Put your money where your mouth is

Start with base care... Moisturize! Moisturize! Moisturize! 

Lips are one of the few areas of our body that don’t have sebaceous glands, so the skin dries out easily. No product looks good on dry chapped lips. I like to apply a softening lip balm such as Carmex , on clients with chapped lips before starting the make-up base; this gives you enough time for the lips to absorb some moisture before applying lipstick. 

Matte: Matte products last longer; they contain less moisture than other products so they adhere to the lips and don’t fade away so quickly. 

Lip gloss: Lip glosses provide hydration, however aren’t as long lasting as matte products. It is a great product for making the lips look fuller and for layering on top of another colour. Glossy, shiny and frosted finishes make lips look fuller than matte finishes. 

Lip liners: Lip liners define the lips and keep lipstick on longer when used on the entire lip before layering on lipstick. Lip liners should not be more than one or two shades darker than your lipstick. 

Finding the right shade 

You know you have found the right shade when it enhances your skin tone makes the eyes look brighter and gives your face a lift. Here are some tips. 

• Neutral colors look great on everyone, especially for the day. 
• Pink shades warm up paler and older skin. 
• Golden red colors look lovely on tanned or dark complexions 
• Fuller lips can get away with darker shades, however they make small lips look smaller. 
• Dark lipsticks such as dark browns and dark red are more ageing than lighter shades, 
• Dark colors tend to make lips look smaller but a light colour will maximize the size of the mouth. 

Make lipstick last longer 

Gently apply a light concealer over the lips. This gives you a nice clear line for when you add your lip liner. It also creates a nice base for your lipstick, bringing out its true colour. 

Place a thin layer of tissue over the lips and apply loose or pressed powder through the tissue to set the lipstick in place. The tissue gives a finer coverage of powder going through to the lips so that you aren't removing the lip colour – you're just matting it down and setting it in place. Then reapply another coat of lipstick. 

Fun lipstick facts 

• Lipstick sales go up as the stock market falls. 
• During the Second World War, cosmetic companies concentrated on supplying lipsticks cheaply to war workers to help the war effort and maintain the morale of women working in munition factories. 
• Studies have shown that lipstick sales tend to rise during gloomy or rainy days. 
• During the Middle Ages in Europe, lipsticks were often viewed as a fashion accessory of prostitutes and lower class women. It wasn’t until shortly after the reign of Queen Elizabeth I that it was used in higher circles. 
• 70% of me think red lipstick is sexy. 
• Some international cosmetic companies claim to sell one lipstick per second.