Here’s my pick of the best lip liners to buy now

Lip liner is the Wonderbra of the make-up world. Sorry. That was quite an abrupt opening. But really, it is. It lifts and defines lips. It makes them look full and more voluptuous. More curvaceous and more shapely. You may not always see it but, like a Wonderbra, it works hard in the background and gives you your best, full-figured lip shape possible.
For a long time, I was intimidated by lip liner. I viewed it as a high-maintenance step that sat with other high-maintenance make-up steps, like fake lashes and contouring and cat flicks. It was always compartmentalised as something that required a pro level of expertise or as something glam and for evening.
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But guess what? I was wrong. So very wrong. I bloody love lip liner now. I’ve come to realise that it’s transformative for day and for night, and can work some serious lip magic in a few easy swipes.
Let me set the scene: I was at a dinner party when an acquaintance shouted something unexpected. “I’m done with lip filler. I can use lip liner and my lips look ten times better.” As everyone moved on to their after-dinner martinis, I excused myself. At 24 weeks’ pregnant, no one minded that I waddled away early. But instead of my usual collapse-naked-on-bed-in-foetus-position with my “sausage pregnancy pillow” secured between my legs and arms (what a vision for all of you!), I went straight to the bathroom to apply lip liner. I looked amazing. My lips were svelte and full and juicy.
I had applied the Lisa Eldridge Sculpt and Shade Lip Liner in 0N (£20, spacenk.com), which is a café-au-lait tone, and not in a 1990s Posh Spice flat matte way. This was rich and soft and creamy. There’s a modern emollient wax in the formula that makes these liners a buttery joy to glide on rather than the old-school ashy formulas. I was sad to take my new-found sultry mouth off before bed, but once lip liners were on my radar, I started noticing them everywhere. Even Glossier, a brand renowned for its casual, fresh-faced approach to beauty has recently launched eight “lip-enhancing” liners designed to softly amplify. I took the Glossier Lip Line in Grip (£18, spacenk.com), a soft rose, to Greece, and it was easier to apply than I could have imagined. Each evening I lined my lips casually and layered a clear gloss on top for a full, peachy pout. “People immediately think lip liner has to be a ‘done’ pout-perfect technique,” says the make-up artist Neil Young. “But that’s not the case. My favourite technique is to finish with a wash of balm or gloss to pop and enhance rather than create anything too overdone.” Another excellent liner range is the new Fenty Trace’d Out Pencil Lip Liner (£19, fentybeauty.co.uk), which runs the gamut from rich browns and blue-reds to soft mauves.
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If you’re thinking this is all well and good, but why? Why on earth do I need lip liner? Allow me to pass the beauty mike to Adeola Gboyega, a make-up artist I trust implicitly. “Lip liner can do wonders. It prevents lipstick from feathering or bleeding,” she explains. “It also improves the longevity of lipsticks. Fill in the whole lip with lip liner before applying lipstick. This way, when lipstick wears off, it won’t leave behind a ring of lipstick along the edges.” She recommends the Nyx Makeup Slim Lip Pencil (£4, nyxcosmetics.co.uk), which is a steal.
Once you’ve chosen your liner, stand in front of the mirror to practise. “Rather than holding it like a pen on paper, point your pencil north for the top lip and south for the bottom,” the make-up pro Lisa Potter-Dixon explains. “It helps to slightly overdraw the lip while making sure you’re not using too much product.” Once you’ve done it a few times it becomes as simple as a colouring-in task.
A small side note: I have endless pencils gathering dust at the back of my beauty cabinet because they’re blunt. Invest in the Glossier sharpener (£9, spacenk.com) as your back-to-school September must-have. It gives a whole new meaning to the word “satisfying”. Let’s draw a (lip) line there.