Seeing glazed lips everywhere? Here we translate the trend
If the last decade was centred on matte lipstick, this decade is all about shine. Glazed lips – the beauty look becoming especially indelible in a trend cycle moving at breakneck speed – is set to stay. And it reads just as well offline as on; whether you like full glam or minimal make-up, during the day or night.
“It’s all about glazed lips at the moment, a trend we predicted would be big this year for a few reasons,” Lisa Payne, head of beauty at trend forecasting specialists Stylus, tells us. So what is it about this high-shine, almost wet-looking texture that feels so now? “Firstly, in fashion and beauty, much of what we see in styling is driven by Nineties and Noughties nostalgia with a contemporary twist,” she points out – so in this case think Lancôme’s Juicy Tubes and Dior Addict glosses 2.0. “Secondly, where matte has been the lip texture of choice on the runways and in new product development for so many years, the contrast of juicy, dewy, and glossy lips is refreshing and youthful.”
Payne adds that their trend intelligence research shows that younger consumers are much more likely to pull a gloss or lip oil out of their handbags than a pigmented bullet, “in part inspired by beauty influencers and model ‘It’ girls like Hailey Bieber who favour the plumped, drenched lip look”. Given Bieber’s influence around ‘glazed’ skin and nail trends over the last year, rebranding ‘gloss’ as ‘glaze’ in the context of lips speaks to the zeitgeist.
She points out that what makes this trend revival feel current and – crucially – accessible, is the development in formulation technology that allows for products that are far more sophisticated, comfortable, and aesthetically pleasing “than the overly-sticky, gummy and smudgy glosses of the past”. “Now we see gloss formulas packed with nourishing skincare ingredients like peptides that do good for lips while they gloss,” she says. “Skincare-first conditioning lip oils similarly provide benefits alongside shine.” From a colour perspective, “mineral pigments are now so refined and adaptive that gloss and oil products can be marketed in a range of shades and textures,” allowing us to experiment with everything from sheers to nudes, metallics to berries and inky dark tones.
Letitia Sophia, make-up artist to Maya Jama – the UK’s poster girl for the look – confirms that you can customise the glazed-lip look to suit your sense of style. “If you’re into more of a simple ‘no make-up’ make-up look, you can layer gloss onto your lips without any lipliner or lipstick – or, if you’re into dramatic bold colours on your lips, you can add extreme high shine, making the trend work for you in your own way.” She says it’s “an instant lip statement that’s so easy for anyone to achieve” – and below she explains how...
How to achieve the glazed-lip look
“Using a lip scrub first to make sure your lips are exfoliated and smooth is ideal,” the make-up artist says. “I love using the Lush Lip Scrubs as the ingredients are vegan and they smell amazing”. Next, she likes to use a lip conditioner to really nourish your lips before applying gloss. “A great one I use day and night is the Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask.”
She then suggests applying lipliner to frame your mouth, the shade of which will depend on whether you’re going for a colourful lip or not. If you are, try to match the colours of your liner and lipstick/gloss. If you’re opting for a neutral look, “the tone of the liner will depend on your skin undertone,” she advises.
For medium skin tones, the MAC Lip Pencil shade Cork (a muted golden-brown) is her personal go-to, while she recommends the brand's sister shade Chestnut (an intense brown) if your skin tone and lips are darker. Those with light-to-medium colourings should try the Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Iconic Nude (a nude-beige) or Pillow Talk (a nude-pink), or the MAC Lip Pencil in Spice (a cinnamon-pink).
“Lastly, use a high-shine gloss all over your lips and layer it as many times as you want to achieve the ultimate glazed lip.” Her favourite? “MAC do a great clear lip gloss called Lipglass.” Shine on.
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