Want The Perfect Pout? Lip Contouring Is The Way To Go, According To Marilyn Monroe

Kylie Jenner had us all in a tizzy recently, when she revealed that the secret behind her plumped up pout wasn’t, in fact, clever make-up trickery, but fillers.

Sure, we were sad that her enviable pout wasn’t achievable without injections, but then we looked to one of our ultimate beauty icons – and original owner of the perfect pout – Marilyn Monroe, and discovered that the secret behind her amazing smile is way more achievable. It’s lip contouring.

So what’s that when it’s at home? Well, just like facial contouring, it uses light and shade to add definition and emphasis your natural features, and it’s becoming really popular; just search ‘lip contouring’ on YouTube or Instagram and you’ll be greeted with loads of tutorials showing you exactly how to do it.

We’ve saved you the bother though: here’s STELLAR’s five-step guide on how to lip contour like a pro.

1. Line your lips

Start by lining lips with a dark lip liner, by drawing an outline of the shape you want your lips to be. Be sure to draw it just outside of your natural lip line so your lips appear bigger. Our favourite dark lip liner? That’s MAC Be Spoken For, €19.

2. Apply the base

Next, fill in your lips with your chosen lipstick. Ensure it’s a lighter colour than your lip liner to achieve that desired contoured effect. We love Kate Moss’ Be Iconic, €6.99, paired with Be Spoken For.

3. Blend

For the ultimate lip contouring effect, blend your lip liner and lipstick together. We recommend using a lip brush like Bobbi Brown’s retractable lip brush, €29.50, to achieve a professional finish.

4. Highlight

Using your fingertip, dab a cream highlighter across the centre of your lips so that when your lips attract light they’ll have an enviable shine. We love Bourjois Happy Light Illuminator, €15.99. (Clear gloss is good too!)

5. Moisturise

Your finishing step? To keep your lips from getting chapped and sore, use a trusty lip balm to seal the deal. Our staple lip hydrator is Benefit’s Bella Bamba, €21. Pat it on gently to avoid disturbing your handiwork.

And that’s it. Lip contouring, done. Here’s how it should look:

Backstage beauty: more of an ombre, high fashion take on the trend.

Blogger Lesley from Fresh Lengths showcases her perfectly pretty daywear pout. Love.

• Beauty
• beauty trends
• Lip Contouring
• lipstick
• make-up