Brown lips, the epitome of 1990s beauty, are having a major comeback. The list of stars reviving the dark lip shade is already long, with Zendaya, Hailey Bieber, Kylie Jenner, and Megan Thee Stallion flaunting '90s-coded lips in recent months. Now, fashion and beauty mogul Lori Harvey is co-signing the trend.
Harvey wore an ombré twist on the vintage lip look to attend Chanel's star-studded fine jewelry flagship opening on February 7. She leaned into the throwback beauty moment by lining her lips in a darker shade and topping it with a high-shine gloss.
The final result wasn't far off from Naomi Campbell's signature beauty in the mid-90s. Campbell is known for championing the look, which was especially popular in Black and Brown communities during the '90s and early 2000s before it entered mainstream beauty.
Harvey kept the rest of her beauty minimal, with the tiniest flick of a cat-eye for her eyeliner and a soft pink blush. Outfit-wise, she further embraced '90s motifs with a tweed romper, coordinating jacket, and newsboy hat.
Of all the components of her party look, Harvey's glossy lips were the most inspiring—and the easiest to emulate. Start by choosing a brown lip liner several shades darker than your own skin. Line the outer edges of your lips with the pencil, taking care to pronounce your Cupid's bow. Many makeup artists like to feather the liner in toward the center of the lips for a more ombré look, but Harvey, in particular, chose to embrace the contrast between a dark outline and a brighter inner shade—particularly along her bottom lip.
Next, pick a brown shade of lipstick slightly lighter than the lip liner, and fill in your top lip. (Cream matte lipsticks and matte liquid lipsticks work best for this.) On your bottom lip, create a more ombré effect by letting the color taper off as you reach the inner center of the lip. The result is a beautiful contrast that embraces the difference between one's upper and lower lip colors.
Finally, top off with a high-shine gloss that ties the look together. This final step also creates an extra barrier between your lipstick pigment and whatever you're eating or drinking, so that your look won't fade quite so quickly. Long-lasting lips are crucial on long nights out like Harvey's.
