Just like the kohl, a lipstick will invariably find a place in a woman’s handbag as a daily essential. However, due to a wide range of options offered by different brands, it becomes confusing to find the right lipstick. But if you know some useful tips for buying lipsticks, the task becomes much easier. While you may be tempted to buy shades of lipstick that celebrities may be flaunting in movies and fashion magazines, you need to realize that not every shade will complement your looks.

One of the best tips for buying lipsticks is paying attention to important things like your complexion, texture of your lips, the apparel you wear, where you are most likely to wear them. Unless you check all these factors, you may pick a wrong shade thinking that it will work for you simply because it was looking good on a model in a fashion magazine.

Six essential tips for buying lipsticks

• To start with, there is no safer way to choose a lipstick than figuring out your own skin tone. To do that, hold a white paper below your chin in natural light and check the shadow that it forms on your skin. When the shadow is blue, purple, or red, it implies you have a cool tone; but, if it’s yellow, beige or dull, it indicates a warm tone. The best shades for cool skin tone are rose, pink, fuchsia, lavender, violet, cherry, mauve, berry, burgundy, and lilac. For warm skin tone, the best shades are brown, beige, honey, coral, mocha, taupe, peach, and copper. However, if you have a neutral skin tone, you can sport any color.
• You must choose a lipstick shade that will complement your complexion; for this, you need to figure out if you have a light, dark, or medium complexion. The fair-complexioned can flaunt reds and pinks, the dark-complexioned can flaunt deep and bold shades like purple, orange, brown, and maroon while the medium-complexioned look best in nudes, reds, and pinks.
• One of the most useful tips for buying lipsticks is choosing a lipstick depending on the dryness of your lips. This is because different lipsticks will meet different hydration requirements. For those with very dry lips, it is best to avoid matte, shimmery, and long-wear lipsticks. Cream-based lipsticks are the best for a casual look and they provide maximum hydration. Gloss and satin ones will give a shimmery finish and they are good for longer wear. But such lipsticks do not go well with casual outfits. Matte lipsticks are found to be the most popular as they give a velvet finish and are long-lasting; you must, however, hydrate the lips before using them.
• After deciding shades, choosing the right cosmetic brand is the most important factor. The best ones are those which are not greasy; neither too rigid, nor too oily. One of the most effective tips for buying lipsticks is trying and buying. If you find that the feeling is not impressive, you must avoid that brand. You must also analyze the packaging carefully; if you see that the cap can be very easily removed, it means that the lipstick can break and leak.
• Before buying a lipstick, check for the return policy or ask for samples. Usually, all big stores have samples to offer.
• Finally, do not forget to check the expiry date as it indicates the lipstick’s shelf-life. Like everything else, cosmetic products have expiry dates and for lipsticks, it is typically three years from the manufacturing date.