Bright coral and orange lips feat. Clinique Runway Coral

So with corals and orange being pretty big right now, I thought I'd tell you how I like to wear these amazing lip colours. When it comes to make up, I'm not a big believer in there being a right way or a wrong way. I just muck around until I figure out what's right for me. I also don't know how these tips would apply to darker skinned people, but I think paler types are often the ones to shy away from bright colours - so maybe this will help all the little caspers out there like myself.


I'll start by showing some great coral and orange shades that I think should be very wearable.

L-R: MAC Tendertone in Purring, Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral, Revlon Super Lustrous in Coralberry, Topshop Lipstick in Infrared, Revlon Lipgloss in Firecracker, L'oreal Nutrishine in Nuddy Coral

Lip balms and glosses
I've included a couple of sheer lip balm products in the mix because I find when I wear these long-lasting and bright colours I like to keep them a little bit glossy and hydrated. The MAC tendertone in Purring is a really nice super sheer orange that works great on top of coral and orange lipsticks. Unfortunately the tendertones are limited edition... but yay if you managed to get one - I love the fruity scent and SPF. I find the L'oreal Nutrishine in Nuddy Coral a great alternative. The light colour on your lips is so similar to the tendertone and it has a similar hydrating feel but in the convenience of a lipstick style package. Definitely recommend it. No fruity scent though :(

The Revlon Lipgloss in Firecracker is definitely my favorite high shine lipgloss for wearing over corals and oranges to deepen the orange. It looks red in the tube, but it's definitely a deep orange on the lips. It has no shimmer, just a high gloss finish. The scent is kind of like plasticky vanilla. I like it some kind of sick way - you know how you like mac & cheese from a packet even though it's totally fake and not real cheese - yeah, like that. The texture is thick but not too sticky as well.

The Lipsticks
Here are the lipsticks arranged from pinkest to pure orange.

L-R: Revlon Super Lustrous in Coralberry, Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral, Topshop Lipstick in Infrared

... and swatches!!

1. Revlon Coralberry

2. Clinique Runway Coral

3. Topshop Infrared

4. Revlon Firecracker

5. MAC Purring

6. L'oreal Nuddy Coral

This blog post was inspired by the limited edition Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral. You can still get it on the clinique website, and it's online exclusive (here). It a great, vibrant shade of coral that's on the pinker side so easier for the orange-o-phobes to wear. It's super long lasting, without a drying formula. The only thing I don't like is how it dried down matt after an hour or so. I can get over it by applying balm or gloss, but it would be perfect if it stayed a beautiful satin finish. I would definitely recommend this lipstick.

Clinique Runway Coral

If you are just toying with these brighter orange-ish shades then you can't go to far wrong with the Revlon Coralberry. The shade is a pretty close dupe for Clinique's Runway Coral, but a tad lighter and pinker. It doesn't have the pigment punch that Clinique's offering does, but for the lower price and easier to wear shade I think it's hard to pass up.

Revlon Coralberry

Now if you've toyed with the corals and think you're ready for the big guns, I L.O.V.E. Topshop's Infrared. It's $15.... yep that's Australian dollars, waltzing into Topshop and grabbing it off the shelf, not on special. I am so impressed by the formula. It reminds me a lot of MAC Cremesheen lipsticks . This is a bright orange that wears for hours and doesnt fade patchy. I am definitely going to get my hands on more of the shades. Just look at that pigmentation!

Topshop Infrared

I was going to make this a post on how to wear bright corals and orange but this has turned into a monster thesis. Stay tuned and I'll post up how to avoid clown face next time.