The perfect pout

Lipstick is the essential finishing touch to your face, and – out of all your make-up – it's the item that works hardest. If you want to come up smiling after a day's talking, eating, drinking and kissing, catch on to our lip tricks

Shape up

Improve on nature's design – you won't be able to alter the shape of your mouth completely, but you can even up unbalanced lips, or make them appear larger or smaller.

Full lips can be made to appear thinner by lightly covering them with foundation to help blur the edges. Using a dark lipliner, outline lips just inside their natural edge, then brush on a lip colour. Avoid pearly or glossy colours, as these will make the lips look even fuller.

Thin lips can look fuller if you accentuate their shape by outlining just outside their natural edge with a light lipliner. Brush on a lip colour inside the line you've drawn. Avoid using very matt colours, which can make lips look even thinner. Slightly glossy colours will make lips look fuller.

A thin upper lip is balanced by pencilling just outside the top lip line and filling in. Make sure you use a slightly lighter application on the bottom lip. A thin bottom lip can be corrected by outlining the bottom lip only, and then using a slightly thicker coat of colour on the top lip.

Glossy pout

Smooth lips and a soft, slightly blurred outline are crucial for a really glossy finish. To give extra depth to a glossy look, apply a light coat of your regular lip colour. You can apply it straight from the container as it looks better with blurred edges.

Apply gloss straight from the tube with your fingers. Remember, high shine will make your lips the focal point of your face, so don't overdo it.

Glossy metallics produce less concentrated colour and can be applied in a fine layer or built up gradually for greater intensity. Sheer gloss creates a stunning finish, despite its lack of colour, while coloured glosses combine the best of both worlds – vibrancy and shine. Their light-refracting qualities also mean they look more dramatic at night.

Lip colours and your teeth

While the right shade of lipstick can make teeth look whiter, beware – the wrong one can do the opposite! Here are some pointers from the experts: