These days, there is nothing more critical to your overall look than perfecting your signature lip combination. Ever since the quintessential 90s brown liner and nude lip look reemerged, the art of the lip combo has had Black women in a chokehold. Whether you’re doing a full beat or some light glam, a tailored lip combo, complete with liner, lipstick, and gloss, will elevate you from cutie to baddie.
However, if you’re wandering this earth without a perfected lip combo on your roster and have no idea where to start, don’t panic! Here are some effective tips on how to craft your signature lip combo and completely transform your daily look.
Perfecting Your Lip Combo
The first and most important tip when finding your lip combo is to lean into experimentation and be open to trial and error. You may think you want a rosy pink look, though you’d be surprised how well a brown shade suits you! Don’t get discouraged if you don’t love your immediate result— there are plenty of moving parts to tweak and play around with until you find a combo that works just right.
Search For Inspiration
Whether it’s TikTok, Instagram, or Pinterest, searching for lip combos on beauty influencers with the same amount of melanin as you can help you get a good idea about what could potentially suit your face the most. Do your research and gather intel— there’s no gatekeeping here!
Determine Your Skin Undertone
While neutral undertones tend to suit any shade, cool and warm tones have their own respective suggestions. Cool undertones tend to pair well with blue or purple hues, including berry, plum and true red shades. Warm undertones should opt for shades with orange, coral or warm red tones.
Perfect the Routine
So much of your lip combo is determined by your application flow. The most ideal routine is to start by lining your lips and then filling in with lipstick, using a lip brush for added precision. Blend and blot, reapply for longer wear, then finalize by lathering on some gloss.
Choosing a Liner
Liner is the most essential component to your lip combo, defining the shape of your lips and ensuring your entire look lasts the night. It’s important to choose a liner that matches your lipstick shade or is slightly darker. Pro tip: for a natural look, select a liner that matches your natural lip color.
Choose a Lipstick
Your lipstick is the foundation of your look, so you certainly want to be strategic when picking one out. A matte lipstick is polished and long-lasting while a satin lipstick will lend to a more dewy look. Pro tip: for an added element of shine, apply a layer of clear lip gloss over your lipstick.
Best Starter Lip Combos For Black Women
Still in need of some inspo? Here are some tried and true lip combos Black girls across the internet have shared:
Everyday Nude: MAKEUP FOREVER Artist Color Pencil in “Limitless Brown”and NYX Cosmetics Powder Puff Lippie Lip Cream in “Squad Goals”
A Bold Red Look: The Color Pencil by Morphe Cosmetics in “Trendsetter” and NARS Cosmetics Powermatte Lip Pigment in “Starwoman.”
Nude Pink: Boafo Beauty’s Brown lip liner and Anastasia Beverly Hills’ Haute Holiday
Deep Nude: MAC Cosmetics Lip Pencil in “Chestnut”, MAC’s Powder Kiss Lipstick in shade “Teddy 2.0,” and LAWLESS Beauty in the shade “Annie.”
Pink and Feminine: NYX Cosmetics’ Retractable Eye Liner Pencil in “Brown”, Juvia’s Place’s Luxe Lip Liner in “Kola”, NYX Cosmetics Smooth Whip Matte Lip Cream in “Cheeks” and Fenty Beauty’s Gloss Bomb Heat Universal Lip Luminizer + Plumper in “FU$$Y.”
Deep Red for Fall: MAC burgundy lip pencil and Benefit Cosmetics Benetint Cheek & Lip Stain.
Full and Natural: Lolita 2, a liquid lipstick by KVD beauty and Baofo Brown Liner
Two-Toned 90s Look: NYX Cosmetics Slim Eye Pencil in “Medium Brown”, Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb in “Hot Chocolit Heat” to the top lip and Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb in “Hot Cherry” on the bottom lip.
90s Baddie: NYX lip liner in the shade expresso and mahogany and NYX butter gloss in Cinnamon Roll