We Tried Sephora’s New App That Lets You Try on 2,200 Lipstick Shades — It’s Amazing
Navigating the wild world of lipstick ain’t easy, y’all. There are literally hundreds of thousands of shades out there, enough formulas to make your head spin and, to top it all off, you have to think about which hues work best for your skin tone — why does it have to be so hard? :( Sometimes, we wish there was a lipstick genie out there that could help us figure out our ideal colors and have fun experimenting with shades that we usually wouldn’t pick up. Luckily, Sephora’s new app update — which won’t actually hit a phone near you for a few months, according to Sephora insiders — hears you loud and clear, and more than has your back.
Sephora’s latest feature on their Sephora to Go iOS app allows you to virtually try on 2,200 different lipstick shades on your pout in the time it takes to snap a selfie. From first-hand experience — our Senior Style Editor Kate and I got to test it out a pre-release version at the grand opening of the new Sephora Powell store in San Francisco earlier today — this is a lipstick lifesaver.
Here’s how it works: You snap a selfie inside the app, which then identifies where your lips are on your face (it’s crazy how accurate it is). Then, you pull up the shade swatches and scroll through the thousands of hues in lipsticks and glosses. Tap whichever ones you’re feeling and you’ll instantly see the shade appear on your lips in the selfie (it also gives you all the info you need to make the purchase through sephora.com straight from the pic).
Hit the compare tool to see — and swap out — up to four different hues next to each other. This feature is perfect for people who are stuck deciding between similar shades (like a red with blue undertones and a red with orange undertones). It’s also really fun to just play around with crazy shades like green, blue and even black. The Surprise Me feature swipes a random shade on your lips so you can start venturing out from the typical hues you gravitate toward.
If you’re stuck between two lipstick colors, like a light lavender or a punchy orange, you can see side-by-side photos of you sporting each shade (and the shades are actual lipstick colors, not just general color swatches) so you can know exactly which shade to buy. Beyond that, the app also lets you discover new shades by randomly selecting colors for you. Warning: This feature is *extremely* addictive; it’s kinda like Tinder for lipstick. Swipe, swipe, swipe until you find your perfect match ;) Kate and I had *too much fun* with this, clearly.
This app is perfect for both beauty babes who have trouble making lipstick decisions and for beauty beginners who are just starting their lipstick journey (yes, it’s a journey) and want to try before they buy. It’s free, so step up your lipstick game, have a blast while doing it and get ready to post all your lipstick shade selfies ;)
Would you use Sephora’s lipstick try-on feature? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
