If you hadn’t already noticed, lips are currently having a major moment. Whether full, pouty lips or more understated yet defined lips are your preference, international MUA Nigel Stanislaus believes that they are a feature that can make or break your look. Here, he shares his top lip tips with Rescu. with the recent launch of his RescuMe Academy Be Your Own Makeup Artist course.
First things first – you need to create a perfect lip shape through your trusted shade of nude liner. “The best thing to do is to line it first,” Nigel says. “If I’m not too sure of the desired lip shape or where the lips are going, then I always start with bottom lip liner.”
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Why start with the bottom? “Starting to trace on the bottom lip is best so that I can then top I can decide how high up I want the top lip to be drawn,” he says. “It makes it easier as preferably, the top lip should have the same thickness as the bottom.”
He also warns to stray from creating a top lip that is too overdrawn as it creates lips that look too top-heavy and unrealistic. “I like the lips to look more like a diamond shape, more than a capsicum shape, so they should be relatively even in size.”
If you have quite thin lips, Nigel suggests the lighter the shade of your lip colour, the better. “Lighter colours create the illusion of bigger lips,” he said. “If you use gloss in the centre of the lips, but not all over the whole lip, it makes the lips look more three dimensional and creates the illusion of a fuller pout.”
When it comes to colour, Nigel shares that one of his most frequently asked questions is which red to choose for different complexions.
“If you have fair colouring, including redhead with freckles (think Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, or Tilda Swinton) I often suggest to stay away from your standard reds,” he says.
“Instead, go for a beautiful crimson or a strong coral shade, as they aren’t as harsh and complement alabaster shades much better in my opinion.”
For every other skin tone? Go for a blue-based red. “Fire engine red is the best option,” Nigel says. “If you go too deep a shade of red you can look quite severe and it can age you.”
His top red picks? “I think Elizabeth Arden’s Red Door is a really sophisticated red,” he says. “If in doubt, I always opt for MAC’s Ruby Woo.”
“When it comes to the texture of a red lip, I prefer at maximum a velvety finish, never a gloss as the more matte the red, the more expensive and sophisticated it looks.”
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Watch what you’ll learn from RescuMe Academy’s Be Your Own Makeup Artist with Celebrity Makeup Artist, Nigel Stanislaus below.