The year may be 2025, but in social media terms, it’s still a very fresh decade. There’s only so long we can scroll back to see the likes of heavily filtered Instagram posts circa 2011, Tumblr archives that capture the torment of Zillennial youth in real time, and even the good old Facebook photo album.
For the first time, we have access to a generation’s youth played out on the Internet. Perhaps this is why Gen Z has made no secret of their equal parts admiration and admonishment of many a Millennial style trend. From corporate club wear (not so beloved) to indie sleaze eye make-up (a hit), seemingly nothing is safe from TikTok commentary.
At first glance, concealer lips appear to fall firmly into the first camp. Whereas lip combos that pair boldly defying liners and hyper-glossy lip oils have defined the early 2020s, the concealer lips we would’ve seen everywhere 10 years ago rely on the complete opposite: playing down your lips with the aid of a multi-tasking base product. High shine? Bold colour? Forget it here.
And yet, we may just be about to see the slow resurgence of this oft-questioned hack.
Runway revival
Whilst nude lips have never exited the spotlight, several shows in the recent fall/winter season have drawn attention to pale pouts. At Kiko Kostadinov, models sported neutral, powdered lips in comparison to their technicolour eye looks. Meanwhile, Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood utilised bold liners alongside pastel, dusted lip bases. A similar pared back effect was apparent at Dries Van Noten, on the ethereal brides of Richard Quinn, and at many a haute couture presentation.
Perhaps it was only a matter of time before the neutral look came back into play. An opposing response to the current domination of look-at-me lip products, it’s also right on trend as many 2000s and 2010s beauty trends see a revival, while echoing a down-to-earth beauty approach that’s in line with the Chloé-led influx of boho.
It girls have also caught on. Sofia Richie is known to utilise a light dot of concealer alongside her favourite glossy lip balms, while Gabbriette goes all over with a cream concealer as seen in a Vogue Beauty Secrets video several months back.
If you’re looking to try the trend yourself, you needn’t dive right into a barely there base (though the runway cycle certainly approves). Dip your toe in by utilising a dab or two of your go-to concealer, in conjunction with a gloss or balm for a neutral effect that’s still multidimensional. Alternatively, test the pale-pout waters with a lipstick bullet such as Charlotte Tilbury’s Hot Lips K.I.S.S.I.N.G Lipstick in Kim K.W or Mac Cosmetics’ M·A·Cximal Sleek Satin Lipstick in Fleshpot.
However you prefer to pucker up, the lesson to be gleaned is this: Everything old really can be new again.
