By Rebecca Hitchon
It is said that fashion trends repeat themselves every 20 to 30 years, and the same is true for beauty. Not only is street style looking like something out of Friends right now: makeup looks are channelling the 90s too. For some, the days of dark lip liner and frosted eyeshadow are not so nostalgic as OTT for the current era of no-makeup makeup. But that doesn’t mean that 90s beauty is a no-go for those favouring a more natural beauty look, thanks to the resurgence of lip gloss.
Lip gloss sales and searches have dramatically increased throughout 2021, with the easing of restrictions on what we can do and masks no doubt to thank for this. And since the 90s, the beauty industry has advanced to give us more diverse, clean and thankfully non-sticky gloss options.
That’s why we’ve curated our shortlist of the top natural glosses that will enhance your lips, with the kindest ingredients for you and the planet. Click below to shop the edit and keep reading to find out more about each lip gloss.
1. Lily Lolo Natural Lip Gloss
For 90s kids, the flavour of the decade could probably be defined by the lip gloss you wore. Even growing up a decade later, I remember how lip gloss was bought to be eaten. It’s something we see less today, although admittedly I’m not sure I would use a Coca-Cola flavoured gloss again. But it’s nice to see Lily Lolo’s Natural Lip Gloss satisfying our tastebuds as well as our pout with its chocolatey flavour. The clean makeup brand’s gloss boasts an impressive range of non-sticky sheer and shimmery colours, from burnt orange to deep pink mauve. Each nourishes and protects lips with Vitamin E and organic jojoba oil.
2. Vapour Beauty Velvet Gloss
Vapour Beauty’s Velvet Gloss is another clean lip gloss packed with flavour – a fruity affair this time with organic plum, apricot and fig extracts. We can all be guilty of prioritising our skincare and abandoning our lip care, despite lips counting as skin too. That’s where Vapour’s award winning new take on lip gloss comes in, combining the hydrating and antioxidant benefits of lip balm with the long-lasting shine and colour of lip gloss. Packed with active skincare favourites rosehip seed oil and organic green tea, lip gloss has never left lips so plumptious. And we’re all for a mirrored compact that allows for easy on the go application.
3. PHB Ethical Beauty Organic Lip Gloss
Here at KeiSei we love independent brands that have strong sustainable and ethical values at their heart, and PHB Ethical Beauty fits the bill so well. You can always rely on PHB for planet, people and skin loving makeup, with their use of 100% naturally derived ingredients. Their award-winning clean lip gloss is also 74% organic, 100% vegan, cruelty and gluten free, and contains fair trade jojoba oil and fair trade shea butter sourced from women’s co-operatives in West Africa. With 14 non-sticky shades to suit all skin tones, occasions and moods, we want the full set pronto.
4. Kosas Wet Lip Oil Gloss
As we enter autumn, there’s never been a better time to start using Kosas’ Wet Lip Oil Gloss: a lip treatment and gloss hybrid. Lip gloss has a bit of a reputation for leaving lips on the dry and tacky side, but with Kosas’ choice of active ingredients you’ll never have to worry about that again. Hero skincare ingredients like moisture attracting hyaluronic acid, plumping peptides and skin protecting evening primrose oil will nourish lips as the temperature drops. Not to mention naturally nourishing avocado oil and shea butter. And with fresh, dewy skin the sought-after natural beauty look of the moment, what better time to embrace juicy, wet-look lips than now?
5. Kjaer Weis Lip Gloss
Kjaer Weis is one of our go-to natural makeup brands for understated, comfortable, luxury lip colour that in the company’s words: “works with your skin not against it.” And so we’re not surprised that their certified organic semi-sheer lip gloss, available in nine timeless shades ranging from peachy pink to newest addition Red Hot, sells out quick. As well as containing a whole host of natural conditioning oils like rosehip, sunflower and castor seed oil, Kjaer Weis’ lip gloss – in line with the rest of the beauty brand’s offering – promotes sustainability through being refillable. The natural lip gloss refill is available here.
6. Madara Glossy Venom Lip Gloss
While lip gloss allows for a natural take on 90s beauty, fun can be found in adventurous shine and colour. It’s especially true now that lockdown restrictions have been lifted and colour is back on the radar. Welcome Madara’s Glossy Venom Lip Gloss, a high shine vegan and certified natural lip gloss. Its full collection spans from nude to bright lilac and black. Despite a more intense shine, using natural origin shine particles to create dimension and the appearance of plumper lips, Madara have produced a non-sticky formula that moisturises and protects lips too, thanks to vitamin-packed blueberry seed and rice bran oils.
Or if DIY beauty is your thing, why not try a homemade natural lip gloss recipe?
We love this super simple DIY Honey Lip Gloss recipe:
- Heat 2 tablespoons of coconut oil, 1 tablespoon of beeswax and 1 teaspoon of honey in a small saucepan over a low heat, until the wax has melted. (Tip: beeswax pellets are an easy way to add beeswax.)
- Remove from the heat. Whisk the saucepan ingredients over an ice bath for a minute, or until the gloss has come together and thickened.
- Whisk in any drops of essential oil you would like to include.
- Transfer the lip gloss into a container of your choice.
If you want to tint your lip gloss, you can add a desired amount of beet root or cocoa powder. It is important to ensure there are no clumps when using these powders, otherwise you will get a gritty gloss. With beet root powder especially, it is recommended that you blend the powder until it is very fine or it should be dissolved with vegetable glycerin. If you don’t have these powders, adding a small amount of natural blush will also do the trick.
We hope these natural lip glosses will help you to embrace 90s beauty in a way that is conscious and nourishing for your lips. Which lip gloss is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below.
Rebecca Hitchon
Rebecca is a Journalism graduate who is passionate about cultivating a sustainable lifestyle and enjoys being able to mix this with her love of writing. You can find more of her work at rebeccahitchon.wordpress.com.
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This article may contain some affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, KeiSei Magazine receives a small percentage of the sale price, or some brands may have paid a small fee to be featured. We only recommend brands that match our sustainable and ethical criteria and that we truly believe in.