Ever Bilena EB Matte Lipstick (Vivid Violet) Review, Swatch, Price

Ever Bilena EB Matte Lipstick is arguably the Ever Bilena group’s flagship lipstick collection. It’s been around for over a decade and has become part of many important occasions in Filipinos’ lives. The shades have been ever-evolving to keep up with very fast beauty trends, but calibrated to be universally flattering. Easy to find, easy to use, and truly affordable, these lipsticks have become an institution in the Philippine beauty industry. This review is for the shade Vivid Violet.

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Ever Bilena EB Matte Lipstick is definitely one of the hallmark entries of Ever Bilena into the matte lipstick market. I know this range has been around for a long time, and Google searches have results about this from as early as 2010, although the lineup was a bit different. The collection evolved throughout the years, and while some shades were phased out, there were many new additions to cater to changing beauty trends. Upon consultation, I was told that there are now 19 active shades, but there may be more or fewer shades available in a particular kiosk depending on inventories.

I guess this is the collection where they more or less figured out how to achieve a matte finish through a waxy formulation. I have noted this in my other Ever Bilena reviews that Ever Bilena usually approaches matte lipsticks with a waxy formulation over a powdery formulation. This makes the lipstick feel lightweight and makes it move around less. Perhaps, since this is one of their earliest forays to a true matte lipstick, the texture is not 100% consistent across shades. I have some shades which are softer and creamier in texture (especially the nude ones), while some shades are stiffer and waxier in texture (especially the brick shades). Some shades take little effort to swipe, while some take more effort. But once this has been applied, there’s no difference in feel between a shade that took more swipes and one that took fewer swipes in terms of weight. All shades feel lightweight on the lips. But of course, the softer shades feel more lip balm-like than the waxier shades.

This is also why the pigmentation can vary between shades. Some shades take less effort than others to reach 100% opacity. But all shades are pigmented enough to reach 100% opacity without taking too much effort. All shades also have color payoff accurate enough that at 100% opacity on the lips, shades are true to what’s on the tube and also visibly distinct from each other, in spite of having several brick shades in the collection.

The waxier shades last better than the creamier shades, but on average, this is a lipstick that will need to be retouched several times a day for full opacity. One can also expect to retouch after every meal. Despite these inconsistencies across shades, I appreciate the very wide spectrum of colors that they have offered in this collection. There are bricks, reds, nudes, plums, and pinks. These are more or less all the shades that someone starting out with makeup would need, and the iterations chosen for each color are those that would flatter Filipina skin tones. Anyone who’s totally clueless about makeup can easily get a headstart by browsing this collection, especially with their very spot on their MLBB shade offerings.

Overall, at Php165 for 3.6g, this is probably the cheapest FDA approved legal channel lipstick in the market in terms of price per gram. It’s actually sorta mindboggling how a lipstick range with such beautiful shades in a lightweight formulation with color indicators in the packaging could be Php165. Only a conglomerate as big as the Ever Bilena group can achieve economies of scale to offer a lipstick this good at this price. This is arguably among the most influential lipstick ranges in the Philippines, given how many people own these, and how most people who buy makeup are familiar with the popular shades of this collection. Indeed, there is a reason why this collection has stayed put for so long and will continue to be a pillar in the Philippine beauty industry. 

This is the GRWM video for the look in this post. Check it out!