Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of the Perfect Pink Lipstick
The very first lip product (once my mother allowed me to move on from Wet N Wild’s clear lipstick) that I remember being obsessed over was a Chanel Glossimer called Pretty in Pink. A pale frosty pink that could be pretty if I blotted it on just so. I had to have been like 11 or 12?
It matched my nail polish, a precious bottle of the same name, my first foray into luxury beauty. The sales lady asked my mom if I was allowed to wear mascara—prior to this moment, I wasn’t—and popped in a few extra samples for me.
“Dust a bit of powder on your lashes before you apply,” she said winking at me. “And only ever apply mascara to your top lashes. With your eye shape—that’s all you need.”
What was I saying?
My point is that one of my first lipgloss loves was in the color hot pink, setting me up for a life of searching for the perfect pink lipstick.
Not just any pink, what I now refer to as Shocking Pink, thanks to Elsa Schiaparelli.
So when Erika emailed me saying that she needed recs as a fellow brown-skin gal, I was all DO I have suggestions?! You bet your pretty little head I do. I would like to present absolute favorite pink lipsticks.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the one that got away. YSL Rouge Volupte in Provocative Pink, I still think about it to this day. I lost the cap in the back of a cab. It rolled into the seat fold, and that was that, I wasn’t putting my hand in there. I tried to wrap the lipstick in a napkin but the next morning the inside of my clutch was pink. Sad face.
My next obsession? MAC Cosmetics Oh Baby lip glass. I was in the 8th grade and thought I was the ish with that tucked into my Coach bag.
Ladies, what pink lipsticks do you reach for often? What should Erika have in her life?
