Lip gloss has a fan club - I mean how many other cosmetics have entire songs devoted to them? Despite lip gloss being a much-beloved makeup product, it gets low marks for its staying-on power. After an hour or so, many lip gloss lovers find themselves needing to reapply. If you’re wondering how to make your lip gloss last longer, we are sharing our secrets below. Read on to find out seven secrets to lip gloss that stays on all day. From prepping your lips to finding the perfect shade of lip gloss for women of color, we’ve got you covered in this guide.
Secret #1 Use a Lip Liner as a Base
You may already know to outline your lips with a favorite lip liner before applying lip gloss. But what about filling in your entire lip with a lip liner? First, choose a shade that matches your natural lip color or your lip gloss color. If you need help finding the perfect shade, try using a shade finder to identify the color that’s best for your skin tone and undertones.
After you find the perfect shade, outline your lip, either following the natural line or tracing just beyond to create a fuller lip. Then fill in with your liner. It’s best to use a smooth-glide, no-skip lip liner for even coverage, like Mented’s. The color from the lip liner not only adds dimension to your lips but creates a tactile surface that your gloss will adhere to nicely (plus, as part of our full collection of makeup for women of color, it’s perfectly pigmented for your skin tones). Using a lip liner with lip gloss will be your best-kept secret for an all-day glossy look!
Secret #2 Put Your Matte to Work
Much like using a lip liner as a base for your gloss, you can also use a matte lipstick. No need for the lipstick vs. lip gloss battle when you can use them together to create a bold, high-shine pout. Simply apply a stroke of the matte and then a dab of your gloss. Matte lipsticks work better than other types of lipsticks since mattes have the least amount of moisture in them. The dryness of the matte will help prevent your gloss from smearing. Go for a nude matte lipstick - like Mented’s Dope Taupe - or matte lipstick shades similar to your gloss. Matte lipsticks do take some care in putting on correctly, so check out our post on how to apply matte lipsticks like a pro to get all the tips and tricks.
Secret #3 Use a Setting Powder
Setting powder - as the name implies - sets makeup, but most women don’t take full advantage of this truly versatile cosmetic. The most popular way to use setting powder is by buffing it onto the face after foundation application, but setting powder can do so much more! Set your lip color with setting powder by dusting a touch of it on your lips before lip gloss application.
Secret #4 Try a Lip Primer
When all else fails and you must have stay-on-all-day lip gloss for a big event, then a lip primer can assist you in your quest. Some women use a foundation in place of lip primer, and while it’s not an ideal method, it is a potential stand-in. Coat your lips in a primer before applying your lip color in order to really capture the color on your lips.
Secret #5 Get Supple Lips
Lip gloss - and all other types of lip color - look better on supple lips. Even more so, your lip color will stay on longer if your pout is well-moisturized. Get into a habit of exfoliating your lips twice a week and moisturizing them with a lip balm at least twice a day, morning and night. Your lip exfoliation routine can involve store-bought scrubs or DIY scrubs made from sugar and your favorite oil. (Our current go-to DIY lip scrub is brown sugar and coconut oil.) You can also scrub your lips with a soft-bristle toothbrush if you’re in a pinch. Whatever exfoliating method you choose, be sure to follow it up with a moisturizing lip balm. Having chapped lips will significantly prevent you from high shine in your gloss application, so be sure to follow this easy tip!
Secrete #6 Go with a Quality Lip Gloss
Gooey lip gloss not only feels like a mess but can also smear easily, looking a mess too. Instead of a goopy gloss, choose lip gloss that feels smooth and silky on the lips. Quality lip gloss formulas that are buildable, like Mented’s, will also allow you to layer on a few coats to achieve the shine that you want without creating a sticky mess that easily smears away. A high-quality lip gloss will make all the difference in your look and can even make it appear as though a professional makeup artist has applied your glossy lip.
Secret #7 Avoid Rubbing Your Lips
Pursing your lips together after dabbing on gloss ensures even coverage, but the lip pursing should stop and end there. Pursing your lips together is an important step in how to apply lip gloss, but after the initial application, you should resist. The more you rub your lips together, the more likely your gloss is to come off or migrate away from your lips. So keep the lip-smacking, rubbing and pursing to a minimum for longer-lasting gloss.
Mented Lip Gloss for Women of Color
These tips behind how to keep your lip gloss on all day should seriously lengthen the intervals between gloss applications. Once you've mastered these tips, you won't have to keep reaching for your makeup bag to ensure an all-day glossy lip. If you need a quality lip gloss that stays on all day, Mented’s line of lip glosses is formulated to be sheer, silky and buildable. Plus, it’s made specifically for women of color. The pigments in our lip glosses hold up to your skin’s melanin, and each of the seven shades - from cranberry to brown - is blended to complement your beautiful skin tones. For high shine and shades that complement your natural lip and skin tone, Mented lip glosses have you covered!
