A Pink Pout: Beauty Look of the Week

By Marcia Cole, Special to BlackVoices.com

Model Chanel Iman sported a fuschia shade at Badgley Mischka. Narciso Rodriquez's models wore more subtle stains of pink. And who could forget Alicia Keys' perfect pink lips at this year's Grammy's? The season's hottest lipstick trend, is clearly about a pink pout.

Photograph by Keith Major/courtesy AMBERmag.com
Makeup by Karen Angus
Hair by Dana Gibbs/The Montgomery Group

But similar to red lipsticks, pink can be a prickly hue to rock on all shades. "Ultimately, we have to remember that we're a color already so a lot of these colors can be shocking against our rich brown skin," says Sam Fine, author of Fine Beauty and the Fine Beauty Blog.

His tip? Compensate what might not have been done for darker brown skins in the lip lab. "Use a brown lip pencil first. This will add a little bit more pigment to the lip, which is usually lighter that our skin. It will make the shade more consistent by giving it a little base." But before you conjure up '80s beauty lip liner mishaps, Fine adds: "Just make sure to line before--not after--applying your lipstick, and make sure the lipstick blends into the liner.

Click on Ambermag.com for more expert tips to sport this season's hottest lipstick trend.

Top Beauty Endorsers

Rihanna is one of the newest faces of CoverGirl cosmetics. She signed on in December of 2006, stating: "I've loved makeup and dreamed of being a CoverGirl since I was a little girl." She has also recently endorsed Venus razors for women.

VALERY HACHE/AFP, Getty Images
Beyonce represents for L'Oreal. The singer signed a five-year contract for $4.7 million in 2004 that requires her to work 10-12 days a year. I, too would be smiling.

Carlo Allegri, Getty Images
Gabrielle Union signed on to endorse Neutrogena products in 2004. Great skin is the foundation of stunning beauty, and she proves it.

Seth Browarnik, WireImage.com
Halle Berry has been a Revlon spokesperson since 1996. Other women of color featured in Relvon campaigns include Lucy Liu and Eva Mendes, but none other has had Halle's staying power.

Francois Mori, AP
Kerry Washington has appeared in ads for H.I.P. (High Intensity Pigment) cosmetics for L'Oreal, the first campaign in her contract. Kerry says of her endorsement: "It's really exciting for me to be one of the faces of L'Oreal and to be working with a company that has historically represented so many different kinds of women with different kinds of skin color."

Frederick M. Brown, Getty Images
Queen Latifah has her own make-up line called the 'CoverGirl Queen Collection.' The Web site for her line features tools to help you match colors perfectly with your skin.

J. Vespa, WireImage.com
Iman, after thirty years in the fashion and beauty biz, now has her own super-successful make-up line: Iman Cosmetics. Launched in 1994, her line features foundation available in 16 shades geared towards women of color.

Iman Cosmetics
Veronica Webb was the first black model to receive an exclusive contract from a major cosmetics company. Her Revlon contract lasted from 1992-95. You can now find her flexing her fashion expertise as a co-host on 'Tim Gunn's Guide To Style.'

Tana Lee Alves, WireImage.com
Iman (left), Beverly Johnson (right) and Louise Vyent (not pictured) appeared in a ground-breaking ad for Revlon in 1989 featuring all black models. Before the '90s, black models rarely appeared in make-up ads for mainstream lines.

Ron Galella, WireImage.com
Tyra won a CoverGirl make-up contract in 1997. This is also the year that she covered Sports Illustrated by herself, a first for an African-American woman.

Frank Micelotta, Getty Images