** courtesy laura mercier**
While interviewing makeup artist Charlie Green at the Twinkle fashion show, I was immediately drawn to the matte berry stained lips she had done on all the models. The rest of the face was fairly naked, just perfect skin and groomed brows, and the overall look was super easy but polished. I really wanted to try the look for myself so I got a few tips from Charlie on how to make lip stain last. She used a M.A.C Pro Stain on the models, but you can get a close approximation with the deep wine-y color of M.A.C Amplified Cream Lipstick in Burnin’, $14, maccosmetics.com, Laura Mercier Lip Stain in Sugar Violet, $20, sephora.com, or Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stain, $11 at drugstore.com. Charlie used her index finger to push the color into lips instead of a brush so it looks like a “residue of pigment” and not too perfect. She then dabbed it with a tissue to take off excess color, then pushed in another layer of color, followed by the tissue and then a final application. The key to this look is the matte texture so skip gloss altogether. Finish with a light dusting of translucent powder, a couple swipes of clear brow gel and curled lashes and you’re all set.