Here are some
great tips on choosing a lipstick color and how to apply it like
a professional. I could have used these at age 13 when I first ventured
into the world of make-up. I bought orange lipstick and applied
it all around my mouth, even in the corners. I probably looked like
the Joker!
Light Skin Tones
Consider these colors:
- Light-brown beiges with pink or orange undertones.
- Medium brown with pink undertones or beige lipsticks with
a pink undertone.
- Browns like Mocha browns, and darker brown/pink lipsticks
for an evening lip look.
- Deep plum reds like soft berry and wine reds with a blue undertone.
- Pinks such as light shiny pink lipsticks with blue undertones
work well.
- Pink with a slight gold shimmer also enhances this skin tone
very nicely.
Be careful of these colors:
- Extra pale browns with yellow undertones make fair skin look
washed out.
- Reds with an orange undertone.
- Hot pink lipstick as it overpowers fair skins
Medium Skin Tones
Consider these colors:
- Deep reds and the blue-reds brighten medium skin with a yellow
undertone.
- Brown and warm reds will soften and look warm on medium skin.
- Rich caramel shades, medium brown with yellow or pink undertones,
and creamy coffee color browns.
- Pinks like rich and deep pinks. Also pinks with brown undertones
enhance and flatter medium skins very well.
- Sheers, creams, and mattes can also be tried using these shades
of pink.
- Olive skin looks good with brownish reds, light browns and
raisin shades of lipstick.
Be careful of these colors:
- Browns that are very pale can make medium skins look ashy
and washed out.
Yellowish Skin Tones
Consider these colors:
- Rich, deep brown reds and deep, dark berry shades.
- Browns with a red or auburn or mahogany undertone and rich
browns that resemble coffee, toffee, and chocolate colors work
well with this skin tone.
- Pinks like deep berries, rich rose, and soft to medium plums
with strong yellow undertones are flattering to this skin tone.
Be careful of these colors:
- Stay away from orange or reds and pink or red shades.
- Avoid pinks that are to cool and too light as these pinks
can make complexion look draining.
Dark Skin Tones
- Plums, wines and deep reds and reds with a blue undertone.
- Mahogany
- Almost any shade of brown color such as light browns to a
rich, dark, coffee brown suits black skin tone.
- Pinks like medium and soft sheer pinks, pink in glosses and
sheers with a touch of beige.
- Berries and deep roses
Be careful of these colors:
- Avoid orange and pink reds on this skin tone.
Application
- Prevent lipstick from seeping into cracks by coating the mouth
with lip balm, letting it sit for five full minutes, then blotting
the excess with a tissue before applying color. (For really
chapped lips, gently slough off dead skin with a soft toothbrush
or a damp washcloth before wiping off the balm).
- To keep lipstick from bleeding, dip a cotton swab in translucent
powder and roll it just outside the lip line before putting
on any color.
- Consider using a lip brush when filling in the mouth (it can
give more control than using the tube itself).
- Line the lips using lip liner, keeping to the natural lip
line. Consider lining lips with a neutral pencil, even if the
lip color over that is a bright shade. This way the finished
mouth looks more natural and if the color fades or is “chewed”
off, the layer underneath is not a bright orange or red.
- Proceed to fill in the entire mouth with the lip liner pencil.
This will also help the lipstick color last longer. Use the
side of the pencil, not the point, for filling in the rest of
the mouth.
- Use a lip brush and fill in the entire mouth up to the same
edge as the lip pencil.
- Blot with a tissue.
- You can optionally put powder over the top of the first coat
of lipstick to help it last longer.
- Reapply lip stick with the lip brush and blot again.
- You can alternatively try staining the lipstick onto your
lips: apply three coats of a deep shade, leaving it on for a
few minutes, and blotting it with a tissue so only the pigment
remains.
- Blotting with a tissue will also help lip gloss last longer.
The wetter the mouth, the less likely the gloss will stick.
- To take off long-lasting lipstick, cover the mouth with Vaseline
and wait a minute before wiping it off. Waterproof eye-makeup
remover works quickly, too.
