This is the best lip marker I've tried so far. I have it in Jitterbug (bright pink) I'm very fair-skinned and do not like a lot of lip color but I found that if I apply this marker first followed by a lighter colored gloss, the color comes out perfect and lasts a long time. The tip stays firm and doesn't collapse or fray like some others I have tried. I also like that it doesn't have a lot of the crap chemicals that are in most lip stains -brownie points!

I tried this in Sephora, in ChaCha--but didn't buy because I wanted to see if it would really stay on throughout the day. It did (and so did all the test stripes I drew on my hand with the various colors, throughout several hand-washings), so I'll probably pick one up next time I'm there. The colors are quite intense, especially at first. ChaCha was the only one that looked remotely natural on me--of course, I was looking for a natural look, something to make my lips look like they actually have some color. So for others the more intense pigment might be perfect.

A good lip stain. It's not really that much different than the ones you can get in the drugstore. Wear is about the same as the drugstore stains, and you will need to reapply after a few hours. The colors in Josie Maran's line are very flattering: I got this in Quickstep, Tango and Cha-Cha--all three colors look great on my skin, though Tango is a little bright (still like how it looks though). I also like that it's all-natural. I find it works the best as a base color under a lipstick or gloss.

I bought this lip stain in Jitterbug quite a whila ago, and didn't like it because it settled in the cracks of my lips. Since then I have taken much better care of my lips by sleeping with lip conditioner and exfoliating often and now I like this product a lot. This color is a beautiful bright pink that I love. It glides on very nicely on the lips, not streaky like my NYC lipstain. I like to wear this color under my revlon lip butter in Sweet Tart b/c it makes the lip butter last longer. I want to go back and buy a red one now. So as long as you don't have dry flaky lips, i think this lipstain is really good.
*I went back to buy Flamenco and I love it. It's a beautiful red and is super pigmented and doesn't suck the moisture out of my lips like some other lipstains do.

I have this in 3 colors and must say I am not really sure if I would buy it again if I find something with good colors that stays on better. They were $14 at Sephora. I love the packaging and marker type applicator. It is great for putting on a bright color quickly with the precision needed to have a perfect lip line. Cha cha is a very mild bubblegum pink with a slight hint of red. It is about the same color as my lips and is not really dark enough for me to justify buying it again. If I layer it a few times...like 3 or 4..it looks like a deeper version of my natural color...but these lipstains do not stay on well enough for me to have to be applying it all day. Tango is a bit more bright..it is a coral pink color that I actually love if I layer it on. I love this color so much that I will go thru the bother of reapplying. These 2 colors seem to wear off pretty evenly, they are light enough not to leave the lipliner ring look. They go on pretty wet and you can move the color around well before it dries. It dries up matte and makes my lips feel a bit dry, so I put a coat of balm or gloss to keep from licking my lips too much and messing up the color. The topcoat does lighten the color a tad. I have also noticed that my top lip is slightly lighter than the bottom and I must double layer it in order for the color to look even because these stains are sheer, even though they are bright. Flamenco is a beautiful bright red with a blue undertone...like that traditional pin-up girl red from the 50's. It wears down to a cool bright pinky red. With just drinking and lip licking it wears evenly but if I eat, I end up with the lipliner look. This is the only color I wear a lot.

I am looking for a lip stain and bought this at Sephora, per recommendation from an SA. I wish I had just tried the Revlon Just Bitten as they would have been half the price, as they both have that Sharpie type applicator. I don't know if the felt applicator is the problem, but it lays down a TON of color (I tried Tango) which didn't blend out, even over lip balm, and caught in ever crevice and blip even after exfoliating. The color was pretty, but way too intense the way it applied. Not a fan. At the time I lived far away from Sephora, and just threw it away instead of returning it. What a disappointment, especially for fourteen bucks.
Next I'll try Benetint, but my hopes aren't high...

I bought this in Tango and I love it! It adds drama to my natural color as it's quite bright but it's really nice. I haven't tried it on my cheeks and don't think I will, I think it would be too much of a highlighter effect.
It goes on smooth and has a subtle taste I like. It did not try my lips at all and while I don't really feel the product on it doesn't seem to make my lips a little sticky at first? The price is quite cheap as well (in the 20CAD range I believe). It's also quite easy to carry it around and if you rub your lips together quickly then you can apply it without needing a mirror.
I took a point out for the packaging... I left it near the cash where I work and someone actually took down a client's phone number with it before realizing it was NOT a highlighter!! It still works though but seriously it does look like a school supply.
Would purchase again nonetheless!

I have this in "Mango", it's a gorgeous red. I'm usually a bit shy about wearing red lips but this I can pull off without looking overly done up. It's so easy to apply, dries to a nice matte finish, works alone or under lipgloss/lipbalm and is very long-lasting. I haven't tried it as a cheek stain.

Let me just say that this marker idea is phenomenal! It's super easy to apply to my lips (I haven't tried it on my cheeks and probably won't because the color is intense) and the color lasts and does not rub off! The only downside is that the color does fade away in a sort of odd uneven way. So what I do now is apply it at night, let it dry and put chapstick over the top. When I wake up in the morning my lips are a brighter version of my natural lip color! It's crazy but all throughout the day regardless of what lip gloss or balm I put on top, my lips just look perfect!!

MUA I FOUND IT! After years of searching for "the One" I finally found my HG lip stain. Where do I start?
First off, the colors are nice. I purchased in Waltz and I will be buying every other color available. I think I paid $19 for this at Sephora, not bad for a good quality lip stain at a high end make-up retailer.
Second, the marker is easy to apply with - I line my lips first and then fill in.
Third, it stays on GREAT with a nice matte finish. I only reapplied once during my work day.
And the very best part is that it doesn't dry up. It still goes on as pigmented as the day I got it. Lip stain lovers: Don't bypass this one!

I bought this in Mambo and it gives my lips a lovely reddish color. Kind od like i've just spent the last hour kissing a cute boy. As with all stains, if my lips are even slightly chapped, it will darken the color around the chapped areas, which is not a good look. But that's not specific to this particular product--just lipstains in general--so i didn't take off a lippy for it because it's the nature of the proverbial beast. I haven't used it as a cheek stain so I can't comment on that. This lipstain is at its best with a bit of gloss over it.
ETA: This has become my go-to lip color, so i just changed my grade from 4 to 5 lippies. I wear it alone or layer it under gloss. It's versatile and flattering and i love it. What I really appreciate is that it actually spreads well before setting so it's quite forgiving.

Overall, not quite what I was looking for. I purchased this in Waltz. It was a very pretty color once applied, but it just didn't last for me. I find it works better under a tinted gloss.. but that kind of defeated the purpose of the product for me as I wanted an alternative to sticky or shiny lips. For some it seems to have worked fine, but for me the wear is totally uneven. I am bummed because I have yet to find a lip marker as fantastic as YSL Sweet Lips.. which of course they don't make anymore!

I like this product because the colour is intense, it lines the lips perfectly, and it lasts and lasts! I bought jitterbug - I like to use this stain as a base because it matte. So I enjoy putting a glossier colour on top, my favourite is Tarte's lip stain in hot pink.
I will be buying a few other colours as well
And ps, this product is vegan!

pros:
absorbs fairly quickly
easy to apply
can be layered for a more intense color payoff
long-lasting and stays put
ingenious packaging...no mess in your makeup bag
cons:
Applies and wears off a bit unevenly
my experience:
I got this in Waltz, and I like applying it on bare lips. I have not tried any other lip stains before. Easiest to apply if you run the the length of the marker tip across your lip vertically (if you dot on the color with the tip of the marker, it takes a lot longer and it's a lot harder to apply evenly). It dries fairly quickly, but there's plenty of time for you to use a q-tip or your finger to blend a spot you've applied unevenly. Go over your lips more than once if you want the color more intense. I let the marker set for a minute while I do other makeup and then apply a dab of balm or vaseline over my markered lips so the color is not as matte. This also helps diffuse and disguise any uneven spots. The color stays through the day, and the next day my lips remain tinged with a rosy pink color. I plan to try Flamenco next, because I like how this vivid lip color doesn't stain my clothes or my boyfriend.

This is a pretty useless product. You have to hold it upside down to get any pigment out of it so it's virtually impossible to use on your upper lips.
There is hardly any color that comes out of the marker and my lips don't even look like they have color on them.

I'm always experimenting with lip stains.
First off, I wouldn't dare use these on cheeks, they're way too bright and really like markers. Not to mention if you eff it up, you'll have to scrub like hell to un-do the damage. So for me, it's just for lips.
Flamenco is a great bright red. It's weird: on my top lip it leans blue to a true cool red but on my bottom lip it is a warm candy apple red. Go figure! Anyway when I want to wear a bright red, Flamenco is great, I just have to be careful when applying, it's very pigmented and stains immediately. It doesn't dry out and fades a little after hrs and eating to a pretty pinky/red shade. I've been pretty much wearing this non-stop for the past 4 days, I even wake up with some left, hahaha. The man in my life is surprised we can kiss and kiss and I still have red, dramatic lips (and he doesn't!)!
Jitterbug is less pigmented than Flamenco. It goes on bright fuchsia and fades to a pretty bright pink. I love this shade a lot less than the former, in fact, I may exchange it to Sephora and try a different one. Jitterbug goes on patchier and wears off in patches as well. Oh well. I'll try other colors but I'd dare not try in the store because there really isn't a way to sanitize it, so I'll write another review if and when I try another. I may just exchange Jitterbug for another Flamenco, because it's worth it, or just swap it.

I was looking forward to this because the colors are nice, but I will be returning this to Sephora.
I bought Foxtrot which is a great berry red, but it doesn't last very long and wears off unevenly. I'm left with a lip liner type look.
I'm very familiar with stains - I've tried them all and have used them for a long time - and this one just doesn't measure up although I had high hopes.
5.27.10
Update
I'm doing a test of this right now. Have had it on for 20 minutes. I'm going to see how it wears. Giving it another fair chance.

I am really digging this! I just got Jive, which Sephora describes as a coral pink. On me, it goes on as a bright coral red but fades to a pinkish red. I normally go for violet colors but I would recommend Jive as a coral-ish color for cool skin tones. It brightens up my whole face without the tendency that some coral shades have for making your teeth appear yellow. I'm also impressed with the packaging, which is like a cap-within-a-cap. My guess is that this slows the drying of the marker tip. Wear time is decent with this -- it fades with eating, but that's to be expected. It's also not drying, but I would recommend a balm or gloss over it. Overall, it's a great stain. Go Josie Maran!

I've been looking for a decent lip color stain that would last and not dry my lips out terribly. This stain might be the best I've tried yet. It's certainly less drying that the Covergirl lip markers, and has a longer staying time.
http://img.makeupalley.com/0/4/0/5/1641250.JPG
This photo was taken after wearing for approx. 2 hours, which included periodic drinking and eating. I'm surprised any of it was left, honestly, since that's what most often happens. These shot were taken in an office under flourescent lighting, and I'm wearing the Foxtrot color. I LOVE the color, by the way. VERY pigmented and bright. The color on the box is a fuschia shade, but once on my skin it turns a darker, blue-based red. I didn't have any issues with the color bleeding into the lines around my mouth either, thankfully, so this might be a good product for older skin (I'm 42).
http://img.makeupalley.com/0/4/0/5/1641251.JPG
I lightened this shot a little to try and get a better example of the wear. The first photo doesn't show that there is some wearing off on my lower lip, but it's minimal. What DOES remain seems to stay just as bright as when first applied.

Let me preface this by saying I only bought this today so I haven't had time to really test it out but since there were no reviews on this yet I thought I would post my initial thoughts. I swatched all the colors on my hand then realized I forgot the camera so not much help there. I will say that after looking at the swatches online at Sephora they looked very similar. I wasn't surprised by how any of them looked in real life compared to the swatches. They are all pretty bold (as is generally the case with lip stain). I had originally gone to buy Vibe (coral) and Mambo (Beige) but ended up only getting the Mambo. The Vibe along with all the rest of the colors where just too bright for me. Even after I wiped them off my hand (with water and then with makeup remover) they were just too much for me. The colors are all very pretty and wearable though if you like color. VIbe is a very pretty coral, Waltz is beautiful though maybe more pinky berry than rose? Jitterbug is a bright pink! Foxtrot was a really pretty wine and would look great in the Fall. Anyway, Mambo isn't beige really but more of a brick or russet color I would say. Because this is sheer it doesn't scream brick though. It's definitely warm and the most neutral color in the bunch. Not sure it's great for Spring Summer but I'm going to try using as a base with some glosses on top to see if I can make it look more seasonally appropriate.
As far as wear, these seem to hold up pretty well. I couldn't even get the stuff off my hand with makeup remover! We'll see how they do on the lips. I have the Mambo on now with some Korres nude gloss over it. I will update once I've played with this for a few days and can really speak to the wear factor. So far I have not noticed this getting splotchy or patchy. A little bleeding into the fine lines but I'll use some clear lipliner next time and it should be fine. I've had this on for a few hours and don't find it drying.
I honestly can't imagine using these on cheeks although I may attempt with my MAC 188. They dry so fast and are so bold in color. Maybe a damp brush or sponge? Not sure. I may play with it but I bought this for my lips so I don't really care.
I'm generally excited by the product but long wear is what I want and need so that will be the deciding factor on whether I love it or not.
(Should mention I'm NC 20-25 with almost no pigment in my lips, very light pink if any)