’t really fit my lip accurately so I end up applying almost from the tip and avoiding the middle pinch completely. The colour saturation is high which is good, but don’t forget if you wear any oils or balms underneath you break down the hold. If you have smooth lips, gorgeous. If, like me, you don’t, there’s a certain amount of smoothing but mattes are the best at enhancing any lip creasing you might already have despite the blur element of this product.
The shades I’ve been sent are both quite similar in that they’re in the rosewood-brick kind of spectrum. This is the lighter of the two – No.15.
And this is No.41.
No.41 is bottom in the swatch, and No.15 is top. The Givenchy Le Rouge Interdit Cream Velvet Lips are £34 each but I’ve found them for £28.90 at Escentual. Actually, if you’re heading to Escentual, they have just started a 25% off fragrance offer (I’m being super organized and thinking of Christmas – my nephews have all recently discovered aftershave!). *The Givenchy Cream Velvet has a leather cap so not suitable for vegans.