Miss Make-Up Does Lipstick! Top Picks Of All Time!

Lipsticks and lipglosses are probably my favorite cosmetic category. Dating all the way back to high-school, I was obsessed with lipstick and would not be caught DEAD without it. Going to school without lipstick, for me, was the equivilant to going to school naked. I literally felt naked without my WetnWild Brandywine lipliner and Revlon ColorStay Sienna lipstick. And I'm no less obessessed today. Only, I will absolutely leave the house without my lips adorned with color. I mean, I'm not THAT crazy. Sometimes, I can at least wait until I get in my car and if I'm running late, I put on my lipliner or lipgloss at a red light, or both if its a long light! So I don't do the dark lipstick thing very often like back in the 90's and I'm proud to admit I NEVER did the dark lipliner and pale lipstick combination. Today, I keep it pretty neutral with the occasional unexpected bright or bold lip. I have compiled a list of my top favorite lip products and they include lipstick, lipgloss, lipliner, lip balm, and anything else I can think of. These are really in no particular order. Just whatever came to mind.

A Little Background:

 I am fair-medium cool-toned complexion with platinum hair and blue eyes. These shades work with my skin tone and other characteristics but may not work for everyone. According to your skin tone, certain shades with certain undertones will work best for you and others will not. If you share a similar complexion, these should work for you as well. You will see most of my faves are from MAC because I think MAC lipstick gives the best shade selection and formula choices for the price. With the climbing drustore make-up prices, you can pay $3-$4 more and get a much better quality lipstick at MAC. I'm starting out with the most recent loves and working my way down to the ones I've used for a while.


MAC Marquis D' lipstick:

A gorgeous neutral, a peachy-sand shade with very fine shimmer, lustre formula so it will give off a bit of shine which enables you to go lipgloss-less if you are wearing this lipstick. My current fave lip combo at the moment is this lipstick paired with Chanel Natural lipliner and sometimes Emancipation lipgloss from MAC over top. I apply a pretty good base on my lips with the liner and then go to town with the lipstick. Using a lipliner to outline and fill in your lips before applying your lipstick will make for a longer lasting richer color.


Chanel Lipliner "Natural":

A must-have staple in my make-up collection. If I was without this lipliner, my lips would not be complete. A very neutral peachy toned liner that will work with most everything. Yes, Chanel make-up is expensive and I believe this liner was $29 but you get the liner on one end and on the other end is a lipbrush and you get a Chanel sharpener made specifically to sharpen the liner. This is a great idea because sometimes you will end up chopping off more than you want to when using a larger sharpener.


MAC Subculture Lipliner:

I am placing this one after the Chanel liner because I think its a cheap alternative choice for a great neutral peachy pink liner. At around $14.50 it is a great choice for a quality lipliner that you can use over and over with many lipsticks. Another couple of great choices although not in my collection, are MAC Spice and Naked lipliners.


MAC Pink Lemonade Lipglass:

A gorgeous summer-time or anytime shade. This is a beautiful and opaque coral-pink toned lipgloss. Some lipgloss is sheer and don't put out that "liquid lipstick" type color which is the point of not buying a lipstick, but sometimes you want the color pay-off in gloss formation. If color is what you want, color is what you'll get with Pink Lemonade. If you've never used a MAC lipglass and you don't like sticky glosses, you may not like this one. I happen to like sticky glosses because they STICK to your lips and last a long time. I don't like slippery glosses for the simple fact that you have to re-apply every 10 seconds and buy more product a lot more often. I highly recommend this for darker skin tones or practically anyone with a bit of color on their face.


MAC Speed Dial Lipstick:

Boy, this has turned in to my favorite MAC lip products of all time but I promise I will switch it up. This lipstick is a cool-toned, blue-based,bright pink. Translation: this lipstick looks great on fair skinned people with pinky undertones like myself. If you like MAC Pink Noveau, you may even like this better. You may look a little crazy if you have a dark complexion from medium-tan on up. Think Nikki Manaj wearing her "Pink Friday" lipstick. Speed Dial is in this same category along with other MAC lipsticks like Saint Germaine and Snob. If you are fair-skinned, cool tones with a blue base look best on you.


NYC Ultra Moist Lip Wear in Cafe:

On the complete opposite end of the spectrum is a 99cent favorite that I discovered several years ago through Makeupalley.com This is an amazing neutral shade, kind of a peachy pink champagne with a slight frost. Others have described the "frost" as more of a "metallic" sheen. Either way, its subtle and doesn't ruin the appearance. It has good staying power. Some have said it is a bit drying and others say it feels like a lip balm. Use your own judgement. As with any other brand that offers 99cent lipsticks, the packaging is pretty awful. I don't even think that once you twist it up that it twists back down. And almost all of the lids on the lipsticks that I own from NYC have cracked. This glowing review is for the actual "product" and not the packaging. For 99cents, you can't expect it to look like Yves Saint Laurent. What have you got to lose? Give it a go!


NYC Ultra Moist Lip Wear in Sheer Red:

Warning: looks slightly scary in the tube if you aren't really looking for a super "red" red lipstick. But you'll be surprised if you give it a try. This is a fabulous introduction into the bold and seductive world of red lipstick. And once again, its 99cents. It is semi-sheer but builds up to a gorgeous blue-based cherry brick red. I just made that up. I've seen "cherry" red and I've seen "brick" red but never "cherry brick." Like the sound of it! Yes, another blue-based lipstick. I mention this a lot because its what I tend to gravitate towards being fair-medium complected with cooler undertones. Hint hint, cool toned people. Toss those shades that are too warm for you and take my "Lipstick 101" course starting here on my beauty blog at "right now" o'clock. Every woman should own a decent red lipstick and if you don't wear it very often then paying 99 cents is perfect and no one will ever be able to tell that you did. NYC makes other great reds that are highly rated as well like "Retro Red" which looks how it sounds and gives off an orangey-red appearance. Would look fantastic paired with OPI Mon-sooner or Later nail polish. I digress. "Ruby" is yet another great NYC red that has been compared to MAC's New York Apple. It is a true red that is brighter than the others and is also said to work with most skin-tones.


Rimmel Lip Liner East-End Snob:

Another lip lining staple and must-have product for pink lovers. This will work with most all pinks that are in the light-medium range. I've known people to just put on a good lip balm, fill in their lips with East End Snob and put on their fave pink gloss and they're all set. There isn't much else to say. Its pink. Its cheap. It works.


La Mer Lip Balm:

Once again, bouncing to the other end of the expensive and lavish spectrum is my next faveorite. This is lip balm. Its $45. Yes I know, your $2.99 Burt's Bees works just as good and you can't believe I'd spend $45 for a mere lip balm. Let the judging begin. Stand in line behind those that judge me for buying Louis Vuitton bags when their "Target" bags work just as well and look just as good. Umm, no, they don't. And either does your Burt's Bees. I love the La Mer lip balm becuase it tastes very good and fresh with a non-overpowering minty taste. It feels great on the lips and it actually does moisturize. It contains the same "miracle broth" ingredient that their famous and coveted Creme de La Mer contains. Plus I'm a sucker for packaging and it comes in a gorgeous little round pot with silver twist-off cap. I'm about 30% of the way through and I got it at Christmas-time. Not too bad. Works great under lipstick and this is where I get picky with lip balms. Some are too thick, waxy, or greasy or just not great pre-lipstick lip balms for whatever reason. I like my lips to be moisturized and not coated with waxy lip balm to the point where my lip liner will not glide on because of the waxy substance beneath it. This stuff is the perfect wing-man for my lipsticks and glosses. Take your Burt's Bees and shove it.


Clinique Lipstick Angel:

Another very wearable, good for everyone, red lipstick. This is a raspberry-toned red which looks especially good on fair tones but great on tan and dark skin as well. I know this because I look good in it (fair) and my sister-in-law who recommended it to me looks good in it (tan). I wear it with a red Rimmel lipliner that I can't remember the name of. Just go to a store that carries Rimmel and look for a red lipliner. That should do it. Very smoothe lipstick and glides on very well. Not too matte and not too glossy which is the perfect formula. Clinique is a tried and true make-up brand so you don't really have to research the reputation of this brand.

 NYX Mega-shine Lipgloss Beige:

I've already written about this one in my "How Did I Get This Far Without These?" products. It smells good, has great lasting power, just sticky enough to last but not sticky enough bother those that don't prefer sticky glosses. It is also nice and opaque and gives the appearance of more of a liquid lipstick rather than a gloss which can often be sheer. Don't let the name "Beige" fool you because it isn't beige. The. Perfect. Shade. Of. Pink.


Honorable Mentions:

NARS Orgasm Lipgloss:

The perfect peach toned summer shade that looks just like the famous NARS blush by the same name. The signature NARS shade made famous by their gorgeous shades of blush have absolutely made a big name for themselves in the cosmetics industry. Fun fact: When I see the NARS products on QVC, they sometimes sell "Orgasm" products like the multiple or the blush only they aren't allowed to say "Orgasm" so they say "O" or refer to it as the famous blush that starts with an "O". I think Orgasm was a clinical text-book term but I guess the producers over at QVC aren't fond of it.

MAC Lipglass Starlet Kiss Heatherette:

An old favorite and also a limited edition MAC product that was released with their famous Heatherette packaging. Pretty much near impossible to find one but I have kept mine for the purpose of its way cool packaging even though the lipgloss inside of it is a distant memory. But what great memories they are. A gorgeous opaque, bubble-gum pink gloss in the silver/hot pink/black "Heatherette" for MAC design. Quite possibly the best packaging MAC has ever done.

MAC Creme Cup Lipstick:

My previous HG (Holy Grail) lipstick. I know you're thinking, how did an HG end up losing its HG status and land in the honorable mention category? Well I'll tell ya. It was my HG before discovering a new HG that would soon be replaced by yet another HG (Speed-Dial). What can I say, MAC does "pink" right and I fall in (and out of) love easily when it comes to their pinks. Creme Cup is a much more wearable every day pink shade that doesn't have the brightness  or "wow" factor that shades like Speed-dial, Pink Friday, Pink Nouveau, and Snob have. This is your basic Barbie pink that can be worn with a natural day-time "going to work" look or an ultra-sexy glammed up smokey eye. Very versatile and highly recommended. For all ages and skin tones.

Favorite Lip Product Combos:

I mentioned one of them but I will reiterate in case you skipped over that part in an attempt to eliminate my excessive wordiness. 

Combo #1: I am enjoying the Chanel Natural lipliner where I outline and then fill in my lips to provide a good base because the Marquise D' is a lustre and although it provides a nice sheen it just doesn't have the lasting power I prefer. So I use the Marquise D' and then the Emancipation lipglass from the same Wonder Woman collection. Marquise and Emancipation go perfectly together and it makes for a beautiful peachy-nude lip that will not wash you out if you have trouble pulling off this look normally. I do think all skin tones can pull off this very pretty and wearable natural full lip look.

Combo#2
Similar to the one above. What can I say, I love nude lips. Probably because I love a strong eye look and haven't been able to pull off a good nude lip until a make-up artist at Mac showed me how to work with "Myth" lipstick. Prior to this lesson, wearing Myth made me look like I should be wearing a toe tag and laying on a stretcher waiting to be identified by my family. But, she showed me how to avoid this cold and lifeless look and instead brought my Myth covered lips to life. First, take Subculture lipliner from Mac which I've said is very similar to Chanel Natural (there are swatches in my Feb. 28th blog), line and fill in the lips as a base much like the combo#1 above. Then put on your Myth lipstick and top it off with the Mac Plushglass in Big Baby. It looked gorgeous and what made it even more gorgeous was that she did a super bold and fun eye look using the new "Valiant" palette (the green one) from the Wonder Woman collection. Well geez, I guess I shouldn't even stop there now that I'm going beyond the original goal of doing a lip combo. She also contoured my cheeks with the MSF in Natural (medium plus) because I'm on the fair side and the medium plus was a dark enough contour for the cheek bones. I want to say she used the Mighty Aphrodite peachy side for the blush but this is not official. To top it off she added some of the reflects pearl in the corners and slightly under the eye for a "wow" factor. Hey, if you're gonna go to a Wonder Woman event and get your make-up done you should just have fun with it. The word "neutral" never came out of my mouth. I was quite proud.


What's On My Lipstick Wishlist?:

Le Metier de Beaute Colour Core Lipstick:

I've been wanting to try these desperately and just haven't gotten around to doing so because they're only available at stores such as Neiman Marcus, Berdorf Goodman, Nordstrom and I can't get myself to buy without testing them out first. I have a Nordstrom near me and need to see if they carry them in store or just online. I've heard such amazing things about these lipsticks and I'm very curious. They are around $32 which is twice as expensive as a MAC ($) lipstick and similar to the YSL ($$) yet not quite reaching the same category as a Chanel ($$$) lipstick.