These days, we’re faced with our reflection more than ever before; if we’re not dipping in and out of Zoom meetings, we’re catching up with friends and family on Facetime. But no matter how hard you try to stay focussed on the person on the other end of the call, it’s only human nature to find yourself staring at your own face. We know that the right skincare regime will help you glow even through the fuzzy blur of the webcam (and we can totally help with that), but there is another trick that will perk up the complexion in less than three seconds: lipstick.

In the same way Lion/ne is all about raising your skincare game, that ethos extends to the contents of your makeup bag too. Which is why, when it launched at the end of last year, Highr Collective really caught our attention.

Founded by Molly Hart, Highr is an eco-conscious lipstick line, with non-drying formulas in shades to suit everyone. In episode 10 of our podcast, The Skinterview, Molly joined Ksenia to fill us in on what it took to elevate a staple product like lipstick to sustainable new heights, as well as charting the brand’s pandemic-defying success – turns out, we still love wearing lipstick, even under our face masks 😷💄.

Need a good reason to tune in? We’ll give you three.

1. You’ll discover what clean beauty means to a founder that backs it

You know we aren’t fans of the term ‘clean’. While we can understand the appeal, it has no certified or consistent definition. “Lots of brands are misusing and overusing it,” Ksenia explains, “and as a consumer, it’s really hard to understand what clean means.”

So how does Molly define this term? Well, for starters, she says: “To be a clean brand, you need to use the purest ingredients that are found in nature. That’s where we start. And that’s why the majority of our product is organic, and then the other clean actives that we add are not proven, through research, to be harmful. We would never use anything that’s banned anywhere in the world.” Listen to her definition in full, and you’ll start to unearth the kinds of questions you should be asking of other so-called ‘clean’ brands you love.

2. You’ll learn to apply your skin ingredient know-how to the world of makeup

Highr is a brand that exists right at the intersection of makeup and skincare. “We wanted something that would treat the lip with every wear,” Molly explains, which is why uses low-molecular weight hyaluronic acid, organic rosehip oil, as well as other active ingredients in her lipstick formula. It’s what she calls “a wearable mask”: a nourishing lip treatment with added colour. If nothing else, this podcast will serve as an introduction to the skinification of makeup.

3. You’ll hear the eco-argument against silicone

Molly’s main goal with Highr was to bring lipstick into the sustainability sphere. And while yes, that meant focussing on recyclable packaging, it also meant cutting out certain ingredients loved by other makeup brands, simply because they were harmful to the environment. One such ingredient you might not have considered is silicone. In the podcast, Molly explains why it was at the top of her ingredient blacklist.