In a dream world, my lips are hydrated, smooth, little pillows that have never once been the victim of a nasty New York City winter. Unfortunately, that is a far, far cry from my reality. My lips are historically screaming for hydration. If there was a silver lining to this personal debacle, it’s that I’ve evolved into an expert for how to treat dry, chapped, cracked lips. I have my favorite lip balms and masks on a nightly rotation, but I still like to use a great lip liner and lipstick combo during the day. After all, winter makeup trends are too good to pass up.
This season, I have my eye on several buzzy colors—there are the berry shades that I plan on whipping out for holiday parties and, of course, my classic nude-pinks. But picking a color is the easy part. I’ve been on a hunt for lip liners and lipsticks that deliver next-level hydration and nourishment. They must be smooth and silky in texture, create a barrier between my lips and the wind, and provide high pigment payoff. I can’t even begin to tell you how many products I’ve swatched in search of the best (it’s easily over 100, for what it’s worth), but these 10 are my all-time favorite winter lip combinations on the color and hydration front.
Very Berry
I’m generally scared of dark lipsticks, but I actually find the berry lip trend very approachable and wearable. I opt for soft plum shades—I think they make my blue eyes pop and play well with my fair skin (that’s even paler than I thought possible in the winter). But if you’re not feeling it, try a raspberry or blackberry hue.
Wherever Walnut may get all the hype, but Boundless Berry is up there on my list of favorites. I love it with a lighter, pinkier lipstick inside, but it also pairs perfectly with the below Makeup by Mario shade for a more monochromatic berry vibe.
I often swap out my matte lipsticks for hydrating satins or hyper-pigmented balms. This particular product falls into the latter category. It’s packed with shea butter and avocado oil to hydrate and nourish the lips—plus, it has a slight plumping factor.
A ‘90s Brown
Chocolate brown is having a mega-moment in fashion—and beauty. I like this brown lipstick shade as part of an overall monochromatic makeup look, complete with brown shadow, liner, and a bronzy blush duo.
With peptides being a huge hallmark of this formulation, you can expect Hailey Bieber’s namesake product to deliver moisture as you apply it. There’s never any skipping, flaking, or dryness. This guy glides right on.
As a dry lip girl, I love finding a gloss that packs the same level of pigment as a lipstick—and that’s exactly what I get with this Refy find. The gloss has a little shimmer to soften the rich brown shade. I recommend applying (or reapplying) an extra-thick layer before heading outside.
Nothing But Nude
My middle school self refuses to let me go down the concealer lips path for a second time, so I’ve settled into a pinky-nude middle ground. I get the cool factor of having nude-esque lips with just the right hint of color to bring life back into my face. This combo works with any eye makeup color, too, so it’s a great one just to toss in your bag.
I’ve always struggled to find nudes and bronzy tones that don’t pick up as ruddy on my skin. That is, until Westman Atelier released what’s one of my favorite lip shades of all time: Biscuit. It has the perfect neutral base that doesn’t play too yellow or orange.
If I’m not going for a gloss or a lipstick-serum hybrid, it’s going to be this Maybelline lipstick that I’ve had in my makeup bag for almost two decades. It has the creamiest formula known to man, which I can attribute to the inclusion of honey nectar.
Pink, Please
Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk is famous for a reason. But if I’m being honest, I didn’t full buy into the hype until they launched Pillow Talk Fair a few years ago. It’s truly a my-lips-but-better shade, and I love the ease of a matching lip liner and lipstick—it takes all the guesswork of creating a flattering lip combo out of the equation.
I have one of these in every single bag I own—it’s truly the best. It glides on flawlessly and grips to my skin (when I’m in the mood to overline) and my lips. My beauty editor hack: color your entire lip with liner to help your lipstick last longer.
Because I often shade my lips in with the liner, a lip gloss is really all I need to top off my look. I’m not above a matchy-matchy moment, so I grab the Collagen Lip Bath in the coordinating Pillow Talk Fair shade. It’s packed with marine collagen for a plumping effect, mustard sprout extract for hydration, and peppermint for a subtle tingle.
Moody Reds
I can respect a bright red lip, it’s just never going to be for me. Instead, I opt for vampy shades that lean dark purple or maroon. With a glowy complexion and light mascara, it’s ideal for any holiday or New Year’s Eve party.
If you’re in the market for a long lasting liner—this is your girl. You need very little pressure to get an opaque color payoff and once it sets, it’s not going anywhere for hours. Seriously: this formula has lasted me through multiple beverages.
Swipe this mahogany shade on your lips, add a little berry-toned blush, and finish off the look with a glassy eye, and you have the perfect night out glam. I plan on wearing this combo on repeat through the rest of the season.
Why Trust Marie Claire
For more than 30 years, Marie Claire has been an internationally recognized destination for news, fashion and beauty trends, investigative packages, and more. When it comes to the products Marie Claire recommends, we take your faith in us seriously. Every product that we feature comes personally recommended by a Marie Claire writer or editor, or by an expert we’ve spoken to firsthand.
