lips

Whether you wear a lot of make-up or not, there is nothing like a little colour on the lips to perk up the face. You don't have to do very much - some lip balm and a touch of gloss can do wonders without having to wear intense colour from lipsticks. Many people forget to take care of their lips especially in winter and often use the wrong products which obviously doesn't help! This season look for pinks, reds and high gloss.

Below you will find some examples of what to do with your lips and what is out there on the beauty counters. Watch out for our actors' recommendations of one of their favorite lip products, coming soon!

The fashion today is for a touch of shine to the lips and this means lip gloss. You can apply over lipstick or on its own (especially as they make gloss in a wide range of colours). You will notice plenty of these types of tubes on beauty counters (this one is Maybelline's Shiny-licious. Always try and see if they have a tester and feel if it is sticky even if on your hand. These tube glosses can be a little thicker than the ones in the extended lipstick-like cases. Some come with a roller-ball type end some just a hole. The best have a brush applicator. Which one you choose is a matter of personal preference. It is always best to use an applicator brush anyway! What about the superstay lip glosses? Make sure you have some lip balm handy because in order to keep any long lasting lipstick or gloss colour on the lips it has to dry and this has a very drying effect on the lips. Some come with their own 'top coat' like lip balm but we think if you have to keep applying lip balm you might as well be re-applying lipstick!

In winter especially it is wise to keep a lipstick which is high in moisture content. Look for names such as 'Super Rich' or 'Ultra Moist'. These are great for combining a lip balm and colour at the same time and if you choose a light shade then it is perfect for everyday use. Unless your lips are particularly dry (which means you need to use a treatment product to dehydrate them properly) these keep you lips looking healthy and beautiful during the nasty winter months. As Spring approaches your lips should be in great shape to transfer to ordinary lipstick or lip gloss but of course even these come in light shades and there are some which are now high gloss too so look out for those. No, they don't tend to last very long and that's because of the moisture content. We have found that the superstay moisture lipsticks did not go down well with our testers who said they didn't like the feel of them on their lips and the moisture content wasn't like the straightforward moisture lock lipsticks. These moisture lipsticks are a good choice for everyday use.

What's in your purse or cosmetics bag? Sometimes you want to make sure that your lipstick case is more than just functional and this is when you go for the more conventional or 'status' type lipsticks. They don't have to be expensive though as the one on the right comes from L'Oreal! The Body Shop also do a nice lipstick in a chrome bullet type case. This lipstick however our testers found a little drying on the lips so make sure it suits and most have testers in store. Some of these lipsticks also have a high moisture content so you can combine the benefits of colour with style for that special date! Yes they do cost more than the type seen above. There are also the lip plumping lipsticks which unfortunately many of our testers said didn't really work - maybe they expected too much! Just remember as we go into Spring make sure your colour is lighter and not as dark as winter but red is still in!

ENEWS!

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