Tom Ford's New Lipsticks Are Inspired By Men

Photo: Courtesy of Tom Ford.

Ask beauty editors which lipstick is worth a splurge, and two words come tumbling forth: Tom Ford. It’s not just the satisfyingly heavy packaging or the smooth texture. It’s that the entire experience, from the monogrammed tip to the intense color payoff, feels luxurious—even decadent.

Now, Ford is releasing Lips & Boys, a collection of 50 lipsticks named for men in the designer’s life: close friends, fashion insiders, his husband, and even his toddler son. “I like the idea of lipsticks named after boys,” Ford said. “Why commit to one when you can have several?” (We’re guessing Ford delivered this line with a wink. Earlier this year, he married his partner of 27 years.)

The lipstick owes its smooth feel to exotic ingredients such as Brazilian murumuru butter and soja seed extract. Thirty-six of the colors are new. Along with more traditional reds and corals, the collection holds unconventional shades as well: a crisp white, a grayed-out lavender, a burnt-sugar brown, even a metallic silver. Jack, after Ford’s nickname for his son, is a playful fuchsia; Liam is a bold shade of eggplant.

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Smaller and less expensive ($32) than Ford’s main lipsticks, these mini versions are sleek enough to be tossed in a petite clutch. “People carry teeny-tiny little bags today, and are trying to fit their iPhone, money and a key,” Ford told WWD. “I think the idea of a small bag is modern, and you need to be able to fit a lipstick into that small space.”

Kyril, an unconventional shade from the Lips & Boys collection.

If the collection is up your alley, prepare to move quickly. Lips & Boys launches November 28 on Tom Ford’s website, where it will be available for just four days; later, they’ll spend eight weeks in stores beginning December 26. We’re calling it early: These colors are what winter’s best-dressed lips will be wearing.