How do I choose colors?
• Not to state the obvious here, but you need a minimum of two colors.

• You can also add a third color for oomph if you’re feeling extra adventurous.

• Jake Broullard, NARS Makeup Stylist, likes pairing a blend of reds with metallics.

• MAC Senior Artist John Stapleton explains the easiest way to choose complementary tones: “Choose your deepest, darkest shade and keep the lightest shade closest to your skin tone. This way you can add the more neutral tone to the dark lipstick in varying amounts to achieve a range of colors. ”

Now that I have the colors, how should I apply them?
• Start with well-moisturized lips. Stapleton suggests lightly “brushing” your lips first with a small toothbrush (a la a true beauty MacGyver).

• Decide if you want the fade to go (starting from your top lip), from dark to light, or light to dark. The dark to light look is vaguely reminiscent of the ‘90s dark lipliner look but, with the blending, still looks very modern.

• Broullard adds, “My favorite approach to ombré lips is when the cupid’s bow starts dark, and the center of the lip is light, and the bottom part of the lower lip fades back to dark.”

• If you choose to go dark to light, start by lining your lips with a dark lipliner. Nicole Bryl, celebrity makeup artist to Hilary Rhoda and Johnny Depp (who knew?) suggests that you fill in the entire lip with the darkest shade of lipstick first. Add the lighter shade in the center of lip (on top of the darker shade.) If going from light to dark, apply the same philosophy but vice versa.

• If you want a more dramatic gradation, apply the darker color to only the outer edges of your top and bottom lip, leaving a half-moon of un-pigmented color. Fill in that half-moon with the second color and then blend nicely (but not too much), so the color looks seamless but you still see the gradation.

More tips, product recommendations, and a how-to tutorial right this way!