Prep & Prime: Lip products that will ensure a perfect pout every time

These three products combined will give a perfect pout every time

We prep our skin before foundation, so why not prep our lips before colour? Vibrant colour is one of the big trends for lips this year, be it matte, glossy or multitonal. Recently we've been testing out some new lipsticks from Max Factor as well as these gorgeous metallic glosses from Lancome, but today we're taking it up a notch.

Let's start at the beginning, with the prep. Lip scrubs are an easy way to get your lips in good order before applying colour. And while we love the new MAC ones, at €15.50 a pop they're more of a luxury buy than an everyday product. Which is why we were so delighted to try out the €6.95 option from L.O.V Cosmetics.

The Perfectitude Lip Smoothing scrub combines a nourishing oil with sugary, crystal scrub particles to rub away dry skin. The pen style applicator is really handy for on the go, or if you're sitting at your desk at work. Perhaps most importantly, it tastes really nice and smells like Solero (yum!).

Step two is to prime lips and our latest find is the new Make Up Forever Ultra HD Lip Booster (€24). Ok, so technically this isn't a primer as such... it's somewhere in between a lip prep/treatment and a primer. Whatever it is, we love it.

The addition of hyaluronic acid in the formula helps to plump lips and fill in fine lines (so no feathering or lipstick bleeds, huzzah!) and it feels so nice to wear, alone or under lipstick.

To show off our perfectly prepped pout we added one of the new Make Up Forever Artist Acrylip colours  in "Iconic Red" (available in 10 shades €22). This particular shade is pretty loud in fairness, but you can't beat a good red right? For day, I wear it blotted for a subtle finish and then top it up for a glossy, paint effect come night time.

How do you prep your lips before colour? Do you bother?