28-02-2025
The £12 lip liner that gives you instantly fuller lips
As you'd probably expect, I follow a lot of beauty accounts across social media. There was a moment recently when I noticed more and more videos of women applying a purple stain around their lip line and then peeling it away in a dramatic fashion. It looked completely bizarre. The product in question, a lip-liner stain by Sacheu Beauty, left a tint designed to make the lips look fuller.
It turns out it was an instant hit in Boots when it launched last December. The average Boots customer is 45 years old, so it probably wasn't just the TikTok demographic buying it up – but their mums too. I tried the Sacheu Beauty Lip Liner Stay-n in shade P-inked (£12, Boots) for myself, and it does work – if you have the extra few minutes it takes for the stain to 'set'.
Sacheu Beauty Lip Liner Stay-n in shade P-inked, £12, Boots
It colours the lip line a slightly deeper shade of pink, which appears really natural. The purple stain looks terrifying at first glance, but it's honestly hard to mess up: trace just outside your lip line with the applicator, leave it to dry for 10 to 20 minutes, then peel off.
Lip liners in general are having a big moment. If they make you think of the 1990s supermodel trend of a dark lip liner worn with lighter lips, that's exactly the look Gen Z are coveting. On Pinterest, searches for '90s lip' were up 760 per cent on the previous year by summer 2024. And according to the market-information company Circana, in the first half of 2024, 28 per cent more lip liners were sold in Europe compared to the year before.
Whether you are after a Cindy Crawford -style lip-liner look or not, used correctly, they can be game-changers for the midlife make-up bag. They can make your lips appear both fuller and more symmetrical in a matter of seconds. In a recent interview with Allure magazine, Brooke Shields shared her lip-liner routine. 'Now that I'm older, I have to go to the outside of my lip because my lips have gotten thinner,' she explained. 'I try to go outside of the bottom without looking too forced, and then I colour it in just a little bit.'
Shields favours The Lip Pencil by Jones Road in Rose Nude (£24, Liberty), with a dollop of Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask (£19, Sephora) on top to 'plump them up a little bit'.
The make-up artist Zoë Taylor agrees with this technique. 'I think the most modern way to wear lip liner is to slightly overdraw your lips to make them appear fuller,' she says. 'I like to overdraw the cupid's bow to get rid of any sharp lines, which helps to soften the look of the lips and give the appearance of them being more pillowy.'
She adds: 'For a natural lip I would always choose a shade deeper than the actual lip colour.' Taylor favours the Phyto-Lèvres Perfect pencil by Sisley in Beige Naturel and Chocolat, two universally flattering shades (£50 each, Sisley Paris). For any other colours – reds, for instance – match your liner to the lip shade. The new Sisley Phyto-Rouge Velvet Lipsticks (£48, Sisley Paris) work beautifully with liner.
One of the best high-street lip-liner ranges is Color Riche by L'Oréal Paris, whose pencils come in at a reasonable £6.99 (Boots). I think the brand's reds are particularly good.
And if you're hankering after a 90s effect, try Cool Spice by Mac (£20, Mac Cosmetics), a reworking of the decade's most iconic lip-liner shade, Spice. I love the warm browny shade of Spice, but in my opinion, Cool Spice is more wearable.
Three more products to boost your lips
If liner isn't your thing, try a lip-plumping balm such as the Dior Addict Lip Glow in the shade Icy Blue. Don't worry, it won't turn your lips a cool bluish tone – it simply adapts to your natural pH level when applied to bring out a lovely rosy hue. This is the lip balm I always keep in my handbag.
Dior's Addict Lip Glow in the shade Icy Blue, £33, Dior
Part liner, part lipstick, The Peptide Lip Shape is a great option if you like just a little flush of matte colour. Don't expect hours of lasting power, though: this is designed to add a hint of colour and fullness for those days when you don't want a full lipstick 'look'. The shade Press is a pretty mauve.
The Peptide Lip Shape, £24, Rhode
Similar to the above, but with stronger colours and slightly more staying power, the Blur Liners by British brand Refy are brilliant. They add a smudgy effect on the lip line and the lips; the shade Berry is a great alternative to a bold red.
