I love s’il vous plaît on you! (Pics 1&3!) The undertone perfectly matches the natural flush in your cheeks and the darkness really balances with the contrast between your dark hair and light skin.

I’m having more trouble figuring out why I don’t love the other one on you as much, it might be the undertone (it’s a bit more of an orangey red, so maybe you just need to wed it to your skin more with an orangey blush?) because it’s not SO light that I’d blame it on just the contrast level thing. It’s still cute don’t get me wrong, so you shouldn’t feel bad about wearing it (and in fact, if you happened to have a really warm toned outfit going on, it might work event better than the first), but you’re asking very picky people’s opinions here lol!

You look lovely I think that colour lipstick goes well your dark features ☺️

Maybe you can try out lipsticks that are not so dark but with cooler undertones? #2 & #4 seem to be quite warm. Also agree with other comments that #1 looks cute on you! When I first started trying out lip shades I wasted a bit of money buying a few products that didn’t work on me, if you’re still trying out which shades work best for your features, maybe you can get some samples and/or try out in stores first? Hope this helps!

I know everyone swears by these but its because they’re THAT good. I recommend Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in shades Black Honey or Pink Honey. I think both would look good on you but I think the Black Honey would look especially good with your dark hair. I’m not a lipstick person but I love these and they really look good on anyone.

The 1st photo

Is NC40 really medium dark though? Seems more like tan. I have a hard time thinking most lipsticks would show up on that tone even if they are too light to look good. I'm NC44 and most lipsticks show up on me fine. Maybe the ones you're choosing are too sheer for your preferences.

I’m around a similar coloring to you here are my faves

• mac taupe - usually have to wear this with a lip liner
• revlon rum raisin
• clinique black honey
• i also really like mented cosmetics, they’re a black owned brand and all of their nudes are meant to suit brown skin (some of them you need a lip liner) i have around 6 shades and like them all for different occasions)
• mac whirl for a cooler toned lipstick

my favorite lip liner is nyx cold brew and nyx nutmeg! they pair great with the mentioned lipsticks :)

Nude/peachy colours I have that show up without a lipliner-

Mac verve, mac paramount, mac natural born leader, mac film noir, mac Marrakesh, too faced gingerbread girl, nyx cannes, nyx soft spoken

Colours I also think will work but I haven't tried yet-

Mac whirl, dior grand bal, nyx Leon, Maybelline fighter, Bobbi browns lipsticks

I'm around nc50/nw45

I'm an NC42 with neutral undertones and these are my favourite lipsticks that are one and done for me:

• NYX Shine Loud in Never Basic
• NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Berlin
• NYX Liquid Suede in Vintage
• NYX Suede Matte Lolita (I think it has a different name now)
• Maybelline Supper Stay Matte Ink in 270 Cocoa Connoisseur
• Tom Ford 30 Narcissique
• Lethal Cosmetics Rapture
• MAC Marrakesh
• Mac D for Danger

And NYX Cold Brew lip liner is my favourite for lighted nude lipsticks.

if you buy a lip color too light a tip that helps me out is i line with a brown liner blend it out real well and then the color suits u. u should try it! it makes every color work on me.

Mac whirl and taupe

NYX espresso, Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk 3, Natasha Denona Lala

Did you try Mac Paramount and Marrakesh?

I honestly mix Mac’s Russian red in a brown lipstick to create this colour. However, there’s one by Bobby brown that matches this shade but not quite there

Maybelline Nude Nuance is that girl fr

Maybelline more cedar

l’oréal worth it intense for this one maybe?

https://preview.redd.it/3cde5dvvytgf1.jpeg?width=1164&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d7e791f1b6ddb63372599f1e08db84e170060331

mauve maybe or another purple/pinky color

no I have absolutely no idea but god had to comment to tell you how GORGEOUS you are

I'm not good at that, but after trying to imagine you with different colors, I'd say something light, close to your skin tone, something that doesn't pop out too much. Or go black, always works.

I would first find celebs/models with a similar skin tone as yourself, then look for a makeup look that they have worn that resonates with you and your looksmaxxing goals.

I would then visit Sephora & Mac and speak to one of their makeup artists, they will help you find not only a lipstick but a whole combination of products (liner, gloss, etc).

*you will likely need to use a lip-liner with most lipsticks, it helps colors look more natural with your skintone and as a bonus makes your lips look defined. I recommend never over-lining, it doesn't look good IRL and can add unnecessary complications to your final look.

I would suggest starting off with Chestnut (a lovely brown-ish color that pairs with so many lipstick shades) and Vino (a plum-ish shade that blends well with so many lipstick shades) both are Mac.

Monica Ravichandran on YouTube/Instagram/tiktok has some great recommendations for more pigmented lips. She has a pretty good understanding of colour theory to avoid ashy makeup

As a black woman of color, I put a brown lip liner on before any lip color that is not clear. Find a lip liner that is 2 shades darker than your skin tone and line your lips with that before applying lip color. For the most part, all colors look good with the brown outline.

I dab some foundation around the outline of my mouth prior to lipstick. You can choose whether or not you’d like to wear lipliner, it’s not a requirement for POC, although wearing lighter shades may not be as flattering as other shades. Try out some sheer tints first. I think a sheer berry tint is universally flattering and “natural”.

I have tan skin (with olive undertones) and I go for deep + vibrant reds and purples, pinks/oranges/nudes don’t complement my face well and make me look low contrast (my lips are fairly small as well so it’s extra important that the colors pop) I don’t use concealer or anything, just apply to my lips normally. Also hot take but matte lips > glossy ones, the colors seem to stand out on me more when I stay matte.

I think they all look great the first 2 are my favorites

The colors are all pretty but the 2nd picture looks best on you because your skin looks light olive and the lipstick in the 2nd image looks like a warmer shade of red, whereas the lipstick in the 1st and 3rd image look like cool toned.

I like the first and the third pic.

Second one is the best

1 and 3

Thank you! Any thoughts on what makes middle right work better than middle left? Definitely more people are saying middle right over left even though the shades are similar, so I’m curious what makes that one win.

love the first one (left). Looks so pretty on you. I think warmer colors looks so pretty with your skin tone.

I second this! My eye was immediately drawn to the middle right as the most flattering color

Thanks for your input! This is seeming like a common answer. I know people could partly be influenced by the fact that those are the two photos I’m smiling in, but I would say a commonality of those is that they have the most brown content of all the colors, maybe the most muted for that reason!

The deeper and muted warm shades look best on you in these photos

Top right and middle left look best to me. They're more muted tones.

This 👍 I’d also say the top right warm bright red would work when the outfit demands and you feel like it, French girl outfit for eg. Tailored shirt, jeans, shoes, gold earrings

Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Medium

Check out the r/olivemua for tons of suggestions.

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Visit your local or nearby comestic retailers. They do offer free lipstick samples/testers you can use, this way you can find a lipstick color that suits you before buying.

I’d say to go into Mac. Especially if you like reds. They have very beautiful colors. Even if you want other types of lip products they have a good variety and they are pretty good at helping you out. I don’t know what type of lipsticks you like, but they have typical cream lipsticks, liquid lipsticks, and other stuff. I’m a red lipstick gal and use the Mac Ruby Woo and the Mac Russian Red. I think it’s best if you go to the store and have them evaluate what would be best based on your skin tone and stuff like that.

MAC cosmetics made me fall in love with lipsticks. So many gorgeous colors.

Without a picture of your face there’s not much anyone can suggest

Based on the fact that the only one you like is dark I would guess that you have a strong contrast in your colours and that really highlighting that could be a good strategy.

The kinda tricky thing with dark lipsticks (I looove a semidark moody winered) is the infamous ”butthole-lip” where the colour loses grip on the inside of your lips/closest to mouth and the distinct shape of well a butthole.

I recomend liquid lipsticks like maybeline super stay ink, I have used them for years and it is amazing for the prizepoint.

Otherwise I would recomend less pigmented and bold colours and more of the warm kinda rusty colour-palet. Not orange or yellow but closer to brown/neutral. Those would blend better with a cold olive is my theory.

This is all highly theoretical and only based on description but hopefully you can use some of it at least!