Steal My Lips
Twenty-three people with exceptional taste on their preferred lip combo.
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There’s been a lot going on with lips lately. Easy-to-apply glossy balms for the non-fussy among us, exfoliating lip balms for skin-care-everywhere crowd, and even peel-off lip-liner tattoos. With the steady stream of new launches,outcry-worthy closings, and food-related lip-color trends (jammy-lips andcherry cola) it’s nice to get some inspiration — and actually hearhowthat bold-red lip stays in place or that liner looks just ’90s enough. So, I asked 23 people with particular, exacting, exceptional taste about their favorite lip look, whether it’s a poppy pink, gloss-forward neutral, or the tried-and-true “my lips but better.”
These conversations have been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Mbiye Kasonga
“In the past, I loved Ami Colé, but Ami Colé is closing, so I want to be sensitive to that. I have two-toned lips, so, essentially, my top lip is a little bit more brown than my bottom lip. Oftentimes, I’ll pick up a lip liner, and it works for my bottom lip, but not my top lip. This one is great because it works for both. What’s great about this Eadem lip gloss is that there’s a very mild exfoliant that over time makes your lips softer. The combo is strikes that sultry, sort of polished look.”
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Aimee France
“When I do my hair and I wear the red lip — this literally just happened to me this morning — I get told that I look like Betty Boop. I was flattered. First, I overline my lips a little bit, but not in a Kylie Jenner lip-kit way. I like to really keep the cupid’s bow intact. Then, dab in the Saie lipstick more in the center, and then finish it off with the Glossier. I feel like sometimes when you put a gloss on top, the lip will fade a lot quicker, so I started using the Glossier Ultra Lip, which is almost like Bomb Dotcom but in lipstick form. It’s nice and not shimmery, but it de-mattifies it a bit and makes it a little more luscious looking.”
Lumia Nocito
“Me and all my girlfriends have been so obsessed with lip liner recently. We’ll literally dig in each other’s bags and be like, ‘What shades do you have right now?’ When I wear ‘Stone,’ people are always asking me what I’m wearing because I think it’s really hard to find a good, cool, toned brown. After I outline my lips with it, I usually fill it in with ‘Paint My Number’ by Tower 28, which is a really close to a shade match for my lips. Then, I’ll either use a lip plumper or I’ll use thisTom Ford gloss in ‘Celestial.’The cool tones just work really well together.”
Diksha Basu
Writer and author
“I’m not at all fussy about my lip liners. I pick any dark brown or dark burgundy shade, and the Sephora one happens to be a reasonably priced, good-sized one that I keep on hand. Then I do just one swipe ofRevlon’s ‘Black Cherry.’I’ve been using it for the last decade when I go out. I’ve been seeing my mother use it for decades. When I started wanting to copy her, that’s the one I went to. I found what works, and I’m sticking to it.”
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[Editor’s note: Basu’s favorite lip liner was discontinued, so we’ve linked to the newest version of it.]
Abigail Price
“I have naturally larger lips, so I don’t feel like I need to go over the top to emphasize them. All I care about is hydration and color and how it looks. A lot of times these glosses do nothing for you, but this one actually brings your whole face together. If a little bit gets in your mouth, it tastes good. It’s actually just skincare for your lips that still adds that pop. Sometimes I will do a liner, but honestly, as long as I just have this in my bag, I’m happy. My dog chewed it, and I taped it up so I could still use it. I was like, ‘Roonie. Are you kidding? Not mom’s expensive lip treatment.’”
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Colleen Heidemann
Model
“As a woman ages and gets all of these lines that you see about the mouth, color tends to creep a bit. So to start, I shape my own lip. At this stage in life, I don’t leave it to nature to do that. Something I always start with to eliminate the lip color — I don’t mean white it out, but blot them out — is this concealer from Laura Geller. I apply that with a light brush directly on my washed and dried lip. I then take Anastasia Beverly Hills’ lip pencil, and I completely fill it in. Now that I’ve got a lip on, I powder the lip with this one from Clinique then gently brush off the powder. Then what I simply do is take my color — this is the red from Nars — and I use these sponges and very carefully, following my lip line, fill it in completely. Now I’ve completely covered up the muted lip pencil shade, but I don’t want it to look dry, so, to give it that bit of sheen that I want, I use this blush by Samer Khouzami.”
Peyton Dix
Podcaster
“I start with the Saie Beauty lip liner in the shade ‘Tease.’ It’s just a little bit of a darker brown for my skin tone at least. Then, I use the Glossier lip liner in the color ‘Flush.’ After that, I have this lip stain that I put in the center of my lips. Then I use this MAC matte lipstick to help blend all the colors together. My lips are always glossy because I’m an adult and a former hoe, so I always end with a gloss. I don’t know if it’s just the product or the matte finish, but it blends them in a really smooth, even way. The last product is from Eadem. I’m not even gatekeeping it. It already sells out all the time. The packaging is so cunt. I like a more nudie brown lip, so I use the burnt malai shade.”
Carrie Carrollo
“The base is a lip pencil from NYX, which is the best lip liner on the market. I’ve been buying it for ten years, at least in this mauve-y brown, but it has pink, dusty rose vibes to it, too. I overline a little bit just to shape them a little more, and then usually fill them in, 60 percent of the way — everything but the center — just because I think the color is so pretty, and it gives such a good base. The second thing I’ve been using is this Merit blush-slash-everything in the color ‘Postmodern,’ which is a very dark, cranberry color. It’s what I use for blush, too. I just dab it. The final touch is Unleashia, and the color is ‘Calm Grape.’ I’m not a glossy girl, and this gives a little sheen, but it’s not too glossy. Your hair doesn’t get stuck to it. I dab it on with my finger, and then it dries down exactly as it goes on.”
Freddie Chen
“It became a thing on my channel to just be like, ‘You always do two lip tints.’ So when you do the first layer and let it quote-unquote marinate for a good 20 minutes, you wipe it off with a paper towel, and the stain is there. Now, I go in with a contouring lip liner, so something more cool tone, neutral gray. I like Makeup Forever in ‘Endless Cacao.’ I put it on the sides and then below the lip, just to add that poutiness. I always reference it as you are going to look like the Joker. I say on my channel: ‘You’re not a clown. You’re clownish.’ And then on my cupid’s bow, and also on the bottom lip, I just add a layer of a bronzer — any bronzer you have. It just helps the lip look a little bit more blurry and have that pouty effect. Then I do the second layer of the lip tint because you want to put all your dry products on before the wet products. Then once that’s done, I just do a pumping gloss. It has to have glitter more than it does plumping. I can eat all you can eat sushi, and I don’t have to worry about reapplying lip tint. I just reapply the gloss. When it’s more glittery, it hides the fact that things have faded.”
Litia Garr
Venture capitalist and formerBachelorcontestant
“Right on top of my cupid’s bow and at the lowest point on my bottom lip, I overline just a little bit with the darkest color, ‘LouLou.’ I then immediately smudge it. The second color that I feather all the way around is called ‘Je Reve.’ Then I do a normal line, and then I fill in a little bit more on the outside, so that it’s a little bit darker. My staple — what I did the entire time onThe Bachelorand I’ve used for years — is ‘Pillowtalk Medium.’ ‘Je Rêve’ is better since it’s so much easier to smudge. Then I’ll do Gucci satin lipstick, which doesn’t ever settle in the lip lines. Then the gloss that I love lately is this one from Supergoop that has SPF 40. It’s so rare for lip products to have SPF, and it doesn’t taste like you’re eating sunscreen, you know? I like for the lips to be clear in the middle, so that it doesn’t look so obvious throughout the night or the day that it’s wearing off. I don’t see a lot of creators, or girls that are mixed with my kind of complexion, but Layla from Mormon Wives and I have a pretty similar skin tone, and she just stole my lip combo recently.”
Iva Dixit
“This is very much my go-to color. I have worn it to work. I have worn it to birthday parties. I’ve asked other makeup artists to use it on me. Once I find something that works for me, I see no need to stray from it. I start with the Lush lip scrub. Honestly, I really like using it just because it’s like scrubbing sugar on your lips, but it does make your lips feel squeaky clean. Next, I use the Lisa Eldridge lip liner. Then, I go in with the lipstick and my little lip brush, and I do a very light layer of it on top. And then I take the Makeup Forever lip pencil in ‘Anywhere Caffeine’ — this is a warm caramel — and I line it underneath, and then just use my fingers to blur it out to create a little bit of a shadow around the mouth. The Lisa Eldridge lip liner is very creamy and very long-lasting, so it’s like using a crayon on your lip, so I use the Makeup Forever one to blur out the edges.”
Amanda Montell
Author
“The first time I put it on my lips, it was literally like using the opaque paint tool on Photoshop. It was just so matte and opaque right away, so I looked like a clown. There’s a learning curve with it, but now I build it up slowly, so that I don’t accidentally draw clown lips like the villain fromWeapons. I dab it on the biggest part of my lips, and then I work outwards, but I don’t do the corners, because I don’t think that there is a way to apply this to the corners of your lips without fucking up. I just use the tip of my pinky finger. I blur my cupid’s bow because I like that poutier look. Then if I have gone outside the lines in a way that’s uneven or scary, then I’ll just go in with my concealer.”
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Aisha Joshi
Editor atProduce PartiesandClose Friendsnewsletter writer
“My friends and I, when we go for a drink, we’re always like, ‘It’s lip o’clock.’ And then we spill out all of our products and put it on the table. I have the Makeup Forever pencil in ‘Endless Cacao,’ and I do that first. I put it a little bit below my bottom lip. Then I go to the sides, and taper it in. On my top lip, I put a little bit at the edge of my lip to make my lips look a bit fuller than they are. Then I have the Rhode lip liner in ‘Balance.’ It’s a softer consistency. I just use my finger and I blur it together with the Makeup Forever. If it looks smeared, it looks smeared. Then I have this lipstick from Chanel. It’s much more glossy. And pretty slippery, but it feels moisturizing. Finally, I use the Saie lip gloss in ‘Kiss.’ I like the ritual of different steps, so I’m reapplying because maybe it’s worn off, but also when my friends and I are wrapping up a drink, we’re like, ‘Let’s take a minute.’ I don’t smoke cigarettes, so that’s my replacement.”
Oset Babür-Winter
Founder ofPrix Fixe
“At first I wasn’t impressed with the Dior Lip Glow, but then I genuinely realized that it was the only lip balm I was reaching for when I was going out.It just makes my lips look like a healthier version of themselves. I also really like that the packaging looks cute enough that it’s not like I’m pulling out a tube of Burt’s Bees from my bag if I’m at a more formal event. If I’m doing the full look, I like the Rouge Dior in ‘720’ on top. It is really, really pigmented, and it’s not drying at all. I’ll blot it on. On top of that, I layer Saie’s ‘Remix’ gloss, which I like because it’s just not sticky. If it’s a more casual look, I’ll just do the Dior balm and the Saie gloss. Those two together also look fantastic. And literally, I did it the other night, and my friend was like, ‘Did you get filler?’ And I was like, ‘No, I’m pregnant. I can’t get filler.’”
Victoria Filippini
Content creator and writer of the newsletterTaking Notes
“The Chanel Rouge Coco lip balm in the shade ‘914’ is my go-to for everyday. It’s the perfect nude-pink color. I recently got a lip liner to go with it that’s a nice nude brown that just amps it up a little bit. The lip balm is close enough to my actual lip color that I can apply it wherever, without a mirror or anything like that. I’ve been wearing the it for two years now, and the lip liner was a nice way to make it feel a little more defined. It’s actually the only lipstick I’ve ever finished, which I feel like is high praise for a lip product because it’s so easy just to lose them or you move on to a different shade.”
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Elizabeth Cardinal Tamkin
Writer of the newsletterCorner Boothand content director at Kule
“I’m extremely fair-skinned, and unfortunately my natural lip color is pretty fair too, so I always have a color on my lip. I’ll put on Palladio’s lip stain in ‘berry,’ and it’s kind of like a marker, but it’s pretty forgiving. If you go out of the line, you can just wipe it off. Then I’ll clean up the edges with ‘Pillowtalk.’ I just use that for everything. And then I’ll put on the Ami Colé multistick, and I’ll use my middle finger to fix it up a little bit. I use the Ami Colé for my cheeks too. I also throw on the ‘Black Honey’ just on top for extra moisture. No matter what time of year, my lips are dry, but in summer — because they’re fair, they get sunburned — I need moisture on my lips. Much like how I dress, I feel like there needs to be a focal point. If you’re wearing all black, you want to have a loud shoe, right? This is a statement lip for me. It’s for a day when I don’t want to do a ton to the rest of my face or I’m wearing sunglasses.”
Clare Vivier
“I love Manasi 7’s product called “All Over Colour.” I can use it on my cheeks, but I really love it on my lips. It’s a pretty nude color that I have been layering with some REL lip oil to give it just a little more gloss because the Minasi is very matte. I’m the type of person who just thinks way more about what I’m going to wear than my makeup. I’ll spend a lot of time getting dressed, but then no time on my makeup, so I’ll roll out of the house with nothing on my face, and then I’ll get to where I’m going, and I’ll just be like,Oh my God, I don’t have any makeup on.And if I can just put something on my lips, at least, I feel a little more put-together.”
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Gabriela Ulloa
Writer and host ofIrregardless
“I love a product that is easily smudgeable — that way I can constantly be reapplying and not worrying about being too precious with it. I oscillate between either ‘Wherever Walnut,’ which is what I’m wearing right now, and then ‘Anywhere Caffeine,’ for an evening vibe. I like that they stay put, but it’s still smudgeable and they’re very easy to apply. From there, I love doing Benetint as the base of pretty much whatever I’m doing that way if anything comes off, the tint remains. Then the last product is Ilia’s Balmy Tint hydrating lip balm. You don’t even need to use it with a lip liner, because it’s so smudgy that you can just put it all over and it over-lines. If something smudges off, you’re eating, you’re drinking, there’s a kiss, it’s fine. It looks good smudged.”
Chelsea Parke
“I always use the Sacheu lip stain when I’m getting ready. I love it because it keeps the color all day. Then I’m addicted to the Ilia lip liner, which they gifted me when it came out and ever since, I’ve been just obsessed. Then I use the Olehenriksen perfect pout, which is the best product ever because I find it to be the least sticky. It is a hydrating peptide lip treatment, but I use it if I’m just wearing workout clothes or going out for dinner. I am probably going to be wearing this for my wedding.I just love it to look very natural, like my lip, but enhanced.”
Isabelle Harrison
New York Liberty basketball player
“I like to go a little bit heavier on game days with something more durable just because I’m sweating, I’m running around, and I need it to last through halftimeI like to start with the Huda Beauty lip stain. That’s my go to because, girl, it does not move. I’ll overline the top of my lip by my cupid’s bow, just to accentuate that part because it looks really cute, and then really heavily underneath my bottom lip. Then I’ll draw normally. If I want it to be super dark or vibrant, especially for my walking tunnel pics, I’ll go on on top with MAC’s ‘Cork’ lip liner. Then I like to have a pop of pink in my lip combo, so I’ll use a combo of the Anastasia Beverly Hills, Fenty, and Laneige because they’re super hydrating. We’re sponsored by Fenty, but I’ve been using Fenty gloss since they came out.”
Trina Chan
Vice-president of brand strategy at Casetify
“Whenever I’m showing up to meetings, especially when I’m meeting someone new, a red lip helps me present myself in that light and allows me to show up in a better way. I love this lipstick from Chanel, I don’t even need to line my lips. I grab it out of my bag and go and don’t even need to check the mirror sometimes. Then, in terms of lip liners, Mary Phillips just launched her line. She does makeup for Kendall Jenner and Hailey Bieber, so her lip liners in particular have been just something I’m gravitating towards. Then if I want just a little bit of shimmer, it’s always the Dior lip oil. This is one thing that I always have on me in my pouch.”
Naomi Otsu
Graphic designer and illustrator
“I keep it pretty natural. I lean toward accentuating my eyes more than my lips. So, just a subtle, kissed look would be my vibe. The one that I love — I actually used it when I got married this year — is the Violette_FR Bisou Balm. My makeup artist introduced it to me for my wedding, and I was obsessed with it, so I just ended up using it for the rest of the year. It’s a sheer, matte lipstick, so you can really build the color as you like, which I love because I hate when you put on something and you’re like,Oh my God, that was way too aggressive. Then for lip liners, I like lining my lips with a slightly darker color than having a neutral color.”
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Yasmin Furmie
Designer
“I’m not a lover of gloss, but I do love a good lipstick and a lip liner. I use a very inexpensive lip liner from Catrice that I love, and I use a higher-end lipstick because I love mixing things up. I like having my lips hydrated, so I do that, and then I’ll line my lips, I’ll put the lipstick on, I’ll blot, and put the lipstick on again. I love a lot of neutral colors, but the one that I absolutely love with this Hourglass is a pink-y nude because it stains my lips. The lipstick can go away, but my lips still have that nude look. I don’t have to constantly reapply.”
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