If you peeked inside my bag at any given moment, you’d probably find something I guard almost as carefully as my cash or apartment keys: a small arsenal of lip products for every weather scenario, occasion, and lip-care emergency. My friends will never let me forget the time, on a trip to London, when I dropped my MAC Spice lip pencil onto the subway tracks. I brought the entire station to a halt while I begged staff to retrieve it with those extra-long grabbers reserved for actual valuables (and, apparently, a surprising number of lost shoes).
That’s why, instead of rolling my eyes at the sheer amount of new lip care launches lately, I’m lapping them up. From makeup artist Katie Jane Hughes’ Precision Sculpture Stylo (which I’m pretty certain she’s been using on Dua Lipa for years) to YSL’s new Lovenude Lip Blusher, a needle-free take on lip blushing, there’s no shortage of products to get to grips with, along with a few very cute trends to match.
Without further ado, here they all are for your perusal.
Lip Blusher
Lip blushing is a semi‑permanent treatment that uses pigment to enhance and define the lips’ natural color and shape. Because it involves needles and a high level of skill, it can be both uncomfortable and expensive. Fortunately, there’s an easier way to get the same soft, blurred effect without any paperwork: Fred Letailleur’s lip‑blush technique. Letailleur, YSL Beauty’s Northern Europe makeup artist, says this look is poised to define spring — and the best part is that it’s simple to recreate.
“First, apply a little concealer on the entire lip and blend it down onto the lip texture,” says Letailleur, adding, “This allows you to remove the natural color of the lips, ready for the lip color.” Once your concealer has been buffed in, Letailleur suggests picking up a neutral or cool-toned lip pencil like YSL Kiss Shaper Long-Lasting Sculpting Lip Liner, to trace the outline of the lips — but don’t worry about making things sharp. “You’re going to blend it using a small domed brush,” says Letailleur. “While you could use your finger, this is a cool little tool because it replicates that effect [without the mess].”
The lipstick you choose is key, and Letailleur recommends reaching for a soft-matte product with a balmy texture, like YSL’s new Lovenude Lip Blusher Soft Blurring Lip Color. “Choose a richer, more reddish undertone to give the lips a 3D effect,” says Letailleur, “and keep it to the center of the lips only.” Letailleur also recalls a YSL-approved lipstick technique called the “little love” application: “Literally apply your lipstick in a love heart shape from the Cupid’s bow down to the center and then blend it slowly and progressively from the outside in to give more intensity on the center of the lip.”
The result? A blurred, dimensional lip look that makes them appear plump and hydrated — just like lip blushing, only without the needles. We adore this similar lip look by makeup artist Leah Baines on model Núria Oliu. She used Rhode Pepide Lip Shape in Balance and Tower 28 BeachPlease Lip + Cheek Dewy Cream Blush in Power Hour. Also try Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Long Lasting Blush Balm Sheer Lip Tint or Signature Lip Lightweight Lip Blush for that lightly blushed effect.
Nina Park Lips
It’s fair to say that makeup artist Nina Park is now as famous as the celebrities she paints, thanks to her ability to make lips look plumper and more defined with only a handful of products — zero filler in sight. From Mia Goth to Zoë Kravitz and Emma Stone, her signature lip look pairs a cool‑toned contour with a dab of balmy, rosy color in the center for soft contrast.
Park has been known to reach for CLIO Soft Blending Eyeshadow Stick in Gray Fudge and Mellow Woody, tracing just outside the lip line and along the Cupid’s bow before blending lightly with a brush. She also taps the CLIO Crystal Glam Tint in Vanilla Apple onto the middle of the lips for a glossy finish.
Also try Pat McGrath Labs Lip Sculpt + Shade Lipstick and Lip Liner Contour Duo, which pairs a blurring lip liner with a balmy lipstick in one, and Merit’s Signature Lip Sheer Lip Liner, which can trace the lip line but is creamy enough to double as a lipstick in the center.
Disco Lips
“Disco lips look amazing when there’s a little more natural light outside,” says Letailleur, who explains that it sits somewhere between the frosted Y2K lip and something more holographic. “This is more fun and sparkly. It’s the perfect club moment or party mood,” adds Letailleur, but this time there’s no need for lip pencil.
Instead, he layers lipstick and gloss for a multidimensional effect. “I combine the YSL Loveshine Lip Oil Stick with the new shimmer finish Plumping Lip Oil Gloss, which is holographic. My personal tip is to use Love Shine all over the lips and just apply the plumping gloss in the center to create extra dimension when you start to pout.” It’s space‑age in a glam way, like this look on makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench using the Metal Lip Balm.
Halo Lips
Makeup Katie Jane Hughes’ brand, KJH, has made waves in recent months thanks to one product in particular: the Precision Sculpture Stylo, which is great for both contouring and filling in the lips.
Hughes suggests starting with a little bit of concealer that’s probably already on the bristles of your brush to “dull down” the lip, then mattifying with a touch of face powder to make the Stylo’s pigment really pop. She loves to use the shade Etch — a cozy balance of warm and cool — to define her lips, calling the technique a halo effect, focusing on the Cupid’s bow and the underside of the bottom lip to create a shadow. She uses a fluffy brush to blend, then powders a tiny bit over to “lock in” the color softly so as not to remove it.
Next, she applies a nude lipstick to the center of the lip to add pigment, avoiding the lip line. The finishing touch is a slick of shimmer from her Prism Lip Lite Crayon, which she likes to apply just underneath the top lip line and on top of the bottom lip line. This, she says, gives the face multidimensionality and ensures the lips appear the most vibrant and forward part of our makeup look.
If you like a chubby pencil like Hughes, also try NARS Powermatte High-Intensity Long-Lasting Lip Pencil, or Laura Mercier Petal Soft Lipstick Crayon.
Negative Space Lips
We have Chola culture to thank for this strong lip look, and thanks to our renewed obsession with all things ’90s and ’00s, it’s making a comeback. This lip look on content creator Linasha is proof.
Letailleur suggests opting for the “deepest liner possible” with a clear gloss layered on top. While the lip look is all about contrast, Letailleur says you can blur your lip liner inwards if you don’t feel as daring. “But to be fair,” he adds, “you can keep it as defined as you want.” He loves YSL’s new Kiss Shaper Long-Lasting Sculpting Lip Liner, which is one of the longest-lasting I’ve tried. According to Letailleur, the clear gloss in the center creates a focal point where lipstick once was. “It’s a statement lip,” he says.
Try MAC Lipglass Air Non-Sticky Hydrating Lip Gloss or Tower 28 ShineOn Lip Jelly Hydrating Non-Sticky Lip Oil in Chill.
Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
Merit’s Lip Blush Is The Comfiest Lipstick Yet
Finally, A Lip Stain That Lasts & Feels Good
