Now you need to find your perfect shade. Personally, I’d advise against a really matte liquid lipstick. I’ve tried so many, and found them all really drying, which can lead to the aforementioned prune mouth situation. I think a regular matte or even satin finish lipstick would be best – some of my favourite textures are Topshop Tom Ford and NYX . You can apply some concealer to your lips first if you’re going for a bold colour – this takes all the natural tone out of your lips and makes the lipstick go on its swatch-perfect colour. Use a lip liner that matches your lipstick closely ( MAC and Bobbi Brown are both good starting points), and sharpen it super finely. Draw ever so slightly over the edge of your lips, being especially careful around your Cupid’s bow. Then, apply your lipstick. An old makeup artist trick that really works is to apply gloss to the centre of your lips for a more 3D effect – clear is fine, and more utilitarian than buying one gloss for every lipstick you own. A dot of highlighter on your Cupid’s bow can help enhance this effect, too.