Fashion Bomb reader Allie wrote in asking, “How do I keep matted lipstick from looking dry, flaky, and cakey? After A while of having it on, I may or may not reapply and by the end of my night, the lipsticks looks crazy. What steps do I need to do before applying matted lipsticks and what to do if I want to reapply?? HELP!!!”

Hey Allie!

Thus is the plight of the girl who loves her matte lipsticks! Not all mattes are created equally though. While MAC Ruby Woo can feel like it could cut glass (though the more you use the tube, the easier it gets to apply), there are brands who have matte lipsticks that are so soft and easy to apply, they make you double check the label to make sure you’re getting a real matte. Some that come to mind include tarte LipSurgencee Natural Matte Lip Tint, Sleek MakeUP True Colour Lipstick, Stila Long Wear Liquid Lip Color (goes on like gloss but dries matte), Bite High Pigment Matte Pencil, and new Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet.

More Stila…

But if you have a favorite matte that you love but it just doesn’t seem to love you back, here’s what you do:

*Make sure lips are regularly exfoliated. You can simply brush a wet toothbrush over them or get fancy with a lip scrub.

*Stay hydrated while wearing your matte lipstick. Drink several glasses of water as sometimes the lips can get dry and the lipstick can tend to accumulate giving you that “gunky” film on your lips.

*Use a lip primer. The lips can tend to have fine lines and wrinkles and once the lipstick starts to settle into them, you can have quite the drying mess. A lip primer (which can be as simple as Chapstick) will help smooth over the lines and gives the lipstick another layer to adhere to.

*When it’s time to reapply, it’s best to take everything off and start all over. Matte lipstick dries with wear so adding a fresh application on top of the dry lips can get quite cakey.

*If bleeding of color is also an issue, line your lips with a pencil similar in color to your lipstick to help it stay put.

~Danielle

Yay! The weekend is here! What do you guys have planned?

If you’re clueless on what to do with your makeup and don’t want to reinvent the wheel, try smudgy liner. It’s a quick and easy way to give your makeup a slightly edgy look. You can do it with black liner or choose a pop of color via jewel tones like purple or teal.

To do:
It’s as easy as applying your liner like you normally would but taking either the edge of a makeup wedge, a smudging brush or a pencil brush and gently smudging it along the lower lash line area. That’s it! Who doesn’t love simple yet effective makeup? You can do this with an eyeliner pencil, gel liner, or one of your favorite eyeshadows.

Be careful not to let the liner smudge too low or it could settle into any fine lines on the under eye area giving you a major case of raccoon eyes. Apply a little foundation or concealer under the eye to keep the look sharp and neat.

Tools of the trade:

More Sephora…

Who’s trying out smudgy liner this weekend? What other looks will you rock for your weekend plans?

Sydney writes in asking, “Hey guys! I’ve seen posts about what to do if you have dark elbows but I was wondering if you had any tricks up your sleeve for dark lips? I’m not sure if I was just born with darker lips or if they come from my smoker past but I really want nice pink lips! HELP! Thanks!”

Hey Sydney!

I’m glad to hear that smoking is in your past because not only can it lead to cancers, it can also age the skin terribly. It could be a combo of both (were your lips dark before you started smoking?), but having darker or two-toned lips can be pretty common with brown skin.

Your first defense would be to prevent further darkening by making sure you exfoliate your lips (rubbing a wet toothbrush over them or use a gentle scrub) and be sure to use a balm that contains SPF. You can also use a natural lightener like fresh lemons to help brighten the color of your lips over time.

Since you won’t get your lips as pink as I suspect you want them, I say make friends with bold lip color. You can also use concealer (like Black Opal Lip Corrector) or a nude lip pencil to get the base color you want if you wish to rock lighter lip colors.

Besides–darker lips can be your thing. Like how Tyra has her forehead.

More Lush…