Is there such a thing as the perfect lipstick color? It seems women everywhere are in a constant and endless search for the ultimate better-than-natural shade—not too pink, not overly nude, and with a hint of shine. I’ve amassed hundreds of tubes over the years, from blue-reds to fiery oranges to Marilyn Manson–worthy plums. Yet for some reason, my idea of the perfect shade to wear down the aisle at my November wedding wasn’t among them—but I knew in my heart it was out there.
Last Saturday, I headed to the famed beauty level of Bergdorf Goodman and started testing. I shuffled from counter to counter, picking up and applying swatches on the top of my left hand, a trick learned backstage many years ago. Four counters later, my Jackson Pollock–esque canvas was filled and my lips had gone through more than a few rounds of wiping, leaving a mustache of splotchiness and some faint flecks of cotton. This wasn’t working.
Early the next week, I enlisted the help of a professional, calling on makeup artist Tiffany Patton of bridal beauty salon White Rose Collective, who advises brides to envision the overall look when deciding on a lip color—the dress, the venue, and, of course, the lighting. “It’s important to think about what kind of woman you are,” she says. “Lipstick is so personal—some even opt for only a lip balm to avoid the hassle of reapplication.” Before testing lipstick, Patton balanced out my face, skillfully applying a taupe eyeshadow, black liquid liner, and tons of bronzer (the wedding is in Miami, after all).
First up was one of my favorites, Charlotte Tilbury’s Bitch Perfect, a light pink hue, which, when coupled with the bronzer, appeared a little too coral for my taste. Next came something a little closer to magenta, NARS’s Angela, a cool deep orchid that Patton dabbed on my lips with her ring finger. “I like this idea,” she tells me, but it felt too bright for my late-afternoon outdoor ceremony.
We went through 22 lipsticks, setting aside the good ones and patting concealer along the edge of my lips in between rounds to neutralize the color. It’s funny, I thought, the colors we ended up with were (and were very close to) lip shades I wear every day in my normal life. It’s not surprising, then, that Patton advises brides to wear their favorite lip color on the day of the wedding: “You know how it feels, how it wears, and when you need to reapply,” she explains.
Our final contenders were Estée Lauder’s Desirable (my everyday staple); Dior’s Rose Baiser, a creamy, highly pigmented rose; Urban Decay’s Disobedient, a bright peony; Kevyn Aucoin’s muted nude lip stain in Faconne; and one of my all-time favorites, Tom Ford lipstick in Pink Dusk.
The decision has yet to be made, though, and I have my homework cut out for me. Patton suggests brides test out the color for two full weeks before deciding on a shade. “Wear it to the gym, with a smoky eye, a ball gown, and to the grocery store with little to no foundation,” she advises. Here’s to the one task on my wedding checklist I may actually be reluctant to cross off.
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