Gorgeous, delicious and scrumptious red lips

Share

Tweet

Email

There's always time to apply a lovely lipstick. Your lips will thank you.

It is one of those mornings: You can barely hold your eyes open and it is an effort to put one foot in front of the other but you have to get to work. Getting dressed it about all you can muster. Forget the make-up.

But, wait! Take two seconds and swipe some colorful lipstick on those pouty lips of yours and it will make all of the difference. In an instant, you can transform yourself from dreary and downtrodden to bright and sassy with some basic make-up techniques for perfect lips.

That is the beauty of lip make-up -- lipstick. It is a quick fix. There are lots of choices in lip make-up: sheer lipstick, matte lipstick, long-lasting lipstick. Lip make-up comes in a myriad of colors. With some practice, adding primer, lip liner and finishing gloss increases your lip make-up routine by just seconds, with glamorous results.

One of the best perks of wearing the perfect lipstick is what it can do for the appearance of your teeth. If you wear a blue-based lipstick it will instantly make your teeth look a couple of shades whiter. Seriously. Try this experiment: Look at yourself in the mirror and smile. Now put on blue-based lipstick, look at yourself again and smile. Your teeth will appear much whiter when you are wearing lipstick.

However, before you apply your lip make-up here is an important tip: Take some time to take care of your naked lips. Lips are not like the rest of your skin with a protective layer, which holds moisture in the skin. Lips do not have oil glands, which also help retain moisture. There is much less melanin (pigment) in your lips than there is in the rest of your skin, so lips need to be treated differently from other portions of your body.

Unfortunately, other than applying lipstick many women do not minister to their lips at all. If you want the perfect lip make-up you have to take care of the canvas, which is, of course, your lips.

Because our lips do not have that protective layer it makes them very vulnerable to the elements, including sun exposure.  Use a lip balm that is thick and waxy, which will protect your lips and prevent them from drying out. Purchase and apply a balm that has a SPF in it to protect your lips from the sun. The balm should prevent your lips from chapping and flaking and create a good surface for lipstick. Now your lips are ready for the perfect lip make-up.

Some women like to prime their lips before applying lipstick. This is one of the most important rules of make-up techniques for perfect lips. You can use special lip make-up primer, or you can substitute with a light dusting of loose powder or foundation. A good technique for applying primer or powder is to apply a thin coat of lipstick, blot it heavily with a tissue, powder or prime your lips and gently remove the excess primer with a large brush or tissue.

Apply your lipstick straight from the tube or with a lipstick brush or, as a lot of women do, with your finger. Blend the lipstick, using a lip brush, which smooths and evens out your lipstick. Blot your lips again, using a tissue, pressing your lips together, and then lightly dust your lips once again with foundation or powder. When you blot and apply primer or a foundation your lipstick will stay on longer and you will not be as apt to get it on your teeth.

Long-lasting lip make-up sets immediately upon application and will stay in place, not smearing, for eight or more hours, and blotting or setting is not necessary. Long-lasting lip make-up will not dry out your lips. For the woman who wants to put on her lipstick once and be done with it, these long-lasting versions are the perfect lip make-up. What a surprise when you look in the mirror eight hours after applying your lipstick and realize, voila, it is still there!

If you want to, apply a clear coat of gloss over your lips. Some women like the slightly wet look while others prefer a more matte appearance. For many women, you cannot get the perfect lipstick make-up without a dose of gloss. With respect to shine, apply a product that gives you the make-up that looks and works best for you.

Some women are wild about lip liner; others not so much so. Again, it all depends on what you like best when you look in the mirror. As part of your make-up techniques for perfect lips, applying a line around the outer edge of your lips with lip liner pencil can ratchet up the impact of your lips. Your best choice may be a neutral colored liner that can be used with various lip colors. If you prefer a colored liner, choose one that goes with your lipstick. A really dark liner against a really light lipstick is not going to look good. For perfect lip make-up, the liner should be discreet.

You can use a lip liner to re-shape your lips or to accentuate your lips. A lip liner can also reduce the size of your lips, if that is your goal, and it can help you even out lips that are uneven. The best way to apply liner is to start at the center of your upper natural line and moved outward to the corners, following your natural lip line. The color of your lip liner will have a bearing on the end result.

A handy tip to keep in mind regarding perfect lip make-up: Once you have applied it, stick your index finger in your mouth, close your mouth; now pull your finger out of your mouth. The lipstick that would have found its way onto your teeth is now on your index finger!

References:

MyBeautyMatch.com: 10 makeup trends for women over 35

Beauty and Makeup Tips