“Where lipstick is concerned, the important thing is not color, but to accept God’s final word on where your lips end.” — Jerry Seinfeld
Our good friend Jerry may have been onto something here. However, just because we need to accept that our lips have a beginning and an end doesn’t mean we can’t manipulate them jut a tad to give the allusion that there is indeed more than meets the eye. If your looking to extend your lip life, try one of the following.
1. Use a Shiny Lipstick:
When choosing your lipstick, make sure it has a shiny finish. The light bouncing off your lips creates the illusion of fullness. If possible, avoid dark shades, as they can dwarf your lips. This is one of the easiest ways to make your lips look fuller, as you can maintain a natural look if needs be. Achieve this by choosing nude or clear shades.
2. Promote circulation in your lips:
By stimulating the circulation in your lips, you make them look plumper. One way to do this is to use an exfoliator on your lips. There was a time when I had a dedicated exfoliator for this purpose, but it got a bit expensive to maintain. A great alternative is to use a small toothbrush to brush lip balm on in circles. This has the same effect, for a fraction of the cost.
3. Create a fake shadow:
Okay, you need to be careful with this one, because doing it the wrong way can leave you looking like Charlie Chaplin. Take a waterproof, dark brown eyeliner, and draw a small line directly under your bottom lip. I’m talking miniscule here, as in a tiny flick of the pencil. This creates the illusion of a shadow. In turn, it makes your lips look fuller.
4. Use white eyeliner:
If breaking out the brown eyeliner doesn’t appeal to you (believe me, it doesn’t appeal to me), then try white instead. Add a thin line above the cupids bow and directly below your lip. Try not to make it obvious. And, make sure you do it AFTER applying other elements of your makeup. The aim here is to create a 3D effect.
5. Use lipliner that matches your lipstick:
My sister is amazing at lipliner. Me? Not so much. This is why I avoid it like the plague, because I tend to look like some deranged 80s throwback every time I break it out. When choosing lipstick, match your lipliner up with precision. Use them together, and your lips should look fuller.
6. Use lip plumper:
It is possible to find lip gloss that has lip plumper in it. A lot of them claim to use bee venom (or is it just used in the title as a clever marketing ploy?). Whatever it is they use, these lip glosses genuinely work. Do be careful when kissing someone, especially kids. This stuff tends to sting, especially on the first application.
7. Break out the concealer:
From what I have read in fashion magazines, make-up artists use concealer around runway models’ lips to create the illusion of fullness. Try to apply it thinly. To achieve this, use a brush rather than applying directly. Also, aim for a shade that isn’t too much lighter than your foundation. Doing otherwise can leave you looking ridiculous.
[Featured Image Credit: MyWedding.com]