The right lipstick can make or break a women’s look. What’s more, finding that perfect shade is guaranteed to give you a powerful confidence boost!

The good news is that these days every shade is in fashion, from bright reds, daring blacks, audacious blues, to subtle nudes. Metallic texture is trendy, but so are glossy and matte textures. And while liquid lipsticks are making inroads, the traditional bullets are here to stay too.

The bad news is… how to choose from all that variety? Our ten tips are here to help!

Tip 1: Traditional wisdom had it that certain lipstick shades are best suited for particular skin colours. However, after seeing so many beauties of all skin colours looking great wearing every imaginable lipstick hue, we have to dismiss that wisdom. It is true that not every lipstick shade will look perfect on every woman, but that seems to depend more on the shape of the lips, the overall structure of the face, and on the skin tone (cool, warm or neutral), than on the skin colour. Therefore, feel free to experiment!

Tip 2: Are you looking for the most natural (and, some say, most flattering) lipstick shade? Go for the tone that’s only one or two shades darker than your natural lip colour. To determine which shade is one or two tones darker, apply lipstick to one lip and then compare it to the other, bare lip.

Tip 3: Do you want to wear red lipstick, but fear that it is too strong for you? Create a subtle red stain! Smooth on a lip balm and apply red lipstick over it with your finger. The result is a gorgeous sheen of red.

Tip 4: Do you want your lips to look fuller? Opt for light-to-medium shades of lip colour and highlight your lips with a touch of gloss.

Tip 5: Matte lipsticks are long-lasting and chic, but they can dry your lips and appear chalky after a few hours. The solution is to hydrate your lips well with a lip balm before applying the lipstick. Besides, many of today’s matte formulas are light and smooth, so look for those!

Tip 6: Liquid lipsticks have great coverage and are long-lasting, but they too can dry out your lips. And don’t even try to wash it off with water-based solutions! You will need an oil formula.

Tip 7: Your teeth will seem whiter if you wear lipstick with a blue or cool undertone.

Tip 8: Warm lipstick undertones, including brown, yellow and orange, tend to make your teeth appear yellowish. Neon hues and frosty shimmers applied thickly also have a dulling effect on teeth. (That won’t stop us from wearing the trendy shades… but may prompt us to smile less while doing it!)

Tip 9: You will know that you chose the right lipstick shade if it looks good on you even when you are not wearing any other makeup.

Tip 10: Got the wrong colour? Don’t throw away the lipsticks that are not quite right! You can create a great lip colour by blending the lipsticks you don’t like.

Now that you know (practically) all there is to know about how to choose the right lipstick shade, find out how to apply lipstick!