Fall Into...A Matte Lip!

Recently I was perusing one of my favorite fashion blogs (besides I.D.E.A.L, of course) The Fashion Bomb, and came across a picture of Claire, the founder, wearing a hot pink matte lip for her upcoming feature in this September's issue of ESSENCE.

I was immediately inspired! I'm a shade or two darker than Claire, but I love to take risks with makeup, its less harrowing than say, a dramatic haircut, because it comes off easily once you wash your face. I wanted to rock the pink matte lip for my upcoming 26th birthday celebration, and I'm wearing a turquoise, tan, and black dress with my hair pulled up and bangs. I had decided on a smoky eye in tan, gunmetal grey, and blue (slightly deeper than turquoise), and thought a pink matte lip would be great to make my smile really pop!

NARS, NYX, and Sephora all offer really cute colors in matte shades. NARS Pure Matte line comes in 12 colors, and I like Carthage.

At $25.00, its a little pricey for one tube of lipstick, but then again, it is NARS. NARS Pure Matte was THEE lipstick of choice for the 2011 Fall/Winter Marc Jacobs' runway!

The slightly less expensive Sephora Collection Maniac Mat lipstick comes  in 10 colors, and I'm thinking about the Mat 2, which is a natural pink color. It is priced at $12.00

The least expensive option is the Soft Matte Lip Cream by NYX (in Addis Adaba). This lip cream swipes like a gloss but finishes like a matte lipstick! According to NYX, the Soft Matte Lip Cream is "neither lipstick nor lip gloss—this is matte lip cream. A new kind of pout paint that goes on silky smooth and sets to a matte finish. Soft Matte Lip Cream is surprisingly durable and, unlike some matte lipstick formulas, also moisturizing. Available in 11 lip colors." At $6.00, this might be the move!