Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick Review

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Beso

This is a post from the Beauty Skeptic archives that has been given a facelift, but content and opinions are the same. Favorites are being rescheduled and will appear by next Wednesday.

I don’t always bother with liquid lipstick, but when I do, it’s Stila Beso. I wrote about receiving a compliment on some bold red lipstick that made my morning. In turn, that inspired me to compliment someone else, and an awesome chain reaction resulted. Time to talk about the lipstick itself.

Reeeally Red

My skin is pretty agreeable to reds – so I didn’t have to go on a crazy hunting spree for, “the one,” because my options are plenty. Friday was National Wear Red Day; I opted for a red lipstick, specifically Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in the shade Beso. Stila and Sephora describe this shade as a, “true red,” meaning it has no blue, pink, or orange undertones, and is not particularly warm OR cool.

When I first got this lipstick, I swatched it on my lips not having looked up swatches online or having any idea of how pigmented it was; I exclaimed when I saw it. A little goes a very, very long way. Given how pigmented it is and how quickly the color takes, the doefoot applicator wand can be a liiiiiittle bit difficult to work with. Doefoot applicators are awesome for speed and ease of use, but a bold red lip requires careful application. If you have a lip brush, I recommend keeping it handy to help ensure clean edges.

The Bold Claim

Now, time for my favorite part: the marketing. This lipstick is Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick. Sephora’s website says:

This creamy, full-coverage lip color provides intense moisture with bold, long-lasting pigment to stay in place for up to six hours of continuous wear. The comfortable texture feels weightless on lips and its color-rich formula does not bleed or transfer. Enriched with vitamin E and avocado oil, Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick hydrates and softens lips so they look and feel beautiful.

Does it really stay all day? It is pretty difficult to accomplish that with a lipstick, after all – as people we generally enjoy consuming food and drink. Also, long-wearing lip products have a tendency to be drying.

Putting it to the Test

On Friday, I put Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick to the test. I applied at 6:45AM with a combination of the doefoot applicator and a lip brush after using a clear lip liner. I allowed it to dry without letting my lips touch for one minute (remember, this is a liquid lipstick); Beso dries to a matte finish. I was happy to find none awkwardly made its way to my teeth.

Around 8:00am, I decided I wanted breakfast, so I had an english muffin and some iced tea; they made no noticeable “dent” in my lipcolor. Cool. I had a granola bar and water some point later, then got lunch. After lunch, there was a small change in the coloration at the center of my lip, but nothing really noticeable unless you were being weird and staring. I dotted some in the center to bring it back to “perfect,” – this was around 12:45pm. At this point, we’ve already lived up to the, “up to six hours,” promise. Awesome!

I wore it for the rest of my workday, and home. We ate late, so I had removed it before dinner but I did have other beverages. When I finally threw in the towel (at 8:00pm), it was still vibrant – the once-crisp edges were starting to fade slightly, but they certainly had not bled. I got over thirteen (yes!) hours of wear out of a red lipstick!

Other Marketing Bits

…Comfortable texture feels weightless…
I agree with this assessment – for a liquid lipstick, it has almost a whipped texture and is feels kind of mousse-y. It isn’t too heavy or too thin.

…does not bleed or transfer…
Fortunately, I experienced no bleeding, but I did use lip liner (one does not simply casually apply red lipstick) and concealer just outside my lip line juuust in case. I found that a little bit transferred onto the straw of my tea earlier in the morning, but it did not impact how it looked on my lips. I kissed my fiance husband after I got off work (after 4PM) and it did not transfer – though I did have to show him it wouldn’t first!

…hydrates and softens lips…
This is the only thing I am iffy about. This is a long-wearing lip product. Long-lasting lipsticks do have a reputation for being a little drying – they kind of have to be, because creamy products can transfer more easily or slide off. I anticipated this and applied a balm when I started my makeup so it had a couple minutes to sit before applying. I did not find it intolerable, but by the end of its wear it was settling into the lines of my lips – just FYI if that sort of thing bothers you.

The Bottom Line

Overall I am thrilled with this product from Stila and have repurchased since my first tube. Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks are available from Nordstrom, Sephora, Ulta, and Amazon for $24.

Want to see my own swatches? Leave a comment letting me know!