5 Needle-Free Ways To Make Your Lips Look Fuller

“We naturally look at someone’s mouth when we’re having a conversation,” says celebrity dermatologist Dr. Dennis Gross. “Plus, the continued use of video chats for meetings has led to a pronounced emphasis on the lips and lip area.” As a result, he says, he has seen a dramatic increase in the number of patients seeking lip treatments over the past few years: “Whether it’s for professional injections or something they can use topically to mimic the effects of filler. Plus, when lips are plumped in the right way, it can actually make you look more youthful.” With more at-home products, non-invasive in-office alternatives and plumping makeup techniques on offer this spring, it’s easier than ever to get a softly defined, subtly more voluminous pout without the needle. Here’s how…

Last year’s glossy-lip renaissance is still going strong but, this season, the shine has been dialed all the way up. Think vinyl, lacquered, almost liquid-looking lips that catch the light from every angle. And today’s formulas are a far cry from the sticky tubes of the early 2000s; instead, they’re infused with hydrating ingredients and gentle plumpers that smooth, cushion and add volume in a single swipe, ensuring your lips appear fuller by virtue of their high-shine finish. To get the look, prep remains essential. Just like the rest of your skin, lips need moisture to appear naturally full, so begin with a nourishing balm to create a smooth, flake-free base, then lean into that vinyl texture. Charlotte Tilbury’s Collagen Lip Bath delivers a mirror-like sheen with a cushioning feel, while Makeup By Mario’s Supershine Lip Gloss comes in a range of sheer pink-to-neutral shades, including the universally flattering Midnight Mauve. Wear it alone for a fresh, glassy finish or layer it over your favorite lip color for an instant lacquered effect.

While often neglected, the texture and tone of the skin around your mouth can make a big difference to your overall lip look. “This area is incredibly difficult to treat,” affirms Dr. Gross. “You can’t fill lines around the mouth with filler – you need to trigger collagen production instead. LED is a great way to treat this area, because it stimulates collagen production in the skin as well as blood flow, which increases plumpness and your natural lip color at the same time.” Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare’s FDA-cleared DRx Spectralite LipWare Pro LED device uses 56 lights in an array of wavelengths (amber, red, deep red and infrared) to stimulate circulation and collagen production at all layers of the skin on and around our lips in just three minutes. The result? Fewer fine lines, a more even texture, a brighter natural lip color and a more defined, fuller pout. Equally effective are MZ Skin’s Lightmax Minipro LED eye patches. They stick to skin using a double-sided colloidal patch and can easily be applied around the lip contours to help plump and strengthen the skin here, too.

While high-shine lips are having their moment, the pendulum is also swinging in the opposite direction. Enter the softly blurred lip (also dubbed ‘cloud lips’ or ‘halo lips’), a diffused wash of color that creates the illusion of fullness with a modern, velvety finish. That said, our love affair with lip liner hasn’t ended; it has simply evolved. Instead of tracing a sharp, high-definition border, makeup artists are softening and smudging the edges to create a pillowy, lived-in effect that looks naturally plush and matte without ever appearing dry. Much of the appeal can be traced back to Nina Park, the Chanel makeup artist known for her dreamlike, soft-glam red-carpet aesthetic on clients such as Emma Stone (as pictured here at this year’s Baftas), Zoë Kravitz and Kaia Gerber. Her signature feathery lip involves color that’s layered and blended into a clouded halo of colour which, ultimately, delivers a fuller-looking finish. To play copycat, instead of relying on a single lipstick, try blending two or three complementary shades or liners to create depth and dimension. Press the color into the lips, then gently diffuse the edges with your fingertip or a small brush to blur any harsh lines.

While topical lip formulas won’t deliver as dramatic a result as injectable filler, they can help you achieve a bee-stung effect in an instant. “There’s a bit of filler fatigue at the moment, and topical products are an attractive option because they’re more affordable than filler, plus you avoid having to commit to the long-term look of filler,” says Dr. Gross. His Derminfusions Plump + Repair Lip Treatment is a hydrating-balm formula that plumps your pout (it gave mine noticeable inflation in seconds), helps to define your lip line, and boosts lip color using four molecular weights of hyaluronic acid, smoothing peptides and skin-soothing centella asiatica and ectoin, which help to protect against irritants that can come from traditional lip-plumping formulas. Use it alongside the brand’s DRx Spectralite LipWare Pro device (the treatment is best applied after the three-minute LED session). Equally effective is Dr. Macrene’s Macrene Actives High Performance Lip Filler, which uses a special peptide to smooth fine lines. If you like a bit of color, MZ Skin’s Volumising Lip Perfector delivers a glossy nude tint, while La Mer’s The Lip Volumizers offer subtle volume with just the right amount of iridescence in universally flattering pink, nude, coral and berry shades.

“Our lips are one of the first areas to suffer loss of collagen and fat as we age – as early as 25 – and, as a result, they kind of ‘implode’ inwards, look thinner, and fine lines start to appear on and around them,” says Dr. Rita Rakus, who is known for her discreet approach to lip enhancement. “Thermage FLX is an in-office treatment that uses radiofrequency [RF] to reach the deepest layers of the skin with targeted pulses of energy. The heat from RF stimulates the production of collagen, which in turn tightens and plumps the skin. Focusing on the lips is a new use of Thermage FLX and one that works a treat.” The treatment is an easy 30 minutes – it’s not painful; it just feels a little warm, especially when the device is taken over more sensitive areas of the lips. You’ll see an immediate lift of your upper lip afterwards, as well as plumping (and there’s typically no redness or downtime), but the real results develop slowly over several months, as your skin builds collagen. “It’s an increasingly popular treatment, especially with slightly older patients, as it offers more than just lip plumping and fullness,” adds Dr. Rakus. “It lifts and tightens the skin above the cupid’s bow to add volume and rejuvenates the entire lip area.”

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