There's been a big thing about lip stain pens recently and a few of the major cosmetics brands have brought out their own version. I've been meaning to try them out for ages but hadn't got around to going looking for them, so when I spotted these NYC ones in Morrisons for only £3.99 I picked one up straight away thinking bargain!

It comes in a chunky tube like a thick felt-tip pen or marker with a pull off lid. The lid does fasten nice and tight so you don't need to worry about staining your pocket, handbag or makeup bag. The plastic pen is a different colour depending on the colour of the lip stain but they're all quite bright and stand out well.

The applicator is just like a big a felt-tip pen, so you basically just colour in your lips with it which seems pretty simple. The colour does come onto the tip well but when I tilt it up to do my top lip I do find the colour seems to drain away from the tip so I don't get as much out. It is pretty easy to use but it does feel a bit odd until you get used to it, it feels very different form using a lipstick or gloss wand.

The colour is supposed to be buildable with these stains, so you can have a sheer look or a more bold look depending what you want. However I find that the colour looks very uneven for the first few coats so I have to have it looking very bold or it just looks patchy.

There were only 4 shades to choose from in Morrisons when I bought mine and I went for the second lightest which is called Champagne Stain and looks like a mid pink colour, but in actual fact the colour is very different to what I was expecting, it's actually a very deep, dark pink which is almost red-purple rather than pink, and really doesn't suit me at all, so do be aware when you're buying them that the shade comes out a lot darker than it looks.

The first time I used the stain I found it made my lips instantly dry out so I had to apply loads of lip balm over the top to make them feel better and stop them looking dry and flaky. Also be aware that if you have any dead skin on your lips it does cling to those areas more making them darker than the rest of the lips, so you need to make sure your lips are in good condition first.

I was really hoping this would be a product that I could apply and then leave and not have to think about or re-apply as it claims to be so long-wearing, so I was disappointed to see that the colour had faded dramatically within an hour, and another hour later it had almost completely disappeared apart from a couple of little patches where it clung on for dear life making me look very odd. However, the next time I used it I applied a moisturising lip gloss over the top rather than lip balm and it lasted much better. The colour still faded a little within the first hour but I actually preferred the look of it then than when I'd first applied it. and amazingly I applied it at about 6pm and it was still there when I got up at about 9am the next morning, and there was no sign of any smudges on my pillow. I'd say that's pretty good staying power. It actually took me a while to get it off, and in the end I found that a bit of toner was the best thing to remove it with.

I would recommend this lip stain to anyone who's thinking of trying them out as it's definitely good value for money, but I would say you do need to wear a lip gloss over the top to stop it from drying out your lips, and be careful when choosing shades as they're not necessarily what you would expect them to be.