If this past September’s Autumnal Equinox provided the inspiration for rich, bold colors, October’s most audacious makeup looks set the pace for 2015’s holiday looks and winter’s bold lip. Brick reds, in-your-face burgundies, and warm shades in wine, purple and plum, with flecks of gold, feel as autumnal as ever; while dark vampy and ombré lips encourage us to be fearless and experiment with makeup looks this season without apprehension.
Makeup is all about fun and kicking your look up a notch, and what better way to upgrade one’s look than with a perfect shade of lipstick? This fall and winter is all about rich, noticeable lips that can easily transition from the office to a swanky holiday party. And the lipsticks presented here are all dark girl-friendly, won’t break your wallet, and will give higher-end brands a run for their money. And there were just so many wonderful shades and brands to choose from!
So what beautiful lip colors are we rocking this fall and winter?
Milani
Shade: Matte Flirty (from their Color Statement Moisture Matte collection)
Price: $5.99 to $6.79 at Target, CVS, Walmart, Walgreens, Drugstore.com, and most other major drugstores.
Milani’s Moisture Matte collection presents a collection of creamy, highly-pigmented shades (in a nice, gold tube) that, while matte won’t dry out your lips and doesn’t require constant touch-ups. Matte Flirty (71) is a deep raspberry color that’s perfect for fall, and is very brown-girl friendly, and is definitely worth it.
Ulta Matte Lip Cream
Shade: Stirring
Price: $9.00 at Ulta stores and on Ulta.com
Ulta’s matte lip creams are a velvety formula that goes on creamy and smooth, and dries to a matte finish. Lips are never dry and they last virtually all day! Stirring is a bold, deep plum color. I get a lot of compliments and inquiries whenever I wear this one.
NYX Simply Vamp Lip Cream
Shade: Covet
Price: $6.50 and found at Ulta stores, Ulta.com, and NYX.com
NYX’s Simply Vamp Lip Creams is a chunky lip crayon that is meant for the bold, and is perfect for the winter. They also go on creamy and dry to a matte finish. Covet is a beautiful, metallic reddish-brown/berry color that can be worn alone or layered over a similarly colored lip-pencil or under a gloss.
Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick
Shade: Bordeaux (124)
Price: $4 -$5.49 at most drugstores, drugstore.com, Ulta, Target, Walgreens, Walmart, etc.
Rimmel London’s lipsticks took me by surprise. The Lasting Finish lipsticks come in a cute tube and are creamy and hydrating, with excellent color payoff that lasts throughout the day, with minimal need for touch-ups. Bordeaux (124) is an excellent burgundyish, almost vampy, color that’s perfect for topping off your holiday look.
H&M Lipsticks
Shade: Downtown
Price: $4 -$6 at H&M stores and hm.com
That H&M has a cosmetics line is exciting in and of itself but to see the wide range of lipsticks (both matte and creamy formulas) is equally as titillating. While the tube is simple, their lipstick is definitely noteworthy. Downtown is a deep wine/berry red shade that’s classic and perfect for topping off any fall or winter look; whether you’re headed to the office, happy hour, or a holiday party .
Milani (Color Statement Moisture Matte collection)
Shade: Matte Glam
Price: $5.99 to $6.79 at most drugstores and drugstore.com
Another shade from Milani’s Color Statement Moisture Matte collection, Matte Glam is fave, is perfect for every season, and is a gorgeous and bold purple color that’s very similar to MAC’s Heroine and looks divine on all skin colors, especially against darker complexions.
Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate
Shade: 107
Price: $4 to $5.49 at most drugstores, Ulta, and drugstore.com
Featuring another shade from Rimmel London, from supermodel Kate Moss’s line, shade 107 is a very flattering, deep wine/berry color with a heavily pigmented, long-lasting matte finish that’ll look perfect while you’re posted up at a fabulous Holiday party.
L’Oreal Collection Privee the Perfect Nudes
Shade: Liya’s Nude
Price: $8 to $9.00 at most drugstores, Ulta, and drugstore.com
Sometimes, finding the perfect nude comes with a lot of trial and error, especially if you’re a woman of color whose complexion ranges from golden to dark, coming across nude lipsticks that often look chalky and unflattering. Never fear though, because L’Oreal has you covered with its custom line of beauty ambassador-endorsed nudes. And if you share the same rich brown skin-tone as Ethiopian-born model Liya Kebede, then the shade, Liya’s Nude is a perfect complement for women with warm/deep skin-tones. Presented in a sleek, black tube (with gold tone lettering and accents) that makes the lipstick look high-end, Liya’s nude goes on smooth, and has as understated brown-bronze sheen/metallic finish, and is great for more casual, low-key makeup looks.
Milani Color Statement Lipstick
Shade: Cabaret Blend
Price: $5.99 to $6.79 at most drugstores and drugstore.com
At this juncture, you’ve probably figured out that Milani just makes some damned good lipsticks, so here we are again, with another shade from Milani… and it’s an amazingly deep wine/berry-red lipstick with a satin-cream finish.
NYX Cosmetics Butter Gloss
Shade: Devil’s Food Cake
Price: $4.50 to $5.00 at Ulta stores and Ulta.com.
NYX Butter Gloss in Devil’s Food Cake is another berry/plum shade that’s for folks who want a more understated, vampy look during the day. The color gives a nice sheer, berry shade to the lips and is buildable for medium coverage that’s moisturizing and not too sticky.
Manic Panic Lethal Lipstick
Shade: Daughter of Darkness
Price: (Depending on where you buy it from) $11 to $15 on Amazon.com or ManicPanic.com
I saved the best for last! Sisters Tish & Snooky’s Punk Rock brand Manic Panic doesn’t just deal in brightly colored, vegan-friendly temporary hair dyes, but they also offer cosmetics, and their line of lipsticks is for daring folks who like to live on the edge… or who at least want to look like they do. Their lipsticks come in cool packing conducive to the brand, and the shade Daughter of Darkness is a fan favorite. An alluring, deeeep, dark berry-red that’s very similar to MAC’s Prince Noire, Daughter of Darkness will definitely make your lips stand out and stand strong during the fall/winter months.
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Tiffani Jones is the creator and writer of Coffee Rhetoric, a personal blog about women, pop-culture, film and race. A contributor to both print and digital media platforms, she has offered commentary in The New York Times, on HuffPost Live, and WNPR’s Where We Live.
