I personally love to wear a dark lip, whether it be a dark red, berry or purple. I like this kind of look particularly in the autumn right through to the winter. It can be both a day or night look depending on your makeup style.

So follow these simple steps to create a long lasting, wearable en vogue makeup look.

PREP

Firstly prep the lips. In the colder months my lips can become dry and become chapped. If you have this problem also. I have 3 simple things you can do to get soft subtle lips, that are a great base for your lipstick.

1. Use a lip scrub for example Lush’s sweet lips. This helps get rid of the dry top layers of detached skin on your lips.
2. Now your ready to condition your lips. I use Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream on my lips, but any balm of your choice would be perfect to use now.
3. Lastly don’t forget to keep hydrated , drinking water helps not only your lips but your skin, hair and overall health.

The European Food Safety Authority recommends about eight 200ml glasses for a woman and 10 200ml glasses for a man. 

Leave your balm work its magic, the longer you leave it the better it will work. In this time I tend to do the rest of my makeup so eyes, brows and base.

BASE:

Wipe off any excesses balm as this can make your lipstick bleed. Then buff a thin layer of your foundation over your lips. At the moment i am used Illamasqua SkinBase Foundation in shade No2 applied with a Real Techniques buffing brush. This will help with your lipstick’s longevity, as well as helping get the true colour of your shade. Think of it as painting a base that will help the colour pigment when applied.

LINER:

Then choose a lip liner. I have chosen a deeper shade then my lipstick to create more depth and a subtle ombre lip. To start with I line the top lip, as mine is thinner then the bottom so needs balancing and over drawing. Draw an ‘X’ shape on your cupids bow, then work your way inwards from each conner to the centre of your lips. Working inwards will produce a softer, curved, beauty lip. Always start by staying true to your natural shape. It it is a lot easier to add more liner but it can be difficult to rectify a mistake like excessive over drawing. Then follow the line of your bottom lip , mine is quite full so I keep to its natural shape. Once my lips are outlined I then go in and make my top lip fuller by slightly over drawing the line to make a nicer shape. I like an exaggerated cupids bow, as a bit of a statement look. But I advise you to try different shapes and see what you like.

BLEND AND APPLY LIPSTICK:

So now blend the inside edges of the liner and go straight in with the lipstick. You can apply with a brush or right from the bullet , its up to you. Using a brush you can work the product into the lips in thin layers and get a more precise line. But to be honest , on myself I tend to just use the bullet straight and blend out after. This is also more practicable, if your out and about.

MATTE / GLOSS?

As I like to wear my hair down , I don’t usually put gloss on my lips. I hate my hair sticking to it and hate that although, I put it in the middle of my lips, it can cause bleeding and makes the colour wear off faster. But if you like gloss , go for it, it does look great!

CONCEAL

If you want a prefect outline to your lips which I would advise for a full on dark lip. Use a concealer true to your skin colour to outline around your lips. This also helps to stop your lipstick bleeding, making that vampy look great for hours.

FINISH:

Ok so last step is to hight light your cupids bow and for added fullness you could add a sight shadow under your bottom lip.

So now rock that Dark lip !!

I would wear this type of lip with a neutral eye makeup and strong brow to balance out the look.

Another way would be to wear dark eyes in a similar shades to the lips, I think this would be a good evening look.

**When wearing a dark or bright lip use a straw to drink with. It will stop transfer and a messy lip **

Product list:

-Sweet lips scrub from Lush

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-Sleek Highlighter from their light contour palette 

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Brands and colours of lipsticks that I like for this look:

Mac – Rebel ( A purple berry shade) and Diva ( A very Dark Red)

Rimmel Kate collection 04 (dark purple)

Topshop- Beguiled

Illamasqua- Pristine ( pure black) FOR THE REALLY DARING !!

Who does it suit?

This look can suit everyone, from the lightest skin tones to the darkest. Just pick the appropriate shade to suit your skin tone cool or warm.

What to wear this look with?

This look is striking so will get you noticed for all the right reasons I like to wear it in the day time as a vampy rocker look or in the evening perfect with a little black dress.

Thanks for reading, I hope this guide has helped you. If you have any of your own tips. I would love to hear from you. Write them on way FB wall. Let’s share all our makeup knowledge

Dan xox