Dark lips is not a trend we’ll find on the catwalks this Autumn/Winter season in particular, but I do feel that we cannot help but admire the use of dark lipstick throughout the Fashion Weeks. It is a trend that always returns around this time of the year and makes us secretly crave for this statement look – a look that brings the vibes the witches of East and West to mind…
It has been constantly used in fashion shows throughout the years: in 2014 by Helmut Lang – a look given to the models by Hannah Murray, makeup artist with NARS who used the NARS Audacious Lipstick in Deborah for both the eyes and the lips, backstage at Rodarte Autumn 2014 runway – look created by James Kaliardos again for NARS Cosmetics ( I recreated myself one of the Rodarte looks in this blog post from last year! ).
These somewhat “forbidden lips”, with all their dark secrets were given to the models on the Autumn/Winter 2015-2016 fashion shows as well, in presentations for brands like Marchesa and Marc Jacobs. The models walked with luscious deep eggplant lipstick shades beautifully complimented by “Twiggy lashes” only – for Ermanno Scervino, in matte dark lip pencils at Train Bleu, and with a mélange of burgundy and blackcurrant on Ungaro catwalks. Deep burgundies mixed with true blacks made up the look for Giles, while deep chocolate-browns made a clear statement at the Trussardi shows. Dashes of plums were also used paired with golden lids, reminiscing of an early* glamorous Halloween ( Luisa Beccaria fashion shows ).
[ *keep in mind that A/W fashion shows are held usually sometime early Spring ]
Next, I have a few tricks and tips for once you decided to ditch all those glossy, bright Summer lip colours and opt for the bordeaux, vine, vampy shades that are basically in the opposite side of the colour spectrum. I must admit that they are rather difficult to wear, but you can definitely still work with them. They can look quite refined and sophisticated if paired with the right look. You can wear them in full force to make a statement ( the infamous goth look ) but you can also wear them slightly dabbed on the lips as well ( more of a stain than everything else ) for a more approachable, healthy flush of colour, that freshly-looking “Jane Austen-novel-come-to-life” kind of look…
- flawless skin: no redness, no visible spots, no dark circles for as much as your skin allows it! If not use your trusty/heavy duty concealer
- pair it with a subtle, neutral eye makeup for a more sophisticated look; your bold lips are statement enough!… Unless you’re attending a Halloween party and you’re planning to look like one of the characters of the Witches of the East End!
- put your dark lipstick on before the rest of your makeup! Like this you will have an overall idea of what you’re going for and it will be easier for you to balance the other colours on your face – eyes, cheeks, bronzer and highlight if needed…
- brows! DON’T go overboard with grooming them! They will frame your face and will actually be the ones in balance with your lips, so a medium brow it’s highly recommended!
- make sure you take care of your lips before applying your dark lipstick – a scrub and a lip balm is mandatory
- make sure you line your lips before the application of your lipstick – it’s easier like that to obtain a beautifully defined pout, not to mention that your lipstick will last longer, without moving everywhere on your face
- choose carefully your lipstick! And I’m not talking only about your colour but about the formulation and finish as well! Go for matte or creamy-matte, long-lasting formulations that apply evenly and fade in a decent manner throughout the day! Any imperfection, flakiness or patchiness will be more than obvious
In the picture below I’m wearing a lipstick* with a creamy formulation that was a pain to apply in order to make it look somewhat decent, and was also a pain to wear since it went all-over the place in a matter of minutes!…
[ *if you care for a good read, make sure you click on the actual pictures to be automatically redirected to the full blog posts about these lovely dark lipsticks ]
And here you have a couple of my favourite dark lipsticks I proudly wore almost every day this Autumn:
• ESTÉE LAUDER Desirous*
• YSL Grenat Satisfaction*
• NARS Ingrid*
• NARS Deborah*
So, these are a couple of my handy tricks and tips on how to wear dark lipsticks! If you have more, please feel free to share them in the Comment section below!
As always, thank you so much for reading Beautiful…
And see you soon!
xx, Annie
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Mami și Zâna 