The new season lip colours and products that get to work under a face mask
August's new lip colours are low effort and high impact.
A little colour or shine on your lips can instantly boost your mood and make a good look better. At the time of writing, going mask-free is permissible when you are meeting small groups and fully vaccinated. This is not something everyone will celebrate with a new lipstick but there are some fabulous new formulas out this month if you feel like it.
Róen Beauty, a vegan and cruelty-free brand from Los Angeles, is new to online beauty boutique Cult Beauty. Founded by Irish makeup artist Katherine Synnott, fashion photographer David Roemer and beauty devotee Tiffany Thurston Scott, Róen already has a following among Katherine’s A-list clients, including Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
The brand’s Elixir Tinted Lip Oil, €35, is one of my favourites. Lip oils feel luxurious but tend to smudge everywhere, which looks messy when there’s colour involved. Elixir has more tenacity, probably because Róen uses carnauba and candelilla waxes that give it the texture of a shine lipstick.
It also has lots of plant oil, mainly coconut, sunflower and jojoba. The ingredients list is mainly moisturisers, there’s even some hyaluronic acid in there. It comes in three shades, ’Scarlet’ red, ‘Stella’ rose-pink and ‘Alba’ orange.
KVD Beauty’s new Epic Kiss Nourishing Vegan Butter Lipstick (€21 at boots.ie) offers similar peace of mind about animal products with a stronger colour pay-off.
High-colour lipsticks are sometimes drying because the pigment content doesn’t leave much room in the bullet for emollient ingredients that give it some ‘slip’ and our lips lack any oil glands that might offset this with natural protection.
All 15 shades of Epic Kiss are full colour from the first swipe, as well as rich in protective cupuaçu butter and safflower and sunflower oils.
Moisturising tends to make lips look fuller instantly and the microcrystalline wax in the mix creates a multi-dimensional shine that makes them look fuller still. The slim tip makes neat application a cinch and the case is made from 80% post-consumer recycled materials.
I love a dramatic, perfectly primed lip complete with flawless liner but most mornings all I want is a touch of gloss that doesn’t stick to my hair. Urban Decay’s Vice Plumping Shine Balm (€20 at arnotts.ie from August 16) comes in a clear ‘Coconut Water’ that does not feel balm-like.
It is exceptionally glossy though the finish is completely non-sticky. The formula is vegan and plumps lips with hyaluronic acid, which is a real constant among lip products launched this year.
It also includes shea butter and passion fruit oil, ingredients known for being rich in antioxidants. The watery texture feels weightless. Vice Plumping Shine comes in eight colours, including a holographic lavender sparkle that’s quite fun, but my favourite is crystal clear.
MAC Lustre Lipstick is a classic: you probably found your perfect shade as a teenager (I was ‘Politely Pink’ for years, thank you). And yet the brand’s found some ways to give it an upgrade.
The newly reformulated (and renamed) Mac Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (€22 at brownthomas.com) replaces the original collection. It comes in 28 shades, including 18 newbies, four limited-edition shades and six that are already popular as Lustres.
The formula creates a luminous pop of sheer high-shine colour and protects lips with a barrage of a moisturising blend that includes hyaluronic acid, Vitamin E, shea butter, jojoba, raspberry seed, olive and coconut oils.
Shine and hydration may be on everyone’s lips these days but Estée Lauder knows that many of us are still mad about matte. Pure Color Whipped Matte Liquid Lip (€30, exclusive to Boots from August 25) may even convert some of the glossy posse.
I think the finish is especially enticing — there’s a flaw-blurring powder blend in the formula that gives it a velvety look. Moringa butter and hyaluronic acid are the mandatory moisturisers and flexible polymers ensure it stays put.
The spire-shaped, flock tipped applicator keeps the colour even and easy to line. There isn’t an unflattering shade of this product.
Charlotte Tilbury is known for nude lips and this month launches three new shades of her Matte Revolution Lipstick, €32. “The perfect nude is like instant confidence, it’s a super 90s, superstar, super-classic look,” she says of the peachy nude ‘Cover Star,’ nude apricot ‘Catwalking’ and rosewood-brown ‘Superfabulous,’ respectively.
The new shades launch on August 19 at charlottetilbury.com and on Brown Thomas and Arnotts counters from September 2.
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