Turn Heads With These Insane Lip Designs
The bold lip has become hugely trendy, but this photo gallery focuses on lip designs that take bold to the next level. There are countless makeup artists out in the world and on Instagram, both professionally trained and self-taught, who amaze their clients and followers with their stunningly outrageous lip designs. Halloween is usually the time when over-the-top makeup surfaces, but you can have a head-turning lip any day of the year, whether you're going out to a club at night or feeling imaginative and playful during the day.
Sparkling Cinderella
This lip design, as well as half of the other designs on this list, was done by self-taught makeup artist and Instagrammer Virginia Alanis (@virginiaalanis). Alanis, who is a mother of four, delves into the creative world of makeup artistry to relieve herself of the stresses of life. "I do my makeup according to how my mood is that day," she tells me. "I suffer from high anxiety attacks, and most of the time I feel helpless." Improving her beauty skills and constantly generating fun new ideas helps give her a feeling of control. "It's not what is trending on Twitter or what new palette is coming out on Instagram," she enforces. "It's the true meaning behind each line and shadow put into that lip look."
This look is what Alanis calls "The Cinderella Blue Lip." "I was obviously inspired by the new Cinderella movie which is also connected to my childhood memories," she says. As any Disney fan can recall, Cinderella wears her signature blue dress, which is wonderfully represented here with a lovely gradient of light blue to dark blue. The magical element of the movie is captured by the intensely glittered upper lip and gem stone.
Icy blue
If you love the concept of the Cinderella lip but don't want to go all out with the glitter and gem stones, you can try this more casual, yet still bold, icy blue look. Professional makeup artist and beauty blogger Hillary Kline, who has been featured in many other outlets (including Marie Claire, Bravo, Buzzfeed and more), has her own version of what it takes to look like an ice queen. For this design she actually goes pretty far outside the box, using a surprising product that most people would never consider to put on their lips: eyeshadow.
"You wouldn't really think about putting eyeshadow on your lips, would you? I have experimented with this and it's pretty cool!" she tells me. "Take a blue metallic eyeshadow and mix it with a clear lip balm in a mixing dish. Then, for extra precision, take a lip brush and apply the mixture to your lips. I wanted a little more depth so I took a darker blue eyeshadow and shaded at the bottom of the lip."
Vamp it up
This is another look by Alanis that takes us further into the world of fantasy. As she explains to me while sharing her designs, "Many looks are usually inspired by something I saw that day, or sometimes I even wake up in the middle of the night because I dreamed a look." While there may not be real vampires walking around (or are there?), this lip design is sexy, bold, and definitely dreamy.
Even if you don't want to simulate dripping blood from your mouth on a regular, casual day, you can still use the ideas from this look to make a dark red lip bolder. The shining, bright red lip gloss adds more dimension that will definitely make heads turn when applied against a darker background.
Chase the rainbow
This lip design by Hillary Kline is the ultimate picture of fun. These multicolor lips are absolutely mesmerizing and can easily be worn any day of the week — as long as you're bold enough! And you don't even have to eat packs upon packs of Skittles all day (even if you may want to) to get this beautiful result.
"What is fun about creating the rainbow look is that there's really nowhere you can mess it up," Kline says. "Each rainbow look will look different. I like to make sure the colors blend. You can use eyeliners for this look or you can use a colorful eyeshadow palette, which is what I did here. Make sure that you clean off your lip brush every single time you switch colors. To add a little pop to this look, I took a clear lip gloss, dabbed it on my finger and then dabbed it gently on my lips. Do not smoosh your lips together!"
Remember, bold doesn't always have to be intimidating or dark. Add a little whimsy to your day and you'll blow people's minds just as much!
Leopard lips
Virginia Alanis got inspiration for this tantalizing and exotic look from an unlikely source: Lisa Frank. If you're having trouble placing this name, it was the company that produced all of those brightly colored school supplies that kids simply couldn't get enough of. "I was a '90s baby," Alanis says, "and my parents couldn't afford the then very expensive Lisa Frank pencils and folders for school. I decided I could inspire other people; [even if] you can't have it, you can make it yours by being inspired by it."
For this leopard design, bold is an understatement. For anyone who wants to show off how fabulous they are on a daily basis, this is most definitely the look for you. Not only is the pattern stimulating, but the colors blend from purple to red to orange like there is a sunset taking place on your lips.
Purple glitter
Not only does this particular lip design use rainbow glitter for the corners of the lips, but it also uses little gem-like flakes for some extra texture. The bold purple is striking on its own, but combined with the extra shimmer this design is simply unstoppable. "The purple one with glitter on the outer corners was inspired by my daughter," Alanis shares. "It was her birthday that day, and I just had sat down to do a look and that popped into my head."
Of course a little girl would love this kind of look for a birthday party (especially a princess-themed one), but that doesn't mean it can't work for adults! We all still feel like a kid sometimes, and it's refreshing to bring that kind of freedom and imagination to the bold lip.
Glitter-lined
If you're looking for a lip design that pops but you're low on time, this look is going to be your go-to. It's not difficult to achieve, for those of you who are concerned with your level of makeup mastery, and it still attracts attention. "You can take any one of your favorite lip colors and apply all over," Kline explains. "Then, I took a gold glitter eyeliner and rimmed my lips. I then went back in and add more in the corners. If gold isn't your thing and you want to venture out, try silvers, purples, greens, or black glitter eyeliners around the lip area."
The best part about this design is that it comes with so many options. The glitter-lined template can be applied to any color and used for any kind of event. Want to do something beautiful for a sunny spring day? Copy Kline's example. Want to go out and party with your girls? Get a little darker with your base lip color and a little more lively with the glitter for an impressive contrast.
Star glow
This design by Virginia Alanis was inspired by Jeffree Star Cosmetics. Again we have a beautiful blend, this time of electric purple, blue, and pink with a glimmering, glossy finish. For Alanis, this design is about "the way the colors mix, blending away all your worries and just going into this magical land full of wonder and colors." The lipsticks that she used were Jeffree Star's Blow Pony and Queen Supreme, while the gloss on top is Maybelline Shine Shot Prismatic Lip Top Coat. Just like beauty icon Jeffree Star, this lip design Alanis came up with is bold, beautiful, and vibrant.
Get crazy
There is no limit to what the word "bold" can mean for you. Sure, it can mean dark lips, but it can also mean doing something wholly unique and inspiring with your look. There are bold lip designs out there for every type of personality, whether you're just stepping out of your comfort zone or you love to be the center of everyone's gaze. Dare to be more creative and enchanting with your daily routine. You don't have to be a certified professional to learn how to recreate these spellbinding looks!