No, Kylie Jenner, You Did Not Start the Nude Lipstick Trend
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After meeting Kylie Jenner earlier this year, I didn't think that her more unorthodox remarks would faze me. Since I knew she was obsessed with pizza and desperately intrigued by sunsets, she would have to say or do something really bizarre to catch me off guard. Her lip gloss advertisement/music video was confusing, but not particularly shocking. However, a snippet of her recent interview with Paper magazine left me with some complex feelings.
"I didn't see one other girl wearing nude lipstick — I didn't even care about the lipstick, I just wanted my lips to be bigger — and then I started seeing a bunch of girls wearing nude lipstick," she told the outlet. Reread that: though Kylie is an arbiter of taste, she seems to think that nude lips weren't a popular trend until she started sporting them.
As someone born in the '80s, Kylie, I want to tell you that nude lipstick has been around a long time and so has the overlining technique you have been using for the past few years. Let's take a trip down memory lane!
During my formative years in the '90s, I grew up surrounded by women wearing superpale, fleshy lip colors that were defined with a chocolate pencil. Though much of the country ditched this technique by the turn of the millennium, I'm from Staten Island, New York, and I saw this none-too-flattering trend last until the early 2000s. At this point, women ditched the pencil in favor of attempting to match their lipstick as closely as possible to their skin tone.
If anything, I would give Kylie credit for the resurgence of matte nude formulas, which hadn't been too popular since the mod era, but really, she's just a savvy businesswoman. Matte liquid lipsticks started to saturate the market in 2014, and Kylie combined these hit products with the shades she used to exaggerate the natural shape of her lip. With that, the Kylie Lip Kit — and her beauty entrepreneurial career — was born.
But to say that she hasn't "seen one other girl wearing nude lipstick" seems a bit unfair. Kylie, look within your family! Your sister Kim rose to fame rocking a muted pout. And she's not the only star to make neutral look gorgeous. Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Aniston, and more stars have been doing this for decades. For proof, read on!
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Kim Kardashian
Way back in 2007, Kim posed in the W VIP lounge during New York Fashion Week wearing a creamy nude pout. It seems like her lip shape was accentuated with a neutral pencil.
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In 2010, she attended the Teen Choice Awards with a glossy, pale nude pout that directed all the attention to Kim's lush lashes.
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At Rihanna's First Annual Diamond Ball in 2014, Kim matched her lip color almost perfectly to her complexion.
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Jennifer Lopez
This gold-flecked nude that Jennifer wore to an event in 2005 is the perfect complement to her retro beehive hairstyle.
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Since the start of her career, J Lo has been fond of coordinating her lip color to her complexion. At the premiere of Gigli in 2003, she wore this shiny peachy shade.
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This warm, coral-tinted lip color that Jennifer wore at a press conference in 2013 is the perfect nude for her sun-kissed skin tone.
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Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer is the epitome of the California cool girl and a nude lip is a beautiful way to top off her natural beauty looks. This mauve-tinted hue was her go-to shade for the Screen Actors' Guild Awards in 2003.
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For the premiere of The Breakup in 2006, Jennifer lightly defined her lips with a pale pink-beige pencil, then filled it in with a coordinating gloss.
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Jennifer attended an event in 2011 with a dewy lip that was a flattering shade of salmon-tinged beige.
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Halle Berry
When you're as stunningly beautiful as Halle Berry, wearing makeup seems almost unnecessary. That must be why she focuses on groomed brows and a subtle nude lipstick as her primary beauty accents. Here she is at the Berlin Film Festival rocking a glossy nude lip in 2002.
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For the 2004 premiere of Catwoman, Halle defined her lips with a pink chocolate liner, then used a sheer gloss to make her pucker look luscious.
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Halle appeared at a gala in 2008 wearing a shimmery bronze lip color that flattered her warm undertones.
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Kate Moss
As one of the most well-known supermodels of all time, Kate has worn many lip colors for photo shoots, magazines, and advertisements, but she often selects nude shades for her public appearances. Here she is wearing a subtle, sparkly formula in 2007.
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At Fashion Rocks in 2007, it appeared that Kate was wearing lip liner on the outer edge of her lower lip to make it seem fuller. She finished her look off with a champagne gloss.
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Kate skipped gloss at this 2010 event, choosing only to accentuate her lower lip with a nude liner.
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Rihanna
Though she may be known for vampy lip shades these days (including blue and green!), Rihanna started off her career favoring nudes and pinks. At Z100 Jingle Ball in 2006, she wore this creamy cafe au lait hue.
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At a Givenchy fashion show in 2009, Rihanna selected a pale, shimmery beige lip color that came close to matching her concealer. This muted look allowed her bold eye makeup to truly shine!
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At a brunch for Roc Nation in 2014, Rihanna wore this flesh-toned mauve (and slightly darker lip liner) that drew attention to her beautifully defined cupid's bow.
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Blake Lively
Blake may be known for her penchant for braids, but she's also a fan of neutral lipstick! She wore this frosty pink at an event in 2009.
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Blake donned this soft mauve to the premiere of Sherlock Holmes in 2009.
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This pinkish shade that Blake wore to the 2011 Teen Choice Awards was an interesting contrast against her goldenrod outfit.