Why every woman should own bright lipstick

Images: Getty

Cosmetics companies spend a lot of time producing and marketing skin products with ‘anti-ageing’ properties. And then there’s a whole market of women who spend a lot of money buying them. The promise of a glowing, wrinkle-defying face doesn’t come with a cheap price tag. And nor should it – there are patents, years of research and development, and all sorts of fancy extracts in anti-ageing products.

But what if we told you there was an anti-ageing beauty product that:

a) won’t cost you the equivalent of a three hat degustation dinner;

b) isn’t applied to your skin; and

c) is about three thousand times quicker at making you look all glowy and youthful than any face lotion in your bathroom drawer?

You’d probably accuse us of telling a bald (and wrinkle-free)-faced lie. But we’re not – and we’re about to show you the definitive proof that bright lipstick is, in fact, the elixir of youth in a tube.

One look at the red carpets of late will tell you bright, luscious, impossible-to-ignore lipstick is very much the beauty accessory du jour. Unlike some of the zanier makeup trends, this isn’t just a look for twenty-something starlets like Katy Perry or Emma Watson.

Countless Hollywood icons, including  Helen Mirren, Annette Bening and Julianne Moore are living proof that an eye-catching lip colour is ageless. Even HRH Queen Elizabeth whips one out from time to time – and who’s going to argue with the Queen?

Whether you team it with a relatively bare face or a sexy smoky eye, bright lipstick will give your face an instant lift and glow. Anyone who tells you otherwise has received some seriously misguided makeup advice somewhere along the line. It might feel a bit ostentatious the first time you wear it, but you’ll soon learn that lippie is nothing to be afraid of, especially when it’s a little bit sheer or glossy.

If you’re still not convinced about the anti-ageing powers of lipstick (wow, tough crowd aren’t we?), you need to click through this gallery poste-haste.

Now we’ve given you all the bright lip inspiration you need (and you’re very welcome, by the way), here are some delightful shades to get you started. Thanks to Melissa Abalo from Adore Beauty for her recommendations:

What’s your favourite shade of bright? Let us know!