Have you ever sifted through countless lipstick shades at the department store, only to find yourself struggling to land on one that's just the right shade for you? The whole process can be very Goldilocks, and personally, it's the story of my life — which is why I was so excited for the opportunity to create my very own custom lip color at the Bite Beauty Lip Lab in New York City. I teamed up with fellow R29er Ryen with one mission in mind: Find the perfect fall lipstick that feels unequivocally us. Peep the video above to watch the full experience go down.
Here's how the process works: First, the store manager (in this case, it was Nicole. Hi Nicole!) evaluates your color preference, desired finish, and skin tone. Then, after you slough away flakes with the exfoliating sugar scrub and add back moisture with the lip mask, the technician mixes together three to four shades to create your personalized blend. You can try on, tweak — and reapply and re-tweak, as we did — as many times as it takes to find your perfect hue. At the end of the experience, you get to take home every product you used (lip scrub, agave mask, primer, and your custom lipstick) for $150.
Ryen and I landed on our two dream colors (and names): Brownstone, a chocolaty red with a creamy finish; and Cinnamon Lost & Found, a matte, neutral mauve, which both looked awesome and completely different on our individual skin tones. But what I was most surprised about was how much I loved the entire experience. It was every beauty junkie's dream: I felt like a kid in a candy store of lipstick heaven — and I didn't want to leave.
So, yeah, I'd say my mission was complete.
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