How To Find The Best Dark Fall Lipstick For Your Skin Tone, According To Experts

Dark lipsticks are a timeless makeup staple for autumn, and as seen with current TikTok beauty trends, this fall is no exception. With that said, it may be difficult at first to find a shade that works well with your skin tone and undertones, so we reached out to professional makeup artists and beauty experts for suggestions. Read on for a guide and insight from Mandie Brice, professional makeup artist and author, and Katya Bychkova, beauty expert and founder of Style Sprinter.

First Off, What Makes Dark Lipstick So Trendy For Fall?

Fall lipstick trends usually gravitate towards vampy, darker shades, Bychkova points out, because they “symbolize our wardrobe and vibe switch from light floral dresses to warmer clothes that are typically darker and require a more defined lip hue.” A darker fall lip aesthetic “reflects current fashion trends,” she says, such as “90s grunge and punk futurism.” It’s also an “unexpected yet chic pairing” to the Barbiecore and the ‘clean girl’ aesthetics trends.

When thinking about the hype surrounding dark lipstick, Bychkova explains its trendiness as it matches “leather jackets, denim, and rebellious prep looks” that are currently all the rage, and you’d “realize they call for grungy, darker lipstick hues like dark browns, mauve, or even black.” To find out which one will work best for you, we’ve rounded up the following tips:

Tip #1— Determine Your Tone and Undertones

Before even looking at lipsticks, it’s best to pinpoint which tone and undertones are present in your complexion, Brice advises. She explains that there are “three main skin undertones,” including “warm,” (which is often abbreviated as ‘W’ on lip products), “cold,” (‘C’) and “neutral” (‘N’). “I think the best choice for lip color is sticking with your undertone,” she says. If you’re a “warm,” she suggests choosing a dark fall lipstick with a warm-toned color. If you’re “cool” or “neutral,” her advice is to pick one of those respectively. “You can find your undertone easily by looking at the veins on the inside of your forearm,” she explains. If they are blueish, Brice notes that you have a cooler undertone, and if they are greenish, you can go for a warmer color.

Bychkova agrees, and says that when it comes to dark fall colors specifically, people with a “warm undertone” will benefit from wearing “warmer lipstick shades, such as terracotta, oranges, brick reds, and nude lipsticks on a brown side.” Cool undertone people with a pinky, rosy tone into their complexion will “look best wearing lipsticks with blue or purple shade in their base: from bright cherry-red to soft, dusty nudes,” she adds. “Neutral undertone people could rock any shade of the lipstick they prefer,” she continues (lucky you!) and she says that this “will look balanced from the skin’s undertone standpoint.”

Other Pointers For Longer-Lasting Wear

Once you’ve figured out which lipstick shade best works for your skin tones, Bychkova provides the following pointers to keep in mind to ensure that your color lasts throughout the day:

1. Start with a Concealer

It will help, Bychkova says, to make your lip line “more refined when outlining your lips with a pencil.” A concealer as a lipstick base will also “prolong the life of a darker lipstick hue,” and make it appear more pigmented, she points out.

2. Invest in a Good Lip Liner

While a lip liner seems like a bonus to lipstick, this product is “what helps protect your lipstick and lip gloss from moving,” she stresses. With the help of a “razor-sharp lip liner,” you could immaculately “overline your lips for a fuller look” without anyone catching it, she notes.

3. Apply Two Coats of Lipstick

For the best results, Bychkova recommends blotting your first lipstick coat “with a tissue, then reapplying another one to ensure it covers all the lines and crevices in your lips” for a longer wear time.

4. Stick to Liquid Lipstick Formulas

Realistically, Bychkova says that you can’t expect a “long-wearing effect from a typical moisturizing lipstick,” as you unavoidably eat it throughout the day. However, she adds, “liquid lipsticks do stay on all day long, but they might come with the side effect of drying out your lips.”

5. Avoid Oily and Greasy Foods

To prolong the lifespan of your lipstick, Bychkova swears by avoiding foods with extra grease or oil. “These meals work as your typical cleansing balm (the one you use for double-cleansing) and move the lip color to your face,” she warns. If snacking, she says to “go for foods that don’t require biting (like bite-size hors d’oeuvres, crackers, and berries), and don’t look too oily to preserve your lipstick look.”