Clove + Hallow Lip Velvet Review (Cruelty-Free, Vegan)

A couple of years ago I saw one of my fave British beauty bloggers Amy of Skyn Therapy wearing the most vibrant lippie ever and I couldn’t believe that it was made from all-natural ingredients and a few safe synthetics (more on that later). After a quick chat with Amy, I found out she was wearing the stay put, transfer-proof Clove + Hallow Lip Velvet.

DISCLAIMER: Please note that I am a Clove + Hallow affiliate. This means that I buy products at a reduced rate for my own personal use and write a review if I wish. At no point do I receive monetary payment for my work with Clove + Hallow. All opinions are my own and 100% honest.  If you do purchase anything using the links in this post I will receive a small commission from Clove + Hallow to help keep my blog up and running. But don’t worry it won’t cost you any extra. If you’d like to know more, feel free to contact me.

To my surprise, I found that they were priced at a reasonable $19 – which is roughly £15 to us UK folk. So, I took it upon myself to order 3 of the 7 available shades; Fiesta, Sugarbear, and Uptown. It’s safe to say that I wasn’t disappointed. Before I get into my review though, let’s take a little look at Clove + Hallow and what they mean for clean beauty.

About Clove + Hallow

Clove + Hallow was founded by freelance makeup artist Sarah Biggers. Sarah became incredibly ill and so started to take a holistic approach to her beauty routine but she found it hard to find clean cosmetics from trustworthy brands that could also perform like most high-quality mainstream brands. It was because of this that she had the vision to create a fully vegan and cruelty-free brand that looked and felt high-end but was also suitable for women of all skin tones. Something that most natural beauty brands fail at. It wasn’t long until Clove + Hallow was born and Sarah’s line continues to deliver an all-natural, non-toxic makeup line built on transparency and trustworthiness. Make-up junkies, pros, and amateurs around the world are in love with this brand and it’s not hard to see why!

Clove + Hallow Lip Velvet Review

The Clove + Hallow Lip Velvets are one of Clove + Hallow’s bestselling products. They’re certified cruelty-free and vegan by PETA and come in a liquid formula that dries down to a matte lipstick that is virtually budge-proof. Unlike most long-lasting lipsticks they’re infused with coconut oil, shea butter, and vitamin E to keep your lips hydrated and nourished throughout the day. The majority of the ingredients are rated as a 1 on the EWG (Environmental Working Group) database meaning that they’re of a low hazard. Anything scoring 3-6 is seen as a moderate hazard, and 7-10 a high hazard. Check out the full list of ingredients below along with some links to any ingredients you’re not likely to be familiar with.

Ingredients: Coconut Alkanes, Isododecane, Hectorite Clay, Polypropylsisesquioxane (silicone to coat pigments), Trimethylsiloxysilicate (silicone to coat pigments), Fractionated Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Sunflower Seed Wax, Argan Oil, Vitamin E, Iron Oxides and/or FD&C Pigments, and Titanium Dioxide.

Okay, I know you’re thinking what’s with all these synthetic ingredients? It’s so hard to create rich pigmented make up with all-natural ingredients. Although some brands like Axiology definitely have managed to come close to some extent, let’s face it, without artificial dyes (or natural pigments like carmine) you just can’t get those punchy and vibrant catwalk colours we all love. Clove + Hallow carry the tag line ‘Safety, Meet Swagger’ and you just can’t get as much swagger with 100% natural ingredients. Period.

It’s worth noting that Titanium Dioxide rates as a 1-3 on the EWG scale and has been linked to certain types of cancer, it’s often found in sunscreen. Personally, as this is the last ingredient listed the amount will be minimal and so it isn’t a concern to myself. As for the FD&C Pigments, they all rank differently but generally speaking they’re usually classed as a low hazard. In comparison to mainstream toxic beauty brands, for me, these ingredients don’t feel like a big deal.

Fiesta, $19.00 (£15.00)

Fiesta is described as being a bright orange toned red which I think is a very accurate description. It best suits light, medium, dark, and deep neutral or golden skin tones perfectly. Being a pretty light olive-skinned lady I found that this shade complimented my skin best and really got rid of that sallow look I sometimes get once summer is over. This was my favourite bold shade and I’ve received so many compliments when wearing this.

What I really love is that it doesn’t use carmine. This has been a huge problem for me when trying to find a decent red lipstick. If you’re looking for a dupe of Nars’ Heat Wave that will last all day then make Fiesta your weapon of choice! I can’t wait to crack this shade out at Christmas.

Sugarbear, $19.00 (£15.00)

Sugarbear is described as a deep neutral with mauve undertones and was one I really, really, reaaaally wanted to love but alas it just didn’t suit me as much as the other two. It best suits fair skin with pink undertones, light skin with neutral undertones, and medium pink-toned skin. At the moment I’m more of a light to medium (closer to medium) with neutral undertones so I’m hoping in the winter it will suit me a little better.

I have noticed that since shaving my head however that it somehow suits me more. It’s a super sassy colour and if you’ve got a baby face like me it just might not suit you. If you’re an urban diva I feel like Sugarbear would be your shade.

Uptown, $19.00 (£15.00)

Described as a deep neutral with red undertones, Uptown took me by surprise. I absolutely loved this shade. I don’t tend to suit many berry shades but for some reason, I felt like I could really pull this one-off. Uptown is best suited to golden-toned light skin, medium skin with golden or neutral undertones, dark skin with golden, neutral or red undertones, and neutral or pink-toned deep skin.

If you’re looking for a modern autumn berry lip then make Uptown your shade of choice!

How Well Do They Apply?

I just want to get something out there now – I am no makeup artist. To be honest I’ve spent a large part of my time never really wearing makeup and my 14-year-old daughter has a lot more skill than I do. So, I was pretty terrified when I first tried to apply my Lip Velvet.

To be honest it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. The applicator is really easy to use and has a little bit of flexibility to it in order to be more accurate. I used a criss-cross method at the cupids bow, then gently outlined, and filled in my lips. As you can see I’m not amazing at applying lipstick I have odd-shaped lips and some patches lack pigment on the outline which makes it a little tricky for me but considering I’m pretty shocking I thought these applied easily enough.

A little colour goes a long, long way, and if you mess it up you need to wipe the product away pretty quickly as the formula is really quick drying. When I say quick drying I’m talking about 30 seconds and you are good to go. Which is great but scary at first.  One coat is more than enough, making it pretty cost-effective, but you can build the layers up to create a longer staying and even bolder colour.

The only thing that I did find was that the Fiesta shade started to bleed a little through the day and I’m not sure why. If I use a little concealer around the lip line it doesn’t happen as much. I didn’t have this issue with the other 2 shades at all. All 3 shades lasted all day but began to slightly flake (more like dust than flaking) about 4 hours in or fade slightly in the middle after eating so I liked to reapply midday.

Are They Really Transfer-Proof?

I feel like this is the ultimate question that will be running through everyone’s mind and to answer you – yes, yes they really are. They’re transfer proof when drinking and eating, unless, your food is super greasy that is. Being largely keto means that I have a diet of greasy foods so for me this is a little bit of an issue.

But rest assured, it’s only greasy food that will budge this kiss-proof, slobber proof lippie off and not much else! You can definitely drink and eat most things without anything coming off. And if it does come off it’s easy enough to swipe a layer back on again. I think we can all agree that the staying power is beyond bloody awesome, but it kinda becomes a problem when you actually want to remove it. I found that cleansing with a generous amount of coconut oil works best. Water and soap will not budge this stuff easily.

The Verdict

I mean come on! Holy mother of pigment! Can you believe that all of the above photos are from a single swipe of colour? It’s INTENSE!

If you’re looking for a lipstick to wear on a night out that will put up with copious amounts of drinking, partying, and if you’re way luckier than me, kissing, then you should definitely make Clove + Hallow’s Lip Velvets your lipstick staple.

I’ll be honest I haven’t tried any natural or clean beauty long-lasting lipsticks or lip stains before. But, in the past, I have tried out Max Factor’s Lipfinity and that used to leave me feeling like my lips were really caked in something and tight. There is still an element of this drying sort of tightness with Clove + Hallow’s Lip Velvet but it’s pretty bearable and you don’t get that weird flakiness like with Lipfinity. It feels like you’ve got a thin layer of clay mask on your lips but without the weird cracking sensation. I’m pretty fussy about comfort and didn’t get the slightest bit irritated by it. Which I have to say surprised me.

At the moment I don’t know of anything like the Clove + Hallow Lip Velvets available on the natural beauty market and it’s honestly well worth the money. They might be £15 a pop, and yes you will get customs charges if you’re outside of the US (I paid about an extra £20 on top of my order) but I would happily purchase these again at the price available. In fact, I’ve got my eyes on the other 4 shades; Cupcake, Road Trip, Napa, and Jetsetter. Jetsetter is a deep, dark navy which is about to be on-trend for autumn/winter.

The lip velvets also have a great shelf life – use within 2 years and within 1 year of opening. I’ve had them for almost a year now and they’re still performing amazingly. They’re also pretty versatile – I’ve seen people on Instagram using them as an eyeliner which I really want to give a go soon but I’m even worse at lining my eyes than I am my lips.

If you’re looking for a lipstick to wear on a night out that will put up with copious amounts of drinking, partying, and if you’re way luckier than me, kissing, then you should definitely make Clove + Hallow’s Lip Velvets your lipstick staple. To buy Clove + Hallow’s Lip Velvet click this link.

Have you tried Clove + Hallow’s products yet? Drop me a comment using the comments box below. For more clean beauty posts click here, oh and don’t forget to sign up to my newsletter!