Orange Candy: Juicy, Bright Orange Lips (and Tips)

Swatches above (L-to-R): Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Coral Reef,  Milani Mango Mambo, MAC Morange, Lime Crime My Beautiful Rocket, Revlon Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti

Orange is such an eye-popping color that you'll instantly draw all eyes when you're wearing it. Here are a few tips to help you make it work.

1. What you need to note when choosing an orange is how much red/pink is in your skin. If you have very noticeable pink undertones, choose an orange that has stronger red tones (e.g. Milani Mango Mambo) rather than a true-true orange that has a lot less red tones than your skin (My Beautiful Rocket). 
2. If you have very pigmented lips, you might need to get more opaque formula (like the MAC or Lime Crime) in order to getting a true orange on your lips. If you're not used to a bright orange or want to tone it down for school or work, go with a translucent formula like the Revlon Lip Butters or Balmstains (Tutti Frutti).
3. A translucent formula would also work well if you have very pink undertones in your skin, because it allows the pink of your lips to show through under the orange.

Here are 2 ways you can get a variation of looks if you own 2 orange lip products; a translucent one and an opaque one.

1. You can wear an orange-toned gloss or lip butter direct. It will look more coral because of the natural pink/brown tones of your lips.

2. To add a little intensity without going over-the-top, you can add a stronger orange (I used MAC Morange below) onto the center of the lips and then press them together to even it out slightly. 

 This maintains a lightweight and translucent feel, but adds some intensity just around the center so the overall look is more obviously orange.

MAKEUP TO WEAR WITH ORANGE LIPS

The automatic reaction is usually to match orange with more warm tones like browns, reds, oranges, golds, and yellows. This works, but it can also make the overall effect slightly sallow or even jaundiced if done wrong. 

I don't like those overly-restrictive color-rules that say "you are Autumn and you should only wear warm/autumn colors on your face." That's like saying you have blue eyes and you should only wear warm bronze and copper shadows so they will pop. Sure, a nice bronze will make blue eyes stand out more. But what about bringing out your skintone? Your hair color? Your outfit? Your lip color?

A great idea is to pair a bright orange with cool tones on the eyes, so the overall effect on the face is actually balanced out, and both your eye look and lip color stand out even more. 

Remember your primary objective is to make the overall look work on your face and outfit.