Lipstick bleeding is one of the common problems experienced by women with growing age. Your mouth is surrounded by a large muscle known as ‘orbicularis oris’ that enables your lips to purse. When the lips are pursed, the skin surrounding the lips takes a temporary form of vertical lines. With growing age, the skin loses its ability of getting back to its original shape thus leaving your lips with unending wrinkles or vertical creases in the skin surrounding your lips.
Also, women indulged in smoking, those having large mouths (bigger muscles), or women who are quite communicative with their mouths while speaking are susceptible to developing vertical wrinkles faster as compared to other women. Even though usually considered as “smokers’ lines”, it can often be a genetic cause due to the size and shape of your muscle.
These vertical lines and wrinkles are able to cut athwart the vermilion boundary that draws a line between normal skin and lips. This is the point when your lipstick is likely to bleed. The situation is really embarrassing. Moreover, it looks Yuk! So, what can be done? Well, there are solutions to this problem. The most effective ones are:
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Dermal Fillers
Dermal fillers is the most widespread and easiest treatment option. Dermal fillers are used to lift up the lines to provide support to the vermilion boundary. This is helpful in preventing lipstick bleeding. Besides, it also reduces the perceptible wrinkles. Very often, dermal fillers are also injected into the lips for advanced structural support plus to slyly increase the lips’ size because lips are likely to shrink with growing age.
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Botox
Botox is used to slightly abate the orbicularis oris muscle that is responsible for lips puckering thus putting an end to fortification of wrinkles. However, it is not essential for every woman experiencing the problem of lipstick bleeding for it can result in certain drawbacks like lesser ability to suck strappingly.
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Laser resurfacing
This is effective for women having deep lines. It involves use of lasers for skin resurfacing. However, the key problem with this option is that it can lead to a whitening effect on the skin which calls for being coated by camouflage makeup.
Tips to avoid Lipstick bleeding:
Well, if you are not interested in going with any of the above mentioned treatment options, there are certain tips and suggestions that can help you with lipstick bleeding. The keyword is proper application. The proper way to apply lipstick includes the following steps:
- Before beginning with the lip makeup, ensure exfoliating your lips to have a smooth surface which does not contain dry skin and fine lines. To exfoliate, take a damp washcloth and rub it in gentle circular motions on the lips. Do not rub vigorously. Alternatively, you can also use a lip scrub or soft toothbrush.
- Prime the lips so as to prevent the lipstick from bleeding and let it stay throughout the day. A lip primer helps in making the lips smoother. Alternatively, a regular facial primer can also be applied. Allow the primer to settle on your lips for about 30 seconds. This would dissipate the moisture.
- The next step is applying a light colored foundation. Apply a coat of a suitable foundation on the lips and spread it uniformly on the lips. Let it dry for about a minute. Applying foundation fills the small creases surrounding the lips as this is the place where your lipstick is most likely to seep. Try to make it light rather than caking the powder on lips.
- This is followed by dabbing the lips with a light lucid face powder. Applying the face powder helps lock the foundation onto the lips thus making the lips perfect for makeup application.
- Then, outline your lips using a neutral shade lip liner or one blending aptly with the lipstick. The lip liner can also be one or two shades darker. Applying lip liner not only provides highlight and outline to the shape of your lips but also forms a border to keep the color precise on your lips, which the right place for a lipstick.
Well, while making a choice for the lip liner, try to go for a lip liner that features a waxy finish. This wax finish helps form a barrier which would stop any lip color from migrating. Besides, it would also define the lips for the remaining process.
- Apply a coat of lip balm on the lips. This lip balm is worked throughout the edging of the outline formed on lips.
- Fill this outline with a color of your choice. Lipstick can be applied either directly or with a makeup brush. It is important to ensure that the lipstick is filled just within the outlines formed using the lip liner. Let the lipstick settle on the lips for a few minutes.
- Follow the lipstick application by blotting your lips using a tissue paper. Position a tissue paper amid your lips. Press the lips together onto the paper. Take off the paper and the excess lipstick is removed.
- After the lipstick has settled down, gently dust some powder on the lips to lock the color. Give a final touch by applying a second coat.
- Many times, your lipstick gets onto your teeth thus spoiling your glamorous look. To avoid this, put the index finger in the middle of your mouth. Then, close the lips around the finger. Pull the finger out from your mouth thus removing the extra lipstick from the inner side of lips so that it doesn’t get onto your teeth.
- You can touch up the lips using a lip liner and the lipstick all through the day. In case your lipstick bleeds, take it out using a damp cotton swab. Then repeat the procedure again to have a fresh look.
Tips to handle bleeding lipstick
Besides applying the lipstick properly, there are also certain things which should be kept in mind to avoid or handle lipstick bleeding. These are;
- Try to avoid glossy or creamy lipsticks as they are more likely to bleed. You can instead opt for lipsticks with a matte finish as they stay longer.
- Try using a water resistant lipstick so that it doesn’t moves to any other surfaces like glass surface or teacup rims. Using a waterproof lipstick also prevents it from vanishing away every time you eat or drink something.
- A lip balm can be used as a substitute to lipstick if, in any case, even your matte lipstick doesn’t stay and bleeds off.
- Make sure to clutch liquid foundation, a few cotton swabs, plus lucent powder with you so that you can redo your lip makeup if your lipstick bleeds.
So, the next time you go to a party, you can easily avoid the embarrassment of slipping into washroom, just after drinking or eating something, only because the lipstick has seeped away from the lips thus leaving a hideous mark around your mouth. By going for some extra prep prior to lip makeup, you can avoid lipstick bleeding besides making it last longer.
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