From Her Lips To Yours
Red Carpet Favorite Lisa Rinna Launches Her First Beauty Line
By Bailey Beckett
It’s the pout that has melted a million hearts and made Lisa Rinna a household name. Though known as an accomplished actress, designer, author, host, and Real Housewife, Rinna’s lips are her signature, a trend she started long before Hollywood’s biggest stars copied the look on the red carpet. Now, after more than a decade in the making, she is bringing her style public with Rinna Beauty, an all exclusive, 100-percent vegan and paraben-free collection of products that are also PETA-certified cruelty-free.
Not surprisingly, the brand is launching with Lisa’s Lip ICON kit, featuring different lipstick, gloss, and liner shades. “Rinna Beauty is me,” says the actress, long a favorite from Days of Our Lives and Melrose Place. “It’s taking everything that I’ve ever known and learned in my life, whether I’ve been on camera or off. What’s great about Rinna Beauty is I don’t have to fit into any mold. Nothing is holding me back from creating exactly what I love. I see Rinna Beauty as a true lifestyle brand.
The collection, steeped in the quality and style of houses like Chanel, Tom Ford, and MAC, launches November 30th with Rinna’s “LIP ICON” lip kit, featuring lipstick, gloss, and liner. The brand is introducing Lisa’s signatures shade kits: “Birthday Suit,” “Legends Only,” and “No Apologies.”
New York Lifestyles got the scoop from the actress just before another duty as a Real Housewife of Beverly Hills.
Who is the Rinna Beauty customer?
I envision it to be absolute as the most inclusive beauty line ever. And I’m talking across the board; every single human on the planet could use Rinna Beauty. How about that?
What are you doing that no one else is doing?
Starting Rinna Beauty is something that has taken forever, but we finally did it. I never gave up. I had many different opportunities to do a beauty line, and it never worked out. I’m talking 10 - 15 years of wanting to do this, and it just kept not happening. And I thought, well, maybe I’m not meant to do a beauty line. Maybe I should focus on my clothing line. And then I met Cheryl and her team from SEL Beauty, and voila, here we are. I just kept saying I know we can do this.
What was your inspiration in starting Rinna Beauty?
It really started with people asking me what lip color I was wearing and where I could get it. And I thought, well, why am I not making my own.
You started the full lip trend before anyone else—Angelina,Scarlett, et al. Did you know that you would be a trendsetter when you started your career in the early 90s?
I did. And I say that with a wink and a nod when I say that I’m the lip pioneer. But when I was 24 years old, I went with my girlfriend and we had our lips done, and it was crazy—nobody was doing it.
Unlike other celebrities, you’re intimately involved in creating Rinna Beauty and all its products. Was that a condition in starting the line?
Absolutely. I really think long and hard about it. When I created my clothing line for QVC, I still made sure that I made it authentic to myself. You can’t just put your name on something unless it’s fabulous!
You’ve done a clothing line, opened a store, written books, hosted shows in addition to being a famous actress. Where did you get this entrepreneurial streak?
My parents were not well off. We were very middle class. I never could get anything unless I worked for it. I learned that at a really young age. So, I think it was instilled in me at an early age. And then, once I got into this business and became an actress, I saw what Suzanne Somers was doing. She made $100 million by selling products. Suzanne Somers has really been my role model.
What do you think women want in a beauty line?
They want something that looks fabulous and makes them feel fabulous. They don’t want any tricks. They want ease.
How do you feel about women following your look?
It’s such an honor. You never think that would have ever happened. But I think people have a lot of fun with it, which I think is great.
What are your criteria?
We’re launching with a lipstick line, and that starts with what I like, what I want in a lipstick, a pencil, lip gloss. I’m specific about what I like. I know exactly the lip gloss and the consistency and texture. Does it have a fragrance? Does it have a taste? So, we had to go through a few iterations. And I will say that when you really want something, the more specific you are. It wasn’t easy because we were doing this right in the middle of COVID-19. We finally got there! I held to that, and I’m so thrilled that I did because I can be like this is my favorite lip gloss and my favorite lipstick of all time. I can really own that.
For more information on Rinna Beauty,
visit rinnabeauty.com