Make-up is like painting a picture. You would never start painting on a dirty piece of paper. That’s why skincare is so important. Your face is your canvas in the art of make-up! So my top tips for lipstick application will start with the basic.
Exfoliate
Make sure your lips are soft and supple. Light exfoliation of your lips is a great way to start. You can buy products specifically for this. However the simplest of things can be used. Gently brushing your lips with a soft toothbrush will work wonders on dry, flaky lips!
Moisturise
Keeping your lips moisturised will give the illusion of a younger, plumper pout. This can be achieved by just using a lip-balm. I recommend using one with an SPF, as your lips are always something you tend to forget about when it comes to the sun’s harmful rays. Try Palmers coco butter ultra-moisturising lip balm SPF 15, available from Boots stores.
Liner
I would always recommend to use a lip liner when applying lipstick or gloss. Especially if you are planning on wearing a bright colour. Make Up For Ever’s aqua lip liner is one of my kit essentials. The staying power is amazing. The pigment is so strong and it is so easy to apply! What more could you want?
Lipstick
I always apply lipstick with a lip brush. By using a brush, you can be a lot more precise with your application, particularly around the edges. Try MAC cosmetics 316 lip brush. With regards to brand, if you get the right lip liner, the lipstick itself is not as important. Most high street brands have great pigments and staying power. I love Rimmel and Bourjois for their lipsticks.
Finish
Mistakes are more easily rectified than you think! If you’ve ‘gone outside the lines’, remove the mistake with a q-tip, then, take a small, clean, flat brush and a tiny bit of your concealer. Simply conceal away the mistakes until you have a nice clean edge. Depending on the look you’re going for, adding gloss can plump lips up and give a modern take on some of the classic looks.
Picking the right shade for you
There’s so much choice around now, so what shade do you go for? Here’s a few hints to help you out.
Nude
Nude means the colour of your skin, so a nude lip should typically be matched to you skin tone and shade. You can go a shade or two darker if you feel it’s too light. Nude should never be lighter than your skin tone.
Natural
Natural means the colour of your lips. Note the difference between this and nude. A lot of people get these two mixed up so it’s important to know the difference, especially when shopping for lipstick or having your make-up done. A natural lip is usually worn to enhance the shape and/or size of the lip, so try a lip liner first. MACs Dervish or Boldy Bare would be a good start, but always match it within a shade or two to your natural lip colour.
Red/pink
Bright colours are tricky. There are typical rules you see all the time like warm skin tones should wear warm reds etc., but I think it depends on more than that. For example, if you’re wearing a cool red, and you wear a warm red lipstick, it won’t look right, regardless of your skin tone. Similarly, what is the rest of your make-up going to be like? Warm brown tones look lovely with a warm red lip, and cool earthy tones will look great with a nice plumy pink colour.
For every day wear, I would choose a bright lipstick based on three things; the colour of your eyes, what warms your skin tone and what makes your teeth look whiter. Green eyes look great with wine/plum based colours. Brown with bright cherry reds or fuchsia pinks. Blue eyes are complemented by vibrant, true reds and peachy pinks.
Tips
- Blush is a huge factor. Never clash your red lipstick with Barbie-esqe pink cheeks! Stick to peach, neutral or bronze tones for blush when wearing red tones, and save the pinks for natural and pink lip colours.
- With bright lipstick, don’t over-do your eye make-up. A subtle smoky eye or a vintage eyeliner is the maximum you should go. While the vampy look can look great, leave it to the professionals!
- For long lasting colour, try a matte lipstick like Bourjois matte velvet. It is made with essential oils and pure pigment, lasts all day and is so lightweight, you forget you are wearing anything.
- For a great matte look, use a lip liner all over the lips and leave it at that!
- To make lips look bigger, use a lip liner slightly outside the lip line, being careful not to over-do it! Once you’ve filled your lips in, use a slight lighter shade, or a gloss, in the centre of the lip to give the illusion of a plumper pout.
- As well as your cheekbones, highlight your cupids bow for a more defined and glowy look to your make-up.
- Always use a warm concealer around the corners of your lips, this area tends to be more ash toned than the rest of the face, so a yellow or orange based concealer will warm this up.
With thanks to celebrity make-up artist Hannah Lisa www.hannahlisamakeup.com.