The Unconventional Statement Lip

Now when I say statement lip I don't mean red. Red is a whole post unto itself. I practically have a library of red lipsticks.

When I say statement lip I mean maybe a color that isn't quite commonplace just yet. Maybe some of them are getting there *cough* Orange *cough* but maybe some of them are still shades you wouldn't try in a million years.

Well you should and, I'm going to tell you why and some of my favorite ways to do it!

First up we'll tackle the orange. As this is the closest to the red family I think the orange lip is the most easily worn of the three shades I have here. 

My orange of choice is the Make Up Forever Rouge Artist Intense in shade 40. It is a true Crayola orange with a comfortable satin finish.  I love to pair warm shades with warm shades and layer up matte bronze-y tones with an orange lip. I take a matte warm brown (MAC Kid or Soft Brown are good here) and sweep it over the lid. Heavily at the lash line and more blown out near the crease. Then I layer on mascara and that's it for the eyes.

Seriously. 

Then I apply a bit of bronzer to the cheeks whack on my orange lip and call it a day. I think this is both a quick and easy way to sell the orange lip.

Next is our neon pink. This one is fun!

You have to reach for MAC's Candy Yum Yum for this. It's the perfect white based matte neon pink.

 

This is the out there shade that I treat most like a red. I like to do a twist on a classic pin up look basically by substituting a neon lip in for the red. 

I do like to stick to a nice strong winged liner and no shadow on the eyes for this though; I think it makes the look seem more effortless. 

I also like to stick with just some bronzer on the cheeks here as well. I think it's a good idea for all three lip colors because it won't compete with the statement. 

...but it's your America and you can put whatever you want on your cheeks. This is just my method.

Finally is the violet lip. This one is maybe a little more out there but once you get the hang of it you won't want to give it up! I think the blue tones wake up the face but the presence of the pink tones make it very user friendly. 

I like this with a rose gold or amber-esque shade on the lid to balance things out. I usually reach for L'Oreal's Infailliable in Amber Rush with Bite Beauty's Violet Pastille on the lips. (This is discontinued but this is a nice alternative.) Then I layer on mascara to define the eyes and add a few sweeps of bronzer to the cheeks.

I think the pairing brings the right amount of drama and balance while still making the look interesting. 

I hope this gave you some ideas about how to test out some shades you hadn't thought to try before. 

Let me know if you give this one a go!