The upper lip is reaching new heights; shine is back and lines are blurred – there’s no glossing over the new lipstick trends. Make-up artist Sue Brophy shares her tips for SS20’s boldest lip trends.

GLOSSY

For glassy and mirrored lips, pastel liquid lipsticks are super long-lasting and work great when paired with a gloss. Buff on the liquid lip with a fluffy brush or gently pat with fingers. Once the lip has dried, add on a generous layer of clear lipgloss–Smashbox has the glossiest option.

OMBRE

A soft ombré lip gives you more control of where you add the depth, depending on your lip shape. Get creative with colours. My favourite combination of shades for ombré lips is a bright red with burgundy edges. With the lighter shade, line the lips and ?ll in using a lip liner, then pat with a finger to blend. Shade the lip corners and edges gently with the darker shade, then pat with the ring finger to softly merge the two.

lipstick

BLURRED

Apply the lipstick directly from the bullet in soft stamping motions, dabbing the lips with colour, then grab an eyeshadow brush and using light strokes, buff the edges of the lip line to create a gorgeous diffused effect. This works great with all shades, but berry tones stand out the most.

POINTED

The exaggerated cupid’s bow seen on the catwalk can be worn just like the runway or pared back to frame your lips. With lip liner, in the centre of your upper lip, draw an X, lining the arms of the X with the peaks of your cupid’s bow. Draw a V from the peaks of your cupid’s bow into the centre. Follow the rest of the natural lip line and keep the cupid’s bow as pointed as you dare. To define even further, use powder a shade or two lighter around the lip border to clean up any edges with a flat brush.

SCRUB UP

“When experimenting with lips,” says Sue Brophy, “first ensure lips are hydrated and smooth. If there’s dead skin that needs to be removed, try a lip scrub. Always apply a lip balm to hydrate at the beginning of your skin prep.”

Photography by Jason Lloyd Evans.

This article originally appeared in the Volume 2 issue of IMAGE Magazine.

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