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We all love a long-lasting lip color. What’s better than applying color once, drinking, eating, and carrying on with your life, and finding it still intact hours later? Unfortunately, longevity and quality aren’t always in sync when it comes to lipsticks. In fact, some of the most drying lip formulas are those that will take you from day to night — the consequence being they can also leave you with severely chapped lips at bedtime.
Makeup artists warn that this is the super-dehydrating lipstick women over 40 should avoid at all costs. But don’t worry: there are also expert tips you can follow to ensure your lips stay as soft and hydrated as possible, even if you do fall for the temptation of rocking this drying formula.
Matte, Long-Lasting Lipstick
There’s really no substitute for the intensity and bold color you’ll find in a matte lipstick. These formulas, as well as their cousins, long-lasting matte lipsticks, are highly pigmented and designed to stay in place for hours on end. Unfortunately, many mattes are also made with higher levels of alcohol and wax, which can be extremely drying to lips. And while many lip glosses and satin formulas are packed with hydrating oils, mattes lack this hydration for the simple reason that less oil makes them less likely to wear off.
The older we get, the dryer our skin tends to become. The thin skin of your lips is no exception and can be even more prone to cracks. Adding a layer of matte lipstick to aging lips can cause the formula to settle into the cracks of your lips, especially if you haven’t properly prepped your lips with an abundance of hydration.
Celebrity Makeup Artist and Natural Brows Artist Daria Kruchinina says one common misconception is that people think that dark lipstick makes you look older —however if applied in the right way it looks fabulous, especially in autumn and winter. It’s actually the state of your lips and your lipstick formula that can age you, more so than color.
“What really ages you are dry or damaged lips,” Kruchinina says. “Use a soft scrub and apply lip moisturizer twice a week. For daily use I highly recommend these three products I use for editorials, creating a sexy natural and full lips look:
fresh Sugar Recovery Lip Mask Advanced Therapy
Choosing a satin lipstick or gloss is the simplest way to ensure your moisturized, prepped, and ready-for-lipstick lips stay soft and hydrated. But if you love the look of a bold matte, there are also plenty of options out there and well-reviewed and rated picks from which to choose.
bareMinerals Mineralist Lasting Matte Liquid Lipstick ($22, Sephora) is one such lip choice that boasts an impressively high rating and hundreds of reviews. The vegan lipstick is a Sephora “clean” pick that has a mousse-like texture and transfer-resistant wear and it comes in seven shades.
One reviewer raves, “Bought this for NYE and barely needed to reapply even after eating/drinking throughout the night. Also does not dry out your lips!” And another reviewer also glows about its non-drying formula: “i loveee this liquid lipstick. this is my first ever liquid lipstick and i have to say i’m impressed. [I’ve] never bought liquid lipsticks before because i know they can be very drying and make your lips look super crusty musty dusty. BUTTT this doesn’t do that. it feels very very lightweight on the lips and doesn’t have that drying effect (both in how it looks and feels).”
Hydrated, more youthful-looking lips can be yours no matter what lipstick formula you prefer.
