All For Show: Thoughts On Lipstick

Plus, the best-looking luxury lipsticks on display this autumn …

Female founders understand that make-up isn’t applied at home, sitting at a dressing table, since we’re no longer in the 1950s. Sarah Creal Beauty and Trinny London are two of those brands that create beauty for on the go. Their take: we’re always in a rush, we need quick fixes fast, which means easy to use, multitasking formulas. This pragmatic approach, driven by experience, makes sense. And reminds me of Tom Ford’s admonishment, in a Vogue interview on the launch of his own (exquisite) beauty line in 2011: “You can’t put this make-up on in the subway or in the car ever … Why would you do that?” You have to admire the singularity of his vision – but for most of us, make-up in transit is a necessary thing. And it can be a comforting ritual, whether we’re on the bus or in a café.  

With the launch of her luxe new lipsticks, Victoria Beckham Beauty delivers a lipstick “for those, like me, who always apply lipstick at the dinner table.” Her Rouge Victoria matte lipsticks are made “to be seen”, presented in an undeniably pretty polished alabaster case which is refillable (€83, at Brown Thomas). The velvety, weightless formula comes in six shades of red, from warm poppy House Red, Beckham’s own red of choice, to deep wine Minuit.

This red, by the way, was the star of Beckham’s recent SS27 show, as part of the beautifully fresh look created by make-up supremo Lucia Pica, who explains: “This is a red that is joyful and alive, a breath of fresh colour. It’s a bold red applied straight from the bullet without overthinking it. The texture makes it effortless: one stroke and you have this beautiful, saturated colour that still feels completely natural.”

“Red can be adventurous, classic, seductive – but it is always confident,” says Beckham. I think, as with wearing a hat, that red can give you confidence, as well as signal it. And there’s a red to suit everyone, whether that’s a full-strength matte in orange-red or a softer, blurred finish in more of a cherry or brick-red shade.

The limited-edition Hermès Beauty holiday collection doesn’t follow the crowd, with berry or red shades for winter, but goes cool and neutral, with a focus on a pale golden-pink across eyes, lips and nails, like soft molten metal. The Or Rose lip colour is engraved with the House’s signature symbols – a collector’s item as much as a piece of make-up, and as beautiful as an item of jewellery. Just look at the other pieces, too … From November; www.hermes.com.

The most glamorous lipstick I’ve ever seen is Chanel’s 31 Le Rouge. The case is sculpted from glass, no less, inspired by the legendary mirrored staircase in Gabrielle Chanel’s Rue Cambon apartment – yet it’s incredibly resilient, designed to be in your bag at all times. Its magnetic closure is immensely satisfying, it’s refillable, and the red shades are beyond classic. The ultimate beauty heirloom. 

See also the pretty, soft petal lip shades of the Merit Beauty collab with Erdem, including Ginger.  

SEE MORE: Behind The Scenes: Beauty At The Brown Thomas AW26 Show

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