How To Use A Lip Tint For Easy, Just-Kissed Lips

Discover how to use a lip tint to give your pout a just-bitten kiss of colour.

What is a lip tint?

A lip tint is a quick and easy way to give your lips a beautiful pop of colour. Lip tints generally look more subdued than a lipstick; instead, they deliver a flattering tint that gives lips a natural-looking flush that mimics sun-blushed skin or a love-shy flush. Many lip tints are formulated with a cream consistency that melts into the lips and leaves behind a healthy-looking tint that wears effortlessly and channels lived-in, natural beauty.

Tilbury Tip: Lip tints like my Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek are perfect for on vacation, makeup-free days, or busy weekdays where you’re looking for a fuss-free lip application that feels hydrating and requires minimal touching up.

Shop Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek

Discover How To Use A Lip Tint

How To Use a Lip Tint

  1. Tap onto the apples of the cheeks as a beautiful cream blush.
  2. Dab onto the lips as a subtle pop of colour.
  3. Blend across the nose for a sun-blushed effect.

How To Use A Lip Tint: Step-by-Step

  1. Model close up applying Charlotte's Magic Lip Oil Crystal Elixir

    1. Prep your lips with lip oil

    Before applying lip tint, it’s important to prep your lips with a hydrating lip oil. Applying a coat of skincare-powered lip oil helps lips to look and feel smoother, plumper, and ready for lip tint. Charlotte’s Magic Lip Oil Crystal Elixir creates a moisture-rich, silky-smooth canvas for your lip tint to glide onto; the crystal-infused formula features hydrating ingredients from my ‘Magic 8’ matrix, as well as Swertian Leaf Extract that helps visibly reduce the appearance of lip lines. Roll on my magical lip oil before your lip tint and your pout will appear voluptuous and happily hydrated.

    Discover my lip care routine

  2. Arm swatches of all 7 shades of Charlotte's lip and cheek tint on fair, medium, tan and deep skin tones

    2. Choose your lip colour

    Once your lips are primed for lip tint, choose the perfect colour to complete your look. When choosing lip colour, I recommend applying your eye makeup first, then choosing a tone that will beautifully complement the eye look you have created. The magical thing about using a lip tint is that it can be used so subtly and look gorgeous alongside a wide range of makeup looks.

    My Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek is available in 5 sun-kissed shades that give the lips your dream holiday sun-kissed look! Do you want to escape to island paradise with Paradise Pink Glow, or unlock that day-in-the-sun look with Sun-Blushed Glow? Discover my sun-kissed shades then choose the perfect lip tint for your look.

    Shop Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek

  3. Lip Brush for precisely applying lip gloss and lipstick

    3.  Apply with your fingers or a brush

    The beauty of a lip tint is the ease that you can apply them with. Whether you’re using your fingers or a brush, lip tints require less precision than a lip liner or lipstick and can be tapped on the lips in seconds for an easy pop of colour. Using your fingers will create a blotted effect that lightly tints your lips, while painting on a lip tint with a lip brush will give your lip look more definition by mimicking the look of using a lip liner.

    Shop the Lip Brush

  4. Model wearing Sun-Blushed Glow lip and cheek tint as a lip tint

    4. Tap lip tint onto the centre of your lips

    To apply a lip tint with your fingers, gently warm up the formula with your index finger then tap onto the centre of your lips. Be sure to deposit lip tint onto your top and bottom lip and be careful not to smear any product outside of your lip line. If you want to apply lip tint with a brush, take an angled brush like my Lip Brush and pick up a small amount of lip tint, then paint it onto your lips as you would with a tube of lipstick.

    Tilbury Tip: If you have thin lips, it may be more effective for you to apply your lip tint with a lip brush as a brush has a fine point that makes it easier to stay within the lines of your lips.

    Discover the different types of lip shape

  5. Model wearing Sunset Bronze Glow lip and cheek tint as a lip tint

    5. Blot with your finger for an even blend

    Once you have applied your lip tint, lightly dab the edges to blend your lip colour into your lips. Blending your lip tint is the secret to creating a natural-looking, blotted effect, capturing that just a tint effect on the lips.  

    Tilbury Tip: If you tend to be a little heavy handed when applying makeup, try blending your lip tint with your ring finger to ensure you aren’t using too much pressure.

  6. Model holding Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek lip tint in terracotta shade Sunset Bronze Glow

    6. Add another coat or two to build up to your desired pigment

    Lip tints are known for looking subtle on the lips, but they can be built up to create a more pigmented lip look. I created my Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek tints to be super-light, beautifully buildable, and easy-to-blend, allowing everyone, everywhere to customise their dream lip look! With your finger or a brush, continue slowly adding lip tint until you have achieved the colour payoff and opacity that you’re looking for from your lip tint, remembering to blend as you go.

    Tilbury Tip: If your application is a little messy and accidently migrates around your mouth, you can easily clean up your look with a dab of Charlotte’s Beautiful Skin Radiant Concealer.

  7. Model close up applying nude-rose Lip Cheat lip liner in Icon Baby

    7. Define the edges with lip liner

    You can leave your lip tint look there if you like darlings, but if you would like to give your lips some extra definition, you can use a lip liner to line and define the look of your natural lip shape. I created my Lip Cheat lip liners as tools to reshape and resize the look of every pout; lightly kiss your top and bottom lip, the corners of your mouth, and your Cupid’s bow with a complementary shade of lip liner and your lips will look fuller and wider!

    Discover how to apply lip liner

  8. Model applying Pillow Talk Deep Collagen Lip Bath lip gloss

    8. Top with lip gloss

    Lip tints can have a gorgeous, glowy finish all on their own, but a slick of lip gloss never hurt anybody! Wear Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek tints on their own for radiant, sun-kissed lips, or top them with my Collagen Lip Bath for a magical, mirror-shine finish! Want more pout-perfecting, plump-effect lip gloss? Discover Pillow Talk Big Lip Plumpgasm for supersized, plumper-looking lips with the dreamiest, glass-like glaze!

    Discover how to apply lip gloss

  9. Lip tint being used as blush on the apples of the cheeks and across the nose

    9. Use lip tint as cream blush

    Darlings, did you know that you can use lip tints as cream blush? Lip tints have a creamy texture that looks just as beautiful on the cheeks as it does on the lips! Once you have beautified your lips with your favourite shade of Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek tint, use your fingertips to tap your lip tint onto the apples of your cheeks and blend it out in soft, circular motions. The emollient formula smooths onto the cheeks to create a dewy-looking, sun-blushed effect that magically matches your lip look. It’s multi-use makeup magic!

    Discover how to apply cream blush

How To Use a Lip Tint: More FAQs

Lip Tint model shot


How long does a lip tint last on the lips?

Lip tints are formulated to wear throughout the day, fading naturally while leaving your lips with a softly tinted appearance. Thanks to the creaminess of a lip tint, they mesh beautifully with your lips to leave behind an understated but long-lasting tint that delicately enhances the look of your pout. Depending on how much you have applied, a lip tint may need to be topped up throughout the day.


How much lip tint should you apply?

If you are reaching for a lip tint, the look you are creating will generally be lighter and more natural looking. I recommend swiping your finger across your lip tint and gently dabbing it onto your lips, then dipping back in depending on how pigmented you want it to appear on the lips. Choose a beautiful, buildable formula like my Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek tints and you will be able to add multiple coats of lip tint without it looking caked on.


Does lip tint make your lips look bigger?

Yes – wearing a lip tint can make your lips look bigger. Lips can look deflated and sullen without any lip product; applying a lip tint is a perfect way to give your pout a healthy-looking flush that makes it appear plumper, more radiant, and naturally enhanced.

Tilbury Tip: The best way to make your lips look bigger is to use a lip plumper. Apply a plump-effect lip gloss like Pillow Talk Big Lip Plumpgasm and experience an instant plumping effect powered by Plumpgasm Heat + Ice Technology!

Discover how to make lips look bigger


Can I use lip tint as blush?

Yes – lip tints can double as a cream blush to give your cheeks just-a-tint of blushing colour. Reach for a blush-toned shade of lip tint and tap it onto your cheeks with your fingertips for a quick-and-easy, dewy-looking, effortlessly radiant cream blush look. I love to create easy beach looks with my Beautiful Skin Island Glow Lip + Cheek tints – just tap them onto the lips and cheeks for an easy holiday glow!

Learn more about blush


How do I remove a lip tint?

To remove your lip tint, use a high-performance makeup remover on a clean, cotton pad. My Take It All Off makeup remover was born to remove even longwearing makeup like lip tints; shake the bottle to mix the biphase formula, then douse a cotton pad with makeup remover and swipe along the lips to remove your lip tint. It’s best not to drag makeup remover along your face as this can irritate your skin. Instead, lightly press onto your lips to let makeup remover begin to dissolve any lip products, then carefully swipe away any excess.

Discover how to remove makeup

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Author Details

Charlotte Tilbury

Founder, President, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of Charlotte Tilbury Beauty

With over 30 years experience, Charlotte Tilbury MBE is the world's number 1 makeup artist and British beauty entrepreneur. Charlotte established Charlotte Tilbury Beauty in 2013, which is now a record-breaking beauty brand that has won over 400 awards.

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