Friday, March 27, 2015

Lipstick: A Fashion Evolution

As it is with all fashion, the only constant is change.  Here is what I have observed about lipstick over the last 15 or 20 years.

In the early part of the period, young women, the most avid fashion followers, often wore lipstick and outlined their lips with lip pencil, which was coming into style.  Typically the lip pencil outline was in a darker color than the lipstick.  This struck me as a rather strange look, but it sure was popular.


Then, for a period of years, the natural look came back into vogue.  If women used pencils to outline their lips, the pencil matched the lip color, which was mostly subdued.  Lip glosses, again in realistic shades, also were popular.









The last several years have seen a huge changeup:  Bright lipstick, often glossy, drew attention to itself. 

First came variations of red.












Then came pink.







Now I am seeing colors that are not typically associated with lips, but that have been favorites at mani-pedi parlors for the last five years or so.














I have seen all the above shades on the streets lately.  The effect is interesting and novel, but if I were a young woman I wouldn't wear one of these colors for a family portrait.

The current state is about as far lip color can go.  After a few years, my guess is that these looks will play themselves out.  Then it will be back to neutral and normal-looking shades.

After that, who knows?

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