Monday, March 7, 2011

A Lipstick Lesson

I tried to wear black lipstick to work today & failed. I suppose I should have know it was just too goth for the office. Heck, it's too goth (or cliché goth) for me usually. But sometimes, the old-school in my bitter dark heart calls out... well, & I found a bunch of deliciously dark lipsticks at Sephora this weekend!

As noted in last week's FBFF, I'm a sucker for high-end lipstick. And the first thing I saw when I walked into Sephora (where I had half a gift card to use up) was a black lipstick by Illamasqua (the shade is called Pristine). I was compelled to buy it. And next to that was the Makeup Forever display, which had another black lipstick, plus a couple rich, super-dark burgundies & purples, perfect for my quest to own all the dark lipsticks ever made.

About a year or two ago, Mac came out with a black lipstick that was the talk of all the goth communities online (see the Gothic Charm School review for tons more detail). I had to hunt around 3 stores to find & buy it. But that lippie was a bit of a disappointment to me-- the color was kind of sheer & only looked good if you layered it over another dark color. Good for a black-cherry effect, for example, but hard to get a solid black. Of course, full black lipstick is a difficult look to pull of anyway...

I was hoping that I could make it look "edgy" but not "goth cliche" with slightly colorful CorpGoth oufit, as shown. I wanted color & pattern & texture, nothing too hardcore. Just that little extra something special, y'know? Alas, it was Just Not Right. So back to a more traditional (for me) dark burgundy, Sephora house brand.


 What I'm wearing:
Fuschia cardigan with ruched shoulders, H&M
Black jeweled T-shirt, NY & Co.
Black & white plaid dirndl skirt, H&M
Black studded belt, Macy's
Black tights, unknown brand
Purple velvet ankle-strap pumps with roses, RocketDog
18th-century woman's shadow pendant on black silk ribbon as choker, gift from Kendra
Pewter square earrings
Large black metal roses ring, Icing

Perhaps the black lipstick will work better with a casual outfit. I'd feel too obvious wearing it with an uber-gothy ensemble. I've only worn the Mac black lipstick with historical costumes gone goth (specifically, an 18th-century Halloween party :-). What can I say, I like to do goth non-traditionally & traditional gothically.


Have any goths out there tried seriously goth looks at the office & really made it work or did it flop like my attempt? Have any of you non-goths tried an edgy trend outside your comfort zone & worn that to the office?

7 comments:

  1. On the MAC lipstick thing - I bought their dark purple shade two years ago. In all the ads it was so opaque and beautiful... But in person it's how you described "Pristine".
    Disappointing...

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  2. My lips are naturally quite dark and I've been taking advantage with almost black lip products. I have done some very darkity dark dark looks at work and some people loved it others not so much. Where I work is fairly casual so as long as people have their private areas covered, there's not an issue really. Also those shoes just kill me. Fabulousness.

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  3. HollyElise - Illamasqua's Pristine was pretty solid black (better than the Mac one), but it just looked too odd for work. Must try it on a weekend tho!

    Shannon - I have to many meetings at work, alas. It's casual, but I don't want to be THE FREAK & not be taken seriously. Touchy balance. Stuff like shoes & accessories don't hurt tho ;-)

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  4. The only time I got too edgy at the office was by accident -- I was in my usual pre-coffee fog at my desk and didn't realize I'd grabbed the wrong tube of MAC lipstick out of my purse until I was halfway through applying it. I put on Cyber (a very dark purple that can almost pass for black in some lighting) instead of Diva. Whoops. I don't think it would have been that big of a deal, but that's a bit extreme for a daytime office look for me.

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  5. Nicole - Heh, coffee is so essential! Tho' some of those lipstick can be blotted down. I get different looks from Chanel Vamp when I blot a ton - it almost looks like a light cherry stain if I blot & use lip balm over instead of under.

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  6. I've never tried black lipstick at work, but a few times I did wear chunky 5" heels with 1 1/2" platforms... I was mortified when people came from other buildings to "check out those shoes." I know they meant to be complimentary (along with their curiosity) but I just didn't expect so much gossip. If I wore black lipstick, I'd surely have to charge admission! Lol.

    I LOVE those purple velvet pumps! Excellent find. The sweater is adorable, too!

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  7. I love the pendant! So cute :). I totally agree with you about MAC black lipstick. I think I still prefer my Shangai Red from YSL :D (Thanks Mum!) ;).

    Kisses!

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