How to Wear that Bold Lip

I used to think of lipstick as something old women wore. It smelled funny and I thought I looked strange with lips of different colors. However, since becoming a young adult who dabbles in the world of beauty, that old way of thinking has completely melted away. Lipstick is just another means of changing your appearance, just like any other beauty product. And lipstick has come a long way since I was a kid too. Now they have varying scents and finishes and now I'm paying more attention to the different formulas.

For the last few months, lipsticks have been something I'm very intrigued by. I used to envy women who could throw on any color they wanted and just look amaze-balls. Lipstick was very intimidating to me, but I was dying to pull it off. I was set on finding some amazing lip colors that I was comfortable wearing. My first lipstick purchase was from the Maybeline Color Whisper line. It was a bright pink, but had a very sheer application. I liked the color it gave, but it wasn't longwearing by any means. My first bold lip color that I ever purchased was Antwerp from the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (SMLC) line. I put that baby on and instantly fell in love with the color and how it looked on me. There was no going back.

That exact moment is when I realized the secret to wearing a bold lip color. You just have to purchase lip products that you are so in love with that you don't even care what people think or say. I was so in love with Antwerp and thought it was such a gorgeous color that I didn't even care what other people thought. I felt confident in that color and I owned that confidence. That's it - that's the secret!

After having that epiphany, my perspective was completely different. I began hunting down different lip colors and really experimenting. I'd buy a lip product (at Ulta), try it out, and if I didn't love it, I could return it. Since then, I've purchased quite a few bold lip colors, including: my perfect, glossy red, a deep, mauvey pink, a dark, vampy purple, and a gorgeous, wine color. I am so in love with all of these products that I don't even care if anyone expresses any distaste, because guess what?! It's my face, and I'll dress it how I want with the products that I love.

A few tips for wearing the perfect bold lip color

1. Try everything. Literally, eeeeeverything.  If it's a color that you've always wanted to try, but are afraid it's going to look bad on you - get it, try it, and return it if you don't like it (make sure to check with whatever store you're purchasing from that they will take back opened makeup - ULTA DOES). No one has to know.
2. When I'm trying out new lipstick colors, I pay extra attention to how they make my teeth look. Does the color make my teeth look whiter or yellow? This is something you may or may not notice or care about, but just in case you'd never thought of it, I wanted to mention it. 
3. Make sure you have a clean lip line. I know it's all about not caring what others think and everything, but no lip color will look good with an application that looks like a 6-year-old did it, you know what I mean? Take the time to apply the lipstick neatly, and use concealer for any cleaning up.
4. Wear it around your house or to a casual hangout session first. Since bold lip colors won't closely match your natural lip color, they can sometimes look a little funky as they wear off. So wear it around to see how it wears off. If it wears off sort of patchy, a good lip liner similar to the lipstick might help.
5. Experiment with different finishes. You might try on a glossy hot pink lip and absolutely hate it and feel overwhelmed by it. Give a matte hot pink lip a try. The bright color in combination with the glossy finish might have just been too much for you. 

How to respond to criticism
Honestly, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. However, it's the manner in which someone expresses their opinions that really matter. If you're wearing a bold lip and someone goes, "oh my gosh, what were you thinking?! That looks awful on you!" make a mental note that that person is a jerk and kindly remind them that it's your face, not theirs, with the most sass you can muster. Now, if a good friend approaches you and hesitantly brings up that the tone of the lipstick clashes with the undertones in your skin, be a bit gentler with this person. A nice "thanks for the input, but I still really like this color" will suffice.

I hope that this post was helpful! I know what it's like to be trapped in a world of neutrals due to fear. If your soul is just longing to burst into a world of bold, let it happen! Buy that lipstick you've always wanted and rock it! Hold your head high and strut, knowing that your confidence is what's selling the lipstick.

What are some of your favorite bold lip colors?

Dramatic Looks #2 and #3

Well, I think this week's dramatic look turned out pretty decent compared to last week's! I decided to use tones and colors that I'm a bit more comfortable with to create this look. I also really focused on adding more pigmentation to my transition color. Normally the color gets lost during blending, and I never go back to add it, but today I definitely tried to. I'm also realizing that I'm having some shadow transfer from my lid into my crease area. I've been concentrating on rubbing my lid and blending the crease extra well to avoid this, but I'm still having trouble... Can anyone recommend anything? Is it just my shadows or maybe my primer? Do I need to be more persistent in blending?

I also created this look during the week! I'm honestly really proud of this because blue is sOoOo intimidating to me. I wish I had a white primer or a teal cream shadow to use as a base though, just to give the blue that extra oomph.  I'm also starting to learn that my crease doesn't always have to be dark. Way back when my mom first taught me how to wear makeup, she always taught me that the crease should be the darkest, and for some looks that is very appropriate, but it's not the rule of life.

Anyways, I'm really pleased with these two looks. I enjoyed creating them and wearing them all day. I'm currently saving up for a Morphe Brushes palette so that I can create some more fun and colorful looks.

If you have any tips, tricks, or constructive criticism, please leave it down below! I'm very eager to learn new things here.

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Dramatic Look #1

@makeupbygriselda

Welp, I did it. I said I was going to be practicing more dramatic looks, and that's just what I did. Unfortunately, being a novice at this whole blogging thing means learning as I go. So, lesson #1, do my looks during the day time so there is decent light for pictures. About halfway through blending my crease I realized that any picture I took was going to be a giant Suck Fest because of poor lighting.

Anyways, this is the best picture I could get. I didn't have the exact warm, pinky shade she did, so I mixed together a few shades in one of my ELF palettes. Also, all of the dark shades I have seem to be really lacking pigmentation. It's quite disappointing. This look did give me a good excuse to use my electric purple eye liner by NYX (which you can't see because of the poor lighting!).

Overall, I think I did okay with this look. Obviously not as glamorous as Griselda, but I think it's decent work. After doing this look I'm really wanting to invest in some better quality eye shadows, such as Makeup Geek. Good thing my birthday is only 3 months away!

Exploring the Discomfort Zone

Every professional has their comfort zone, right? At my law firm job, my comfort zone is LLCs. At my husband's job, his comfort zone is Kindergarten. Remaining in the comfort zone is easy and relaxing. However, stepping out of the comfort zone can sometimes be a very good thing and yield some incredible results. Same thing goes for make up enthusiasts/artists. My comfort zone are my every day looks. I've gotten pretty good at creating wearable, safe every day looks. I really enjoy creating these looks because they're more practical. But I just find myself sOoOoOo enamored by some of the more glamorous looks on my Instagram feed.

@chiknita81

@caprisssmakeup

@malenefrank93

 So this past weekend, after baby sitting a 5-month old for 8 hours, I decided to dive into my make up and create a more dramatic look for myself than I normally would. I decided on the black smokey eye with a warm crease. Easy (in theory), but definitely different than what I'm used to doing.

Someone get me a pair of falsies!

This is the end result, and I feel so silly posting this under all those great artists, but you know what? They didn't start out like that! They started where I am: as a girl who loves make up. With practice, determination, and dedication, they worked and blended their butts off until they became the amazing artists we all fawn over on IG. And with the same work ethic, I can do it too. We all can!

From this day forward, I will create at least one dramatic/glamorous/fun n' funky look per week. I will find inspiration from all sources, allow creativity to well up inside of me, and transfer that creativity from my hands and to my eye lids. I will then blog about my eye look and reflect on it. Is it what I envisioned? Do I like how it turned out? What would I change? Did I have the appropriate tools/colors I wanted? And please feel free to offer any sort of constructive criticism!

Are there any areas in your makeup life that you would like to step out of?