I Finally Found the Best Nude Lip Color for Darker Skin
I'm all about makeup. I love doing a full face beat with pops of colors and dark, moody lipsticks. But after years of applying a dozen products every time I had to go somewhere, the whole thing eventually got old. I wanted that no-makeup-makeup look. Or, more accurately, I wanted that nude-lipstick look.
But apparently, finding a nude shade that perfectly complemented my brown skin was asking for too much. Because I searched for months, yet every lipstick I tried was either too milky, too pink, or too...everything wrong. That is, until I happened to find an inconspicuous little shade in the Cosmopolitan beauty closet-one that gave me the elusive my-lips-but-better look that so many other lipsticks had promised (and failed) to do. And, as it turned out, that holy-grail product wasn't a lipstick at all, but a lipliner.
Yes, my magical, wonderful, barely there shade was actually the result of Charlotte Tilbury's Lip Cheat Liner in Love Trap, a creamy, peach-brown lipliner that was on par with my natural lip color, but a little more rosy and enhanced. The fact that I fell in love with a liner shouldn't have been much of a surprise, though, since I've been a lip-liner truther for a while now.
IMO, lip liners are better than lipsticks because they cost less, last longer, and can easily be topped with gloss or balm without looking heavy. Plus, liners easily define lips, while lipsticks do not. I know, unpopular opinion, but hey.
Unlike other lip liners that tend to be somewhat stiff, dry, and difficult to draw on, the Charlotte Tilbury one is completely smooth and creamy-no skipping or tugging or sucking the moisture out of your lips. And if you've never used a lip liner in place of a lipstick before, here's how to do it: just lightly trace the edges of your lips to give them some definition, then fill them in, completely covering them with liner.
My routine usually stops right there, but if I'm not feeling a matte lip that day, I'll swipe on a thin layer of E.l.f's Lip Lacquer (a clear, ultra-shiny gloss) or Charlotte Tilbury's Collagen Lip Bath (a plumping gloss with a slight iridescent sheen to it) to add a little oomph and brightness to my nude-lip look. And, because it's a lip liner, you won't have to worry about the color wiping or smudging off after an hour. I told you-liner is god.
But even if my favorite Love Trap shade isn't for you, the Lip Cheat liner formula itself is a fool-proof one, and it comes in another 14 equally awesome shades for your exact skin tone. Finally, your quest for the perfect nude lip is over.
('You Might Also Like',)
