Share with us... Your Best & Worst Collections of Haute Couture S/S 2025
: http://www.vogue.com/13290576/model-joan-smalls-matte-lipsticks-estee-lauder/Her EL collaboration is finally here!!
Exclusive! Model Joan Smalls on Her 12 New Matte Lipsticks for Estée Lauder
by LAURA REGENSDORF
Photo: Courtesy of Joan Smalls / @joansmalls
When model and Estée Lauder face Joan Smalls arrived at last year’s Met Gala, it wasn’t just her floor-sweeping nude Vera Wang dress that caused a stir on the red carpet; it was the arresting shade of violet painted onto her lips. Even at an event known for extreme fashion risks, it was a bold move—one that sparked a flurry of purple-lipped selfies in response on Instagram. “I started seeing people tag me after the Met Gala,” Smalls recalls, speaking by phone last week from her native Puerto Rico. “I was like, ‘This is so cool. People are really reacting to it in a very positive way.’ ”
The unexpected fervor planted a seed in her mind for a future lipstick collaboration, and today it finally comes to fruition with the launch of twelve vibrant shades developed with Estée Lauder. “I’m very hands-on when I’m involved with something,” she says with a laugh, and that close attention to detail shines through in the collection’s supersaturated colors, including Neon Azalea (an effervescent pink), Commanding (a black cherry pigment, its name chosen by her Instagram followers), and two takes on statement purple: Extrovert (a spot-on eggplant) and Shameless Violet, which bears striking resemblance to that gala-tested shade. What does it take to pull off such a color? “Confidence!” she exclaims. “It’s all about self-expression. Just go with your heart and your mood. If you don’t want to go as bold, pat it down with a tissue and use it as a tint,” she advises. “Baby steps.”
Texture is just as important to Smalls, who insisted on a matte formula—it’s chicer, she says, and easier to maintain than a high-shine lipstick—that nonetheless “feels creamy rather than dry and flaky.” In other words, it’s the type of lipstick that can last through dinner with her boyfriend, as proved last Thursday when she paired a wearable neutral (Covetous Nude) with “a lot, a lot of lashes” for a night out in Old San Juan. Even though Smalls counts herself a late convert to lip color—she remembers her mother asking her, “Aren’t you going to put lipstick on?”—the model plans on making up for lost time with a full arsenal to choose from (all permanent additions to the Estée Lauder line). “You shouldn’t have certain rules or restrictions,” she muses of her adventurous approach to color. “It’s like painting: You have to have fun with it!”
Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Matte Sculpting Lipstick, $30 each; esteelauder.com
