Be it the hint of 90s influencing beauty trends right now, or the current celebrity favour – from Kim Kardashian to Kate Winslet et al – for a pencil-defined pout, but after a long period in cosmetic limbo, lip liner is back.
The brownish-pink we fell for in the reign of Kate Moss and Marc Jacobs is again a popular choice, as is a slightly more rosy hue that usefully fills a lip that’s natural pigment is diminishing slightly with age.
Becasue while matte liquid lipstick partially solved the old challenge of colour ‘bleeding’ into lip lines, liner is still the best thing to effectively keep colour in place when topped with something more shiny.
Despite being known for creating an understated yet luminous look, celebrity makeup artist and Bobbi Brown Artist in Residence, Nikki DeRoest, calls herself a ‘huge’ fan of lip liner.
On her clients like Rosie Huntington-Whitely, Kate Bosworth, Hailey Beiber and Bella Hadid she uses it as a base before applying a sheer balm that gives lips moist texture with color that lasts, as well as beneath more traditional cream lipsticks.
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“I look back on old photos now and I’m like, why was I so anti lip liner? It’s the answer to everything!” she laughs.
Of explaining its return to popularity she credits its versatility for creating the lip shape you love, rather than what you naturally have.
“Lots of women now are after that really full lip, and there’s obviously ways that you can cheat it with lip liner. My biggest lesson is to choose one that’s basically the same shade as your natural lip colour and use that for everything, even if you’re doing a red lip.
“You can really kind of cheat that area at the edges [where your natural lip pigment fades out] and build out your lip, and then either put a balm over the top or if you go for a full lipstick, you still have that full, natural outline that’s close to your natural colour.”
Five of the best lip liners to try now:
Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Pink Venus
Bobbi Brown Lip Liner in Pale Mauve
Sephora Collection Lip Stain Liner in Classic Beige
Hourglass Panoramic Long Wear Lip Pencil
Dior Contour Lip Liner in Classic
Image (top): @Nikki DeRoest
