Recently, during fashion week (which I paid approximately zero real-time attention to), legendary makeup artist Pat McGrath sent models down the Prada S/S 2016 runway in minimal facial makeup and stunning gold metallic lipstick.
The gold used in the Prada show was… actual 24k gold which makes my wallet shiver, but I know for a fact that isn’t the only way to get a metallic sheen into your beauty routine. In fact, it’s the least efficient, least affordable, and least accessible way I’ve ever heard of! Here are some much smarter ways to get the metallic lip beauty look without pawning your grandmother’s wedding ring.
Drugstore Metallic Lipstick
Lots of affordable drugstore makeup brands are coming out with metallic lipstick after seeing the raging success of other higher-end brands. Thank goodness, because there’s no way I’m ever buying a Kylie Lip Kit, and I hear that 24k gold is pretty expensive, as well.
Milani Amore Metallic Lip Creme Liquid Lipsticks
The fact that Milani was one of the first (and currently only) drugstore brands to come out with a metallic liquid lipstick is like learning that the only cheese left in the world to make grilled cheese with is aged cheddar and the only bread on Earth is sourdough. Like, yeah, your options are limited but they’re also the best.
Milani has my absolute favorite liquid lipstick formula. I reviewed their Amore Matte Lip Crèmes (which are actually long-wearing liquid lipsticks) and was completely impressed. Their line of metallics has received rave reviews from beauty bloggers and customers alike. Their colors are vibrant, opaque, they dry down matte and they are viciously metallic.
Source: Kitty Kat Does Makeup
Find Milani Metallic Lip Cremes:
Milani, $8.99
NYX Cosmetics Wicked Lippies
NYX is an incredibly affordable brand with major praise from users who love bold looks. After picking up my first matte lipstick, the cashier began gushing to me about how they favored NYX Cosmetics for allllll of their drag makeup. Now that is an endorsement.
I found out about Wicked Lippies by going in with a friend (okay it was Zoë it’s always Zoë) on an Ulta order. After seeing her pick up two of these alternative, metallic lipsticks, I couldn’t resist picking one up for myself! Here’s the metallic lilac-colored Power:
For under $10, it’s a pretty sweet way to try out a metallic lipstick from a relatively high quality company!
Where to buy NYX Wicked Lippies:
NYX Cosmic Metals Lip Creams
I only discovered these the other day after stumbling upon a video review. These lipsticks are so bright and vivid that topping them with a gloss would probably blind people. Layering these over a basic matte or cream lipstick, on the other hand, sounds like a fantastic idea. The Cosmic Metals Lip Creams don’t dry down, but they do coat your lips in an ultra-metallic, slightly hydrating color. Some people have said they are more like opaque lip glosses than lipstick.
It seems like, from reviews, that the formula varies a bit from color to color. Highlights included Out of This World (a blue-tinted green) and Speed of Light (a shimmery peach) which have a highly metallic finish, whereas some of the other colors are more glittery than metallic, if that makes sense…?
Source: Beautezine
There are 11 different colors to choose from, and unlike many of the other metallic lipsticks, the colors they offer are deeper, more vibrant and less pastel. That’s exciting because imagining beauty looks with metallic olive green makes me really excited.
Where to find NYX Cosmic Metals Lip Creams
NYX, $7.50
Indie Brand Metallic Lipsticks
This is where metallic lipstick was born. Indie makeup brands are the most innovative, creative forces in the beauty industry. Whenever a big brand comes out with a hot new product, it’s almost always a safe bet that they’re pinching inspiration from an indie beauty brand.
I started seeing metallic lipsticks on Etsy. Many of the indie makeup brands below started out there and have since emancipated themselves into their own operations. I love supporting these hard-working people (usually women, let’s be honest) and watching their incredible ideas come to reality!
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Metallic Lip Tar & Loose Pigments
Many, many months before Prada’s models took to the runway, vegan & cruelty-free favorite Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics took their famous lip tar to the highest degree by releasing an series of metallic lip colors (two popular shades are available in a “Test Tube” pack for $15.20) with extremely rich pigmentation and potent sheen.
I think that OCC’s best metallic lip color is Black Metal Dahlia:
Source: @michellecoursey
OCC also carries fantastic loose pigments, many of which are metallic. Combining some OCC Loose Color Concentrates with some lip primer or color transformer can produce stunning looks like this one, using the light copper colored Lemarchand:
Body Language “Metallurgy” Mineral Lipstick
As the name suggests, the indie lipstick “Metallurgy” by BSoaps is mineral-based and full of metallic lustre. BLSoaps makes everything by hand and has thousands of amazing reviews on Etsy. A slim lipstick tube of Metallurgy is $11.95.
This shade is a blend of gold, copper, and bronze pigments which create a multi-dimensional glimmer, and all B healing ingredients like beeswax, jojoba oil, and macadamia nut oil. Try a small sample for $4.95!
ColourPop Metallic Liquid Lipsticks
It’s not surprising that the company creates to get beauty products to the market as quickly as possible has already released a set of metallic liquid lipsticks. The ColourPop Ultra Metallic Lip Liquid Lipsticks come in four different shades, and according to reviews, some apply better than others. Unsurprisingly, these are frequently out of stock, so check back if you’re set on it. The price is right!
If you’re new to ColourPop, check out my recent review which included their matte liquid lipsticks. They aren’t for everyone, but I think they are definitely for me!
Source: Beauty Editer
Find ColourPop Ultra Metallic Lips
ColourPop, $6
ColourPop “Wet” Lippie
At first glance, I wasn’t sure that ColourPop Wet Lippie qualified as “metallic,” but after seeing it swatched a thousand times, I have concluded that it is. It’s on the neutral, tame side of the metallic lipstick spectrum, to be sure, but the pearlized finish gives it a definite gunmetal look.
Photo via Sultry Suburbia
ColourPop Wet is a perfect “double take” lipstick – a color that looks basic as ever from afar, but once you really look at it, you can see that there are interesting dynamics between the metallic finish and the different hues that make up this taupe-grey-brown beauty. Oh, and it’s only $5 which is pretty damn fantastic.
Find Colourpop Wet Lippie
Colourpop, $5
Fierce Magenta “Golden Peach” Liquid Lipstick
Liquid lipstick is everywhere lately, and after setting my eyes on this Golden Peach lipstick from Fierce Magenta, another indie beauty brand, I absolutely died. Okay, I didn’t die. What I really did was melt into a small puddle on the floor. Just look at this:
What this photo lacks in definition quality it more than makes up for in beauty, and credibility. One look at the reviews for this product display hundreds of people glowing about the color, stating over and over their inability to catch how beautiful it is on camera. I, for one, cannot wait to try this golden peachy-pink “holographic” shade! A squeeze tube of Fierce Magenta Golden Peach will cost you $9.69.
Last Resort: Eyeshadow
Last but certainly not least: eyeshadow. Patting eyeshadow onto primed lips, or mixing it with your favorite primer or gloss can result in some extremely captivating colors. Think of all the glittery, shimmery, pearly eyeshadows you’ve got in your makeup bag, and how amazing they would look as lip colors! You already have everything you need, why not give it a try?
Personally, I think that metallic lipstick has a major place in my makeup kit. Maybe not every day – hell, maybe only once a month, at home, in pajamas, while you clean your house – but it’s fun. It’s really fun, and really beautiful, and some brands are doing very cool things with duochromes and blending different shades together to make masterpieces!
What do you think? Are you into metallic lipstick? How far down the alternative-color-rabbit-hole would you go?