Staff Picks: Lippies on daily rotation
If I had to drastically trim down my makeup collection to just a few items, I can probably live with just one foundation, brow pencil, mascara, and blush. But can you imagine just using one lippie? Hell no.
We all probably have a lot more lipsticks than we can reasonably use up before their expiry dates. We may not love every single one but I hang onto them because we like the option of being able to switch up our look if we so choose. If we're being honest though, we play favorites and usually just have a couple actually in use. These are the shades we're currently rocking!
Liz: You know what they say - if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself! Seriously though, having a Project Vanity lipstick line in malls nationwide is one of my biggest dreams come true. Pink Sugar made it a reality and I love working with them. My favorite shade out of the seven currently? It's I Can't Even, a beautiful rose brown shade. I love how it makes my skin and teeth look brighter, without being in your face about it! This is something I can wear with minimal makeup since it's dressy and sophisticated, but still fresh. I have like three tubes of this in different bags!
Den: Even though it looks more pink than peachy nude on me, Happy Skin’s Lip & Cheek Mousse in Warm & Toasty has been one of my go-to’s for about a year now. I love the velvety texture and lightweight feel, plus it doesn't look weird when it begins to fade. When I'm willing to put a bit more effort into my makeup, I go for a slightly bolder lip with Make Up For Ever’s Pro Sculpting Lip in 50 Purple. I actually didn't realize it was purple until checking it for this story because it applies berry red! The formula is so smooth, it just glides over my lips but the finish is demi matte. I usually get paranoid about darker lippies because uneven fading looks awful but I don't have to worry about this one because it beautifully tints my lips.
Angela: I'm all about the nudes because I don't have the patience to reapply throughout the day. Bold colors would be high maintenance for me so I only wear them when the need arises. The top swatch is Pink Sugar's Breakfast in Bed. This is such a lovely peachy nude on my lips, and it goes well with my favorite nude eye makeup look. The second swatch is MAC Velvet Teddy. It is so pretty and it looks sophisticated on me when paired with dramatic eye makeup. I love that it does not overpower my look so I can experiment with eye makeup or put more blush on my cheeks. The last swatch is a staple in my bag - Kat Von D's Lolita II. It stays on the whole day even after eating or drinking. Its color is absolutely a personal favorite!
Karla: My MAC Velvet Teddy lipstick! It's the perfect nude for my lips and I love wearing it with no makeup or with a full face. It's super flattering and I'm down to half! :(
From top: Peripera Ink Velvet in Celeb Deep Rose, Pink Sugar x PV These Lips Don't Lie in Just A Fling
Gett: I have a lot of lippies, and I do like (READ: try) to put them in rotation, but the Peripera Ink Velvet in Celebrity Deep Rose and the Pink Sugar x Project Vanity These Lips Don't Lie in Just A Fling are the ones I go back to all the time. The Ink Velvet lives in my office bag, and the crayon in my office beauty kit. I've gone to a point that I had to force myself to keep ‘em away in my makeup drawer so I'm forced to use my other lippies. 😅
Celeb Deep Rose is the perfect peachy pink on me, and I love the Ink Velvet formulation because it feels light and not too drying, and it does this thing where the lip color evens itself out on my lips. It's a versatile one too, in that I can use it as cheek color.
Just A Fling is a pretty berry red that livens up my face and is so easy to just put on, especially on days when I'm too tamad to put on makeup.
Crystal: I am really all about the pinks because I love how girly it makes me feel. My most favorite daytime lipstick right now is MAC Please Me, a medium, neutral pink that really brightens up my face. If I want my lips to look extra bright, I whip out my Pink Sugar × Project Vanity These Lips Don't Lie in Ready in Five. By nightfall, I prefer to go a little deeper like Jordana Sweet Cream Matte in Rose Macaron. It's a mauve pink that makes me feel more grown-up.
Katsy: I'm currently at a my-lips-but-better and transfer-proof-please lipstick phase that I find myself reaching for these five frequently. They should probably live in my bag! The L'Oreal Rouge Magique in Mont Blanc feels like a cousin to my favorite Rouge D'Armani while the Pink Sugar in Breakfast in Bed is everyone's go-to shade. The Cathy Doll Nude Me Liquid Lip Matte in Moss Rose is such an amazing discovery that I got from covering events for PV. It also pairs quite nicely with one of my NARS palettes.
I'm also rediscovering the Inglot HD Lip Tint in #37 from searching my stash for transfer-proof liquids. Finally, at least for this episode of Staff Picks, the Laneige Two Tone Tint Bar in Tint Mint that I got from my Kim Bok Joo fascination with Lee Sung Kyung. This one is so great for my daily makeup that I'm already looking to purchase more shades. The convenience of the balm plus tint makes me reach for it the most. Bonus: you can use it on your cheeks too!
Tellie: I hope the lipstick guardians of the team don't kill me for submitting this pick, but lately I have been rotating two measly lip products - and one isn't even technically a lipstick. I am all about the base ('bout the base) and eyeshadow these days, so I'm not really feeling adventurous with lip colors at all. A simple dainty auto-gradient via the Laneige Two Tone Lip Bar (which I had customized while in Korea) or some hint of color with the April Skin Magic Oil Tint are the only options in my personal makeup kit.
I'm actually scared that my other lipsticks will spoil or feel neglected, but the heart wants what it wants.
Charlie: I'd like to think I only have two sets of lippies in my collectionㅡthe super dark ones and the everyday mauves, pinks, and pink-browns I can probably apply with my eyes closed. My current faves are Tony Moly's Petite Bunny Gloss Bar in Juicy Cherry and NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Cannes. I use these two more often than all others because they go well with almost any look. If my lips feel a little drier than usual, I reach for the gloss bar, which has a juicy pink color that tints my lips nicely and keeps them soft. I go for the trusty NYX SMLC in Cannes, a soft rosy color, if I need something more long lasting.
Can you survive with just one lipstick? How many do you actually have in your collection? Which ones do you mostly reach for?