National Lipstick Day: Best Colors For Melanated Skin

July 29, 2023

1:49 PM

Westend61/Getty Images

It's National Lipstick Day!

Embrace your glowing, melanated skin with colors that compliment it, leaning into your skin's undertones for that perfect lacquered look.

Use this day to celebrate all the shades you can pull easily pull off and find ones that you might not have even considered. Bronzed and brown skin makes for a bold and beautiful lip. However, to help you select the best options is understanding your undertones which are typically, warm, cool or neutral.

To figure out what your specific undertone your veins can help. Look at your forearm; if your veins are greenish, your tones lean towards the warm side. If they are blue or purplish, then you have cooler undertones. And if you notice a mix of both, you have neutral undertones.

Also, if you look better in gold jewelry, then you most likely have warm undertones. If silver lights you up, then cool tones, and if you can rock silver or gold, your skin is more inclined towards neutral undertones.

Here are just some of the best shades for melanated skin.

Purple-hued beauty products are perfectly formulated melanin skin. A vibrant violet lip can make anyone's complexion stand out, accentuating the warmth in brown skin with a pop of color. You can wear it as-is, or pair it with a darker purple liner for a flattering lip ómbre.

While the model above wears The Crayon Case's Pine Rule Breaker and Fruits Matte Lipstick, here are a few other options.

Brown shades are great. They can serve as a staple because they can be versatile. You can even use them as a lip liner —use a lip brush as an applicator—with a lighter nude shade or as a full-coverage lip. To highlight deeper complexions, try a maroon-toned hue like Maybelline's Vinyl Ink Lip Color. Here are a few other options.

Matte: NARS PowerMatteLipstick in No Angel

Satin: Fenty Icon The Fill Semi-Matte in Chocolate Nude

Gloss: Mented Cosmetics Lip Gloss in Baby Brown

Pencil: Mented Cosmetics Lip Liner in Dark Night

Orange can be a great way to play with your skin's warm and cool undertones. A darker, red-toned orange can compliment your cooler side, while a true, bright orange can help those golden tones glow on brown skin tones. For neutral skin tones, lean into terracotta shades. Mac's Lustreglass Lipstick in Chili Popper and Lip Pencil in Redd are not for the shy but we love it! However, here are other options that range from bold to neutral.

Matte: Kylie Cosmetics by Kylie Jenner Matte Lip Kit in Baddie

Satin: E.L.F. O Face Satin Lipstick in Terracotta Rose

Glossy: Julep It's Balmful Coverage Lip Crayon in Roasted Peach

Lip Gloss: Garden of Juvia's Lip Gloss in Flower Girl

Pencil: The Lip Bar Straight Line Creamy Lip Liner in Straight Forward

Barbiecore has taken over for sure, and that's awesome because there is no better time than summertime to rock hot pink lips! The contrast between brown skin tones with a lighter, vivid pink makes it a go-to look for any lipstick lover. The above look features Fenty Beauty Stunna Lip Paint Longwear Fluid Lip Color in Unveil plus Fenty Icon Velvet Liquid Lipstick in Pink Limo'scene absolutely slays, and here are some other hot choices.

Matte: Anastasia Beverly Hills Matte Lipstick in Hush Rose

Satin: Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Color Stick in Bright Berry

Glossy: NYX Shout Loud High Shine Lip Color in Another Level

Lip Gloss: Juvia's Place Lip Gloss in Kiss Me

Pencil: The Lip Bar Straight Line Creamy Lip Liner in Straight Partyin'

You can never go wrong with red! The beauty of melanated skin is that you can rock any red—from bright orange-red to brick red to ruby red—endless options exist for this classic color. Lancôme screams luxury, and L’Absolu Rouge Intimatte lipstick in Tout Doux creamily glides on. But if you want something on the brighter side here are great choices.

Matte: Pat McGrath Labs MatteTrance in Elson

Satin: Charlotte Tilbury K.I.S.S.I.N.G So Red

Glossy: Fenty Icon Velvet Liquid Lipstick in The MVP

Lip Gloss: Mented Redhot & Bothered Gloss

Pencil: Pat McGrath Labs PermaGel Ultra Lip Pencil in Vengence

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