My Top Tip to Stop Lipstick Bleeding | Sali Hughes on Beauty

It's always assumed that women indulge in lip filler injections to look younger or sulky, but I'm sure many are just trying to hold on to their lipstick. loved to avoid "feathering" through fine lines and into surrounding skin. If you feel the same way but are torn about all about the needles and their associated cost, I urge you to consider a clear lip liner.

I admit their marketing is misleading and doomed to disappointment - if you're looking for a sharp, enlarged or "corrected" (in my case, less lopsided) lip line to wear with your lipsticks, then these are a poor substitute. A traditional colored lip liner is best. But used as a waxy barrier for bolder color, a clear pencil drawn immediately outside the natural lip line can stem lipstick bleeding quite well.

There are good examples available at all price points. Dior's Universal Contour Lip Pencil (£25) is completely clear and glides on particularly well without streaking (it also has a built-in lip brush that doubles nicely as an eyeliner brush, I discovered by chance), meaning it can be applied to all lips to add grip to bold reds and more mobile glosses. cr-173mewl">skip newsletter promotion

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Kiko Milano's Invisible Lip Pencil (£5.99) offers an equally smooth ride. , plus it does its main job well.

My personal choice is Urban Decay's Glide On Lip Pencil in Ozone (£19) because as with everything in their 24/7 line, it has great staying power and a firm texture that stays sharp for longer.

If you don't have the time or skill for line art and are able to welcome little more than a swipe of something pre-lipstick, so I'd recommend Guerlain's KissKiss Liplift (£32) which I'm keeping on hold. This is applied like you would a lip balm, but somehow manages to give a clingy, matte finish without drying out the lips (and don't worry about the pale flesh tone of the bullet - it looks like it'll only work o...