Lipstick is the first thing that most people tend to think of when it comes to makeup. This is because adding colour to your lips usually has a huge effect on the features of your face. Lipstick can make or break your entire if not chosen correctly. And with the wide range of lipsticks available in the market, it is quite tedious to pick the right one. Though, once you figure out certain things out like your skin’s undertone, you will end up with a whole collection of lipsticks that look absolutely gorgeous on you.

In this article we have for you a few key guidelines that will help you in choosing the perfect lipstick for your skin tone. So do read now;

1. Determine your skin tone

This is usually the first step when it comes to choosing the right colour for you. The five main types of skin complexions are; fair, light, medium, tan and deep. Those with fair and light skin tones should look for peach, nude, coral and dusty red lipstick shades. Then those with medium skin tone should go for rose, mauve, berry and cherry red lipstick shades. The tan complexion usually goes well with bright red, deep pink and coral lip shades whereas the deep complexion is perfect for the brown, plum wine, caramel and any other purple hues.

2. Determine your undertone

Knowledge of your skin undertone will also help in picking the right lipstick shade. The three main undertones are cool, warm and neutral.

Cool undertone:

Usually have pink, red or bluish hue to their skin.

Fair or light skin – rosy and nude shades

Medium skin – pink or cranberry shades

Tan or deep skin – wine or rube shades

Warm undertone:

Usually have yellow, golden or olive hue to their skin.

Fair or light skin – peachy and pale pink shades

Medium, tan or deep skin – copper or bronze shades

Neutral:

Usually have a mix of yellow and pink in the base of their skin.

Goes well with both cool and warm undertones.

A rule of thumb is to correspond your skin tone with the lipstick shade. For example, if you’re lighter then go for paler shades but if you’re deeper go for richer shades.

3. Determine the shape and size of your lips

The shape and size of your lips also play a huge role in determining the perfect lipstick for you.

Top heavy lips:

• Apply a bright lipstick on the bottom lip and a slightly darker shade on the upper lip.

Bottom heavy lips:

• Apply any colour that suits your undertone then add a little bit of nude at the center of the upper lip.

Asymmetrical lips:

• Outline your lips first with a lip pencil in the shade similar to the lipstick you’re about to apply.

Thin lips:

• Avoid dark and flashy colours as they will make your lips look even thinner. Go for light creamy lipsticks and lip glosses instead.

Plump lips:

• Go for darker shades and avoid hues that are too light or glossy or even with glittery texture.

Remember that practice makes perfect therefore, the more you keep on buying lipsticks, the better you will get at finding shades that work well with you.

Also keep in mind that this is just a guide to help you as a beginner in makeup. You can definitely wear any shade of lipstick that you like as long as you feel good and confident in it. You can also choose not to wear it at all, it’s all up to you.