After I paired down my lipgloss stash, I found myself in weird predicament...I was suddenly lemming lipSTICKS. Not gloss, but regular ol' lipsticks! Maybe it was the approaching Fall weather, or perhaps just looking for a change from the usual?? Whatever it was, the NARS Audacious Lipstick line launched at the perfect time because I was ready! 

I ended up purchasing 2 colors, Liv & Vivien. Liv looked like it might be a lipstick version of the Train Bleu Velvet Matte pencil color that I love (they even both had the exact same color description), and Vivien just looked pretty! 

***All items purchased by me. Affiliate links included.

I really like the packaging on these. They have the same magnetic type bullets as Burberry lipsticks, and have a similar weighty feel - definitely not the normal plastic of their previous lipstick lines. They are also easier to wipe down! 

This pictue taken with inside lower light is much more color accurate than the first one. 

As far as formula and texture, I'm very happy with these lipsticks!! It's pretty short n' sweet...but these are pigmented, very smooth and are slightly creamy without being too emollient. They leave a good stain, so sometimes during midday I'll switch to just lip balm and still end up with a nice color because of what's left behind. These are comfortable and not drying, but don't expect them to be super moisturizing. They also have a nice, non-matte finish that isn't shiny. 

My only gripe is that NARS claims these don't bleed. Maybe on some people they don't, but they bled on me within a couple of hours. Evidently they didn't have a good enough cross section of wear testers. Not a big deal at all because that's an easy fix with a lip pencil, but please don't claim something if it isn't true! 

Outside sunlight. 

This pic turned out much warmer than the colors actually appear on my lips, but it gives a nice image of the finish. And you can also see, there really isn't much difference with 1 swipe or 3. 

Outside shade.

This is very close to how these appear on my lips. Vivien is still warmer than I had anticipated, but it's still a nice color that I've worn enough to make a dent in the tube :-)  Liv is one of those super vamp colors I love - I don't wear them often, but when I'm in the mood this color is what I want! Curious if Liv is indeed a dupe for Train Bleu??

Outside sunlight.

Sooooo, soooo close yet not quite. Once applied I really can't tell the difference except in some lighting conditions...even then it's difficult to tell and I think I only notice because I've been searching for a Train Bleu lipstick dupe since I tried the pencil last year. I'd say Train Bleu has a touch more of that eggplant-y coolness to it. 

Outside shade.

At first I thought Liv was an exact match for Train Bleu, but after a few times I realized it wasn't exact. NARS has another similar color called Ingrid, which I'm thinking about getting - you know...curiosity and all to see if it's even close or an exact match??? 

Overall, I'm very happy with these lipsticks and would love to own more colors in the future :-)  These are $32/.14oz and can be found at Nordstrom,  narscosmetics.com and Sephora.