Beauty Care: NARS Too Hot to Hold & Highway to Hell Powermatte Lipsticks Reviews & Swatches

Too Hot to Hold

NARS Too Hot to Hold Powermatte Lipstick ($34.00 for 0.05 oz.) is a medium-dark red with moderate, warm undertones and a matte finish.

Opaque color coverage
Lightweight, velvety texture (silicone-like), thin but not clingy
Applied evenly but can emphasize lip texture slightly
Transfer-resistant until a meal
Long-wearing until a meal (6 hours), non-drying

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).

Possible Dupes

These are likely to be very similar shades based on our duping algorithm.

YSL Scout's Red (124) (LE, $38.00).
Lancome Bisou Bisou (148) (P, $32.00).
Chanel Camelia Rouge (357) (LE, $40.00).
Chanel Rouge Amoureux (852) (P, $55.00).
Estee Lauder Excite (P, $32.00).
Chanel Rouge Conquerant (864) (P, $55.00).
Estee Lauder Demand (P, $32.00).
Bite Beauty Fraise (DC, $24.00).
Revlon My Own Boss (P, $10.99).
Make Up For Ever Untamed Fire (402) (P, $23.00).

Formula Overview

$34.00/0.05 oz. - $680.00 Per Ounce

The formula is supposed to have "10-hour wear" that has "one swipe, instant payoff" that is "transfer-resistant" and "lightweight" with "all-day comfort." Those are some big claims, and while I think the formula is solid--lightweight, longer-wearing, and semi-opaque to opaque in coverage--they don't quite last 10 hours (more like five to six hours, which is good just not ridiculously long as claimed).

They have a lightweight, more of a velvety-cream feel that helped them apply comfortably without dragging and be somewhat forgiving of lip texture, but I would recommend proper exfoliation prior to wearing these. They were somewhat transfer-resistant but lost most of that resistance after a meal, and they tended not to last that well through a meal in general (part of why they don't get to 10 hours). The formula felt more non-drying to barely-hydrating, so comfortable as claimed.

Worth mentioning, they did not swatch so well on my arm but applied significantly better on my lips, which is something I have found to be true with more silicone-heavy lipstick formulas. They had no discernible taste or scent.

Note: The lipsticks are in a slim-style bullet, which is typically much smaller than the average lipstick (often around 0.07 oz. for a slim lipstick vs. 0.10 oz. for a standard tube), but these are 0.05 oz. a pop, so they are quite small.

Browse all of our NARS Powermatte Lipstick swatches.

Ingredients

ISODODECANE · SYNTHETIC WAX · POLYGLYCERYL-2 TRIISOSTEARATE · CAPRYLYL METHICONE · OCTYLDODECANOL · DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE · HYDROGENATED MICROCRYSTALLINE WAX · LAUROYL LYSINE · TRIMETHYLSILOXYSILICATE · POLYETHYLENE · HYDROGENATED STYRENE/ISOPRENE COPOLYMER · POLYSILICONE-11 · PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRA-DI-T-BUTYL HYDROXYHYDROCINNAMATE · POLYHYDROXYSTEARIC ACID · TOCOPHERYL ACETATE · [+/-(MAY CONTAIN/PEUT CONTENIR): BLUE 1 LAKE (CI 42090) · IRON OXIDES (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499) · RED 28 LAKE (CI 45410) · RED 6 (CI 15850) · RED 7 LAKE (CI 15850) · TITANIUM DIOXIDE (CI 77891) · YELLOW 5 LAKE (CI 19140) · YELLOW 6 LAKE (CI 15985)] ·

Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.