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You know, back in my teens and early 20s I never thought sheer lipsticks were worth the money. I used to think “what’s the point in paying for a colourful lipstick for it to not show up on my lips!” I used to think the same about nude lipsticks too . A lipstick that was already near enough the same colour as my natural lips? Give over! Anything short of full coverage bright lipstick wasn’t worth it in my opinion. Sheer lipstick simply wasn’t worth the money.
Whilst I get frustrated if it turns out a lipstick that has been advertised as full coverage is not, I am actually warming to sheer lipsticks that are advertised as such. Nude lipsticks too. And I’ll tell you some of the benefits of wearing sheer lipsticks over full coverage lipsticks.
Pictured Clinique Two Ton Tomato and NARS Dolce Vita Seductive Sheer Lipstick
1 Confidence to try new colours. You want to try a new red lipstick but you’re not sure whether you feel comfortable strutting your stuff in pillarbox red at 11am to pick up some groceries. Sheer lipsticks offer a lighter colour pay off that’s a bit more subtle. You can still try the colour and decide if it’s really you, but it’s more of a meow than a roar.
2 More comfortable to wear. I’m not saying that opaque, full coverage lipsticks are always uncomfortable to wear, but to me they are either quite matte and sometimes that can be drying, or heavy and creamy. Creamy lipsticks are not so bad in winter, but in summer when you are peeling off layers of clothing you don’t want to be adding layers to your lips. Sheer lipsticks tend to be lighter in texture and slightly glossy. Many aren’t nearly as drying as matte lipsticks too!
3 Easier to apply. As the colour payoff is slighter, you can apply anywhere. In the back of a taxi, public transport (don’t do this one), in the work bathroom before after-work drinks. When applying a full coverage lipstick, one wrong move and you have to reapply your whole face of make up again. With sheer lipstick it is easier to rectify mistakes. You also don’t have to keep looking in a mirror when out for drinks / dinner to check it’s not travelled down your chin.
4 You can wear them anywhere. You know if you go on a date and you worry you’ll cover them in lipstick if you smooch later? Or you just want to go somewhere low key and you want to keep a low profile? With sheer lipstick that is all doable. I find them more versatile than full coverage lipsticks in terms of where I wear them and consequently how often I wear them.
5 You can switch up your lipstick colours more often. Sometimes I get bored of having the same lipstick colour on and want to change. Or sometimes I want something more glam for the evening. I find if I am wearing a lipstick with a high colour pay off and I want to change colours, some of the old colour still remains and taints the new lipstick. I find it’s not fully removed until I give my skin a good cleanse at the end of the night. With sheer lipstick because the colour pay off isn’t as strong, it’s easier to switch colours in the middle of the day.
I think sheer lipsticks certainly have their place. They’re definitely worth the money if that’s what you’re expecting from a lipstick. Anyway, how about you? Do you wear sheer lipsticks or do you prefer full coverage?
