The cupid’s bow is the dip in your upper lip that gives your lip a different shape than the bottom one. This feature is different from person to person, making the ways to define or reduce a cupid’s bow dependent on the lip’s shape.

In this post, we will go over the ways that you can define, hide, soften or draw a cupid’s bow with makeup. These methods work for both women and men. I also provided some extra tips for men looking to make their cupid’s bow more defined.

How to Get Rid of Cupid’s Bow with Makeup (Step-By-Step)

Although there are more permanent ways to get rid of a cupid’s bow, either through surgery or lip fillers, there are ways to remove it via makeup as well:

Step 1– Use a lip balm on your lips before putting on your makeup. This will make sure that your foundation doesn’t crease or dry out later on in the day. A thin layer of lip balm is all you need. Wipe away any excess blam with a tissue before proceeding to the next step.

Step 2 – Use a liquid concealer that matches your upper lip skin tone and apply it to your upper lip line with a soft brush. Blend in the concealer to hide the upper lip line.

Step 3 – Use a lip liner close to the shade of lipstick that you will be applying or a shade lighter and draw a new lip line. Draw it lightly, just in case you need to fix it. This line can be whatever shape you want. For fuller lips, draw your upper lip line in a half oval shape.

Step 4 – Once your lips look like the shape you want, apply your lipstick, being careful over the top lip so as not to smudge your new lip line.

If you don’t want to use concealer on your lips or your cupid’s bow isn’t as defined, you can try the steps below to hide your cupid’s bow:

Step 1 – Apply a lighter lip liner than your lipstick so that you are connecting the two ‘peaks’ of your cupid’s bow. Fill in the skin between them lightly with liner.

Step 2 – Apply your lipstick as normal, following the new line you made with your liner. This will give you a less pronounced cupid’s bow without putting more makeup than usual on your lips.

How To Soften Cupid’s Bow And Make It Less Defined (Step-By-Step)

If you don’t want to completely get rid of your cupid’s bow, there is a simple way to make it look less defined with makeup.

Here are a few easy steps to make your cupid’s bow less defined:

Step 1 – Apply a lip balm and dab off any excess. This will ensure that your lips are hydrated before applying any makeup.

Step 2 – Apply liquid foundation in the same shade as your upper lip to the bend in your cupid’s bow. Don’t try to eliminate your lip line. The goal here is to provide a softer edge to the line so that it’s not as pronounced, but not covering it up completely and you’d need to color in your lips with liner.

Step 3 – Apply your lipstick, being careful to not press too hard on the softened line. Use a lip liner as your guide if you feel more comfortable doing so. Apply your lipstick lightly, especially in the areas near your softened line.

How To Draw Cupid’s Bow (For People Who Don’t Have It) 

Lip shapes differ depending on genetics, so there are people that don’t have a very pronounced cupid’s bow or it appears like they don’t have one at all.

In order to create a more pronounced one, just follow the steps below:

Step 1 – Find a lip liner that is a shade closest to the natural color of your lips.

Step 2 – Using the liner, make a line going from the first peek of your top lip to your bottom lip on the opposite side. Repeat this on your other peak so that you have an ‘X’ that takes up the center portion of your lips. If you don’t have any discernible peaks in your lips, find the 2 lines that make up your philtrum. The spots where the philtrum lines touch your lips are where our peak should be.

Step 3 – Using a small brush and liquid foundation in the shade of your upper lip, fill in the area at the top of your upper lip. This will create the illusion that your skin dips down to create the cupid’s bow.

Step 4 – Fill in your lips with your lip liner. Use the ‘X’ as a guide when filling in your lips with lipstick to showcase the dip you’ve created.

How To Make Cupid’s Bow More Defined For Ladies

For those who love their cupid’s bows, there are ways to create a more defined shape. Similar to the creation of a faux cupid’s bow, you’ll need to use your lip liner to help with shaping:

Step 1 – Make sure that your lips are hydrated before proceeding. Prepping your lips with a scrub or a lip balm will make sure that you have a good base to work with.

Step 2 – Make an ‘X’ on your lips, starting from the left ‘peak’ of your cupid’s bow by using a lip liner that is a shade that matches your lips or is lighter than the lipstick you’ll be applying. Then, move to the next ‘peak’ and create another line that crosses the diagonal you made before. The top of the ‘X’ should extend so that their highest points are just above your lip line.

Step 3 – Use your lip liner to fully line your lips.

Step 4 – Fill in your lips with your lipstick, following the lines you made to create a new lip look.

Step 5 – Take a small brush and gently brush a bit of highlighter at the dip of your top lip in between the ‘peaks’. Don’t put a lot on, or it’ll look greasy on the skin above your lips.

How To Make Cupid’s Bow More Defined For Men

For the men who want to accentuate their cupid’s bow, they can utilize lip liners and lipstick just as women do. Keeping the colors of the lipstick and liner more natural can make it look like they’re not even wearing makeup at all.

A great trick to better define a cupid’s bow on a male would be to grow a mustache that is in line with your upper lip. The contrasting colors of your natural lip color and darker hair will make your lips look more defined. Trimming your hair can also create more space for you to use lip liner to update the shape of your lips.