Lip pencil: how to use it? All you need to know is in this guide

The lip pencil (in our catalog they are called Pastel) are one of the most important products to make a perfect lip makeup that can top off face makeup.

It looks like a classic pencil, with a shape that can remind us of school pencils, inside which is contained the mine generally with a waxy structure containing colored pigments responsible for the different colors.

On the market there are many varieties of lip pencils, some with a harder and dry mine, others with a softer, smoother and buttery consistency.

Its use is generally aimed at drawing and defining the contour of the lips, which will then be filled with lipstick or the same pencil.

How to choose a lip pencil

The shades of lip pencils are many and meet the most diverse tastes, declined in a range of colors ranging from the most natural and flesh-colored tones, to mauve peach, peach, plum, red, purple, brown, pink, corallo ... there is only the embarrassment of the choice!

If you are very undecided about what color to choose, don't worry, just below you will find some tips that will help you to orient yourself based on your type of complexion.

• • If your complexion is clear and cold we suggest a color like our Pastel Magnolia, a light coral pink
  • If your complexion is clear and neutral we suggest a color like Ballerina, a rather neutral rosé
  • If your complexion is clear and warm we suggest a color like Symbol, a warm pink / beige with a hint of cinnamon

• • • If your complexion is medium and cold we advise you to evaluate the medium romantic and dreamy pink of the Pastel Cloud
    • If your complexion is medium and neutral you may greatly appreciate the Amore pencil, a natural and passionate color lips
    • If your complexion is medium and warm , then look for the red of Flashback

• • • • If your complexion is dark and cold you might find the Blood lip pencil interesting, a velvety and very sensual red
      • If your complexion is dark and neutral we recommend Immortal
      • If your complexion is dark and warm we recommend Confusion, a red with chocolate nuances

• • • • • If your complexion is very dark and cold do not hesitate: Witch will bewitch you and give you a lot
        • If your complexion is very dark and neutral the Tartan coloring could be a good choice
        • If your complexion is very dark and warm do not miss, finally, the bewitching beauty of Pastel Wine

How to fix the lip pencil and make it last longer

One of the most frequently asked questions about lip pencils is how to fix them to increase their duration.

Given that in the case of our Pastels it is not strictly necessary, as they are born as long lasting and water resistant products, if you wish to further amplify the life of the lip pencils we suggest taking care to remove the lip balm residues with a tissue before applying the pencil, so that the formula adheres directly to the lips and then fix it with a very light dusting of transparent powder , always through a tissue to avoid too dusty finish. The lip make-up will be even more durable and durable!

Lip pencil like lipstick

Depending on how soft and pigmented the pencil lead is, it is also possible (as in the case of our Pastels, which we consider to be true lipsticks in the form of a pencil) to perform both lip edging and filling with the same product long lasting.

In the picture below you can see a practical example, the lip make-up was in fact entirely executed with the Pastel in the color Tartan.

How to lighten and enlarge the lips with a pencil

We have come to one of the most interesting features of lip pencils.

Not only do they find ample use in correcting asymmetries (on the other hand, none of us is perfectly symmetrical), but they also help to illuminate and redesign the volumes of the labial mucosa revealing us indispensable allies for all those people who have lips thin and want a slightly meatier mouth and full lips .

Here is the process to get this result:

• • Prepare the base by passing a veil of foundation on the lips, then fixed with powder to hide your natural border
  • Take a pencil that is very close to the color of your lips and draw a new outline by moving the track one or two millimeters out of your natural edge, without exaggerating the distances from the original shape
  • Fill all the lips with the same pencil
  • Take another tone-on-tone pencil from the first, but slightly lighter, and color both the center of your upper lip and the center of your lower lip
  • Carefully blend to combine the two colors in a natural gradient that simulates a harmonious chiaroscuro game

How to fade lip pencil

The best way to shade the lip pencil is obtained by using a specific and flat brush, in technical jargon it is called " cat's tongue ". A small and high-precision brush that allows you to make harmonious shades and spread the pigment minimizing the risk of smudging. An example is our brush Green detail.

Pencil eyes on the lips: can it be done?

It may happen that you buy a lip pencil of a color that is as beautiful as it is special and that at first sight intrigued us.

By trying out the new purchase calmly at home, you have realized that either it doesn't give you what you believed, or, however beautiful, it is a color definitely out of your comfort zone and you would use it very little.

Or, again, it is a nuance that you have purchased specifically to combine it with a particular dress, perhaps during a special event. Once the event is over and without the right context to wear that dress, the lip pencil lies abandoned in the depths of your beauty case.

So why not change the destination and try to use this lip pencil ... as an eye pencil?

Yes, it can be done but it depends on the formulation of the pencil you bought!

In our case, Pastel lips and Pastel eyes (the pencils in our catalog) can easily be used in an inverted way with respect to the original specific destination. Then: Pastel eyes on the lips and Pastel lips applied to the eyes. Because their formulation allows it and it is certainly an interesting advantage.

However, it is not automatic and should be taken for granted, there are cosmetic companies that use lip pencils and eye pencils to use ingredients that could be problematic if the product is applied differently than the primary destination, the one for which the respective formulations have been conceived. Imperative therefore to inquire before taking initiatives not conforming to the indications of the company!

Transparent lip pencil: what's the use?

We conclude this overview on lip pencils by talking about a little-known product that many are wondering about: the transparent lip pencil.

In our catalog it is present with the name of Perfettina.

It is not transparent pencils as a drop of water can be transparent, mind you. They are transparent in relation to the complexion on which they are applied. Perfettina is indeed ivory pink in color and blends perfectly with light complexions.

At this point you are probably wondering: "perfect, but what good is a light-colored lip pencil?"

Its function is mainly corrective and enlightening and is part of the corrective trick more properly understood.

These pencils are used in synergy with the classic colored pencils on the lip contour to reduce a symmetrical labial border (in case of asymmetries), to highlight the upper arch , to prevent smudging of lipstick and gloss, or to help natural lips appear fuller and fleshier.