TikTok Loves "Nina Park Lips," But I've Been a Champion for Years—Here's the Best Tutorial to Defer To
A few years ago, a friend asked me who my dream makeup artist would be. That's quite a loaded question for a beauty editor, to be honest. After all, I've been lucky enough to work with some of the greatest talent in the biz (I still pinch myself every single time!), so to call out just one pro feels nearly impossible. That said, I distinctly remember name-dropping Nina Park. I just know she'd make me look the best I ever have in my entire life, I recall pointing out.
Several years later, my answer still hits—arguably even more so, as "Nina Park makeup" has reached peak virality on TikTok. Beauty fans love her special knack for transforming her celebrity clients (such as Zoë Kravitz, Mia Goth, Kaia Gerber, and Margaret Qualley) into divine versions of themselves: perfectly blurred and sultry but never overdone. Even Park's industry peers are drawn to her techniques and whip up their own versions of her signature looks. As celebrity makeup artist Alexandra French once declared, "Nina Park is truly your favorite makeup artist's favorite makeup artist." I'll just leave that there.
Park's overall beat is worthy of hanging in the Louvre, but her go-to pouty lip is truly the stuff of legends. I'm always on the prowl for a lip combo that makes people wonder if I had a fresh prick of filler without lookinglike I came straight from the dermatologist (you feel me?), and that, my friends, is Park's specialty. You can find hundreds of artist-led videos speculating on her specific approach, so I decided to comb through the library and create the all-time guide second only to speaking with the iconic MUA herself. Keep scrolling to perfect Nina Park lips in six easy-to-follow steps.
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1. Contour the Perimeter
To create that soft, halo-like look, "I think there's a bit of a cream, bronzy situation going around the perimeter of the lip," poses celebrity makeup artist Katie Jane Hughes in a tutorial video. Melissa Murdick agrees on her own page, using a "very small eye shadow brush" to softly blend the contour product around her lip border. "Do this like you would do a smudgy lip liner," the celebrity makeup artist adds. Meaning, don't be too precious about staying inside the lines.
In fact, Hughes recommends tracing your outer vermilion border (aka the lighter halo around your mouth) as opposed to the pigmented part of your lips to create a subtly overlined shape. Just make sure you buff the edges well to keep the look nice and diffused.
Westman Atelier
Face Trace Cream Contour Stick in Biscuit
Merit
Brush No. 2 Double Sided Eyeshadow Brush
CHANEL
Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream
2. Add Liner and Powder
Next, grab a cool-toned lip liner (or even a precise eye shadow stick) and trace exactly where you placed the cream contour. "That's basically going to do the same thing but more defined," Hughes notes, which helps concentrate the color and make those shadows stand out. Then, using a small, fluffy brush, Hughes adds a bit of powder on top to lock in the pigment. "Also it's going to make it look softer and like it's just part of that person's face," she notes.
Make Up For Ever
Artist Color Pencil
KJH.BRAND
Precision Sculpture Stylo
Tower 28
Getset Pressed Setting Powder
3. Apply Lip Color at the Center
Time to choose your lip color! I've identified plenty of Park-approved lippies (find them below!), but generally, feel free to stick to whatever "your lips, but better" shade you fancy. Instead of swiping it all over, both Hughes and Murdick recommend applying it on the center of the lips before diffusing the pigment outward toward the contoured edge. It's easier to do this with a brush instead of applying the color directly onto your lips, as the former gives you more control.
