If you've been keeping up with my YouTube channel, you probably know that I really love the grunge / 90s makeup trend.  And if you haven't, check out my Glow & Grunge Tutorial and my Summer Grunge Tutorial...go ahead, I'l wait.

I typically go for ultra-girly looks, but lately, I've enjoyed mixing in a bit of edginess to my makeup and fashion choices.  However, it can be a difficult to master the matte brown or gray lip color without looking like a corpse, so here's a trick that will keep you on trend without looking totally dead.

Add gloss.  Any gloss.

This simple trick will liven up your lips without changing the overall grunge makeup look that you're going for.  Above is a picture of one of my favorite combinations lately - ColourPop Cosmetics Ultra Matte Lip in Kapow (review and swatches here) and Sephora Super Shimmer Lip Gloss in Perfect Plum.  This gloss has just enough of a berry tone to liven up the very deep gray-toned purple color of Kapow without changing the character of the color too much.  The combination of these two colors allows me to achieve that deep, moody look but in a much more wearable version.  So long as I use just a tiny bit of gloss, the finish is more of a creamy finish rather than a super shiny version.

Hopefully this makes those super grungy lip colors a bit less intimidating!