Lipsticks brightens and enhances your appearance! It is the final touch to facial makeup. Lip cosmetics are now available in sticks, tubes, pencils, as liquids and in pots.

Most lipsticks consist of a fatty base to ensure that the product stays firm and solid. At the same time, efforts are made to make the product soft enough to cover the lips smoothly and with the minimum of pressure. The colour in the lipsticks is provided by pigments or by dyes. These should not fade off too quickly but should stay on the lips while you eat, drink, smoke and kiss. It is also equally important that no unsafe chemicals are used as the product is often swallowed.

Experts argue over whether you should apply lipstick or lip liner first, so the solution is that you should just try it both ways and see what turns out better on you. The makeup masters all agree on this fact though: your lipstick and lip liner should match and blend together. 'Never' apply a lip liner that is darker to your lipstick in an effort to make the lip liner stand out. That was an awful, awful '90s trend and everyone was glad to see it pass.

Even girls who don't usually wear makeup have been known to slap on some lipstick from time to time. There are lip gloss (which comes in a little pot or tube with a wand) and frost, matte and cream lipsticks (which come in the famous lipstick stick). Try out all the different kinds of lipsticks to find out the ones you are most comfortable wearing (they are all quite different in texture).

Every beauty conscious woman must be aware of the shade of lipstick to be used which should be commensurate with the shape of her face, curves of lips, complexion and her clothes. Moreover, one must take into consideration age, colour of hair. Carelessness can damage the looks. Lipstick is considered a morale booster, and is essentially helpful in giving her self-respect and self-confidence.

How to apply Lipstick?

Lipstick is used to beautify lips but if applied shabbily, it looks ugly.

1. Before putting on lipstick clean lips with a piece of cotton wool swab dipped in cleansing milk. Lipstick does not gives lustre if lips are not clean. Do not use soap because lips have soft skin.

2. Put on foundation cream, let it dry

3. Apply lipstick by first drawing an outline followed by filling it in. Lipstick can be applied with a brush but it requires skill and practice. If lipstick spreads on lips, apply powder on lips, let it dry and then apply lipstick. Many times it is not very comfortable to apply it while standing, because hands may shake and spread it. So, it is more comfortable to use dressing table, rest your elbows on the dressing table.

4. Put on lipstick on the upper lip, followed by lower lip. Use lighter tinge first and then darker for glow.

5. After applying light tinge, keep a tissue a tissue between your lips and wipe off extra lipstick with tissue paper.

6. Then use dark colour.

7. Blend both the colours with a brush.

8. Use of vaseline or cream gives lustre to lips after applying lipstick.

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