With a little over 3 months to go until my wedding weekend, I am in the market for a makeup artist. I know – I really need to get on that right? Well, after having my 3rd makeup trial, I had an epiphany. Why am I letting someone else choose my lipstick color – something that is so personal? I get that your makeup artist should – with your creative direction of course – create your look, but who is to say that they should choose what goes on your lips?

While I continue my search for my makeup artist (it’s so hard!), I am going to start testing lipsticks on my own. I need a color that’s in line with the inspiration for my full makeup look (something I’m keeping shhhh right now, but will show you soon) and also makes me feel like myself. My philosophy on wedding makeup is that you should look like you, but the best and most stunningly beautiful version of you. I find it a little weird when I see brides who never really wear blush or makeup turn into a person that I don’t even know just because it’s their wedding day. Who is to say that you shouldn’t just be yourself? If you always wear thick, black Amy Winehouse liner, then you should rock that on your wedding day too. Bottom line: Your wedding day is not the time to experiment. Look at your inspiration and choose a lipstick based on it. It’s the time to stick to something you’re comfortable with.

So when it comes to my lipstick, I want the perfect nude. Nude lipsticks always make me feel pretty and perfectly accentuates my pout. Nude isn’t one color, its basically your skintone so there’s a wide spectrum of colors actually. I already know my favorite lipstick brands for matte nude colors are Nars, Charlotte Tilbury, Tom Ford and Chanel. They have the best formulas and shades hands down. I know, I know — they aren’t natural, but I can splurge on my wedding day, right? These are my favorite colors so far:

Tom Ford is the perfect wedding lipstick and not just because it’s so damn expensive. The colors and shades are unlike anything else, and the formula feels so nice and creamy.

Tom Ford Lip Color in Spanish Pink – Creamy, pink with a hint of coral.

Tom Ford Lip Color in Pink Dusk – Creamy, rosy nude.

Tom Ford Lip Color in First Time – Matte, pink with a soft flesh undertone.

Tom Ford Lip Color in Blush Nude  – Creamy, pink with a hint of vanilla.

Ugh I love these Nars lip pencils. They are somewhere between the size of a true lipstick and a lipliner. You have amazing control here. The matte factor is perfect.

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dolce Vita – This gives you that perfect bitten look and even has a hint of brick red. It’s a confused red.

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Roman Holiday – Perineal pink classic and so feminine, with the tiniest bit of purple.

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Walkyrie – The girls at the Nars office recommended this color to me, because it’s very popular among their brides, but it was too brown/ dark for me.

Here are my favorite one offs. These came into my life through a mix of friend recommendations and research. I love Charlotte Tilbury matte lipsticks. They are super similar to the Tom Ford ones. This Estee Lauder one is just the perfect pale nude and the Chanel Rouge Coco Shine is not matte at all, but it’s so gorgeous and totally wearable on any skin tone.

Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Lipstick in Desirable – This is the perfect chalky nude.

Charlotte Tilbury in Sexy Sienna – A hint of peach and warmness make this one of my all time go-tos. Plus it was made for Sienna Miller. This is best paired Charlotte’s Lip Pencil in Pillowtalk.

Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Rêveuse – A neutral nude peach pink, in the tube it’s peachy, on my lips it looks more nude/pink.