C C: Where did you get the idea for Huge Lips, Skinny Hips?

Karen Robinovitz: I was at a fashion party with my husband and had eaten waaaay too much too quickly. I contracted the
syndrome I call “ring around the waist.” You know – when your pants suddenly feel one size too small and you get a red ring around your waist? I was uncomfortable, full, and desperate to go home. When I told Todd (hubby), he was a little disappointed. We had just gotten there. I jokingly said “If my lip gloss would plump my lips and not my hips, I wouldn’t be in this mess!” Then I looked at him – my big Eureeka moment – and said “OMG! What if there was a lip gloss with plumper AND appetite suppressant? It would be my dream product.” He was the one who encouraged me to make it and create a brand. That was two years ago. And here we are now.

C C: Why the name Purple Lab?

KR: Purple is my favorite color – it’s strong, chic, sexy, playful and fun, everything that the brand is. The “lab” part is two-fold – I was pre-med in college and applying to med school. When I had the epiphany that I needed to come to NY to pursue a polar opposite career in fashion and beauty, my family joked that I was changing my “lab coat” for a “fab coat.” The other part of the “Lab” of the brand name is that I feel like a mad scientist, always thinking of ways to mix ingredients you may not imagine working together. I love that it’s not necessarily so beauty oriented, the brand name because Purple Lab is a lifestyle, a philosophy, more than just products.

Purple Lab Creator Karen Robinovitz

C C: Did you always want to own a beauty brand?

KR: I always loved, loved, loved beauty and all things fabulous and glamorous. And I always dreamed of creating a brand, whether it was fashion or beauty. The way this happened was so natural and while it is about double duty beauty, there is a fashion-y spin with the product names and the design aspect. So it feels like I’m combining both of my loves in one.

C C: Of the 6 shades, which is your favorite? Why?

KR: That is like asking a mother to say which child she loves the most! I adore them all for different reasons, depending on my mood. Each of the shades are quite shear and they work on every skin tone and complexion. I tried them on my friends of different shades before I launched to make sure that the red, pink coral, nude, and so on would work for fair skinned blonds, red heads, different tones of Asian skin, dark skin, olive skin, etc. We even made a video to show how they look on everyone. It’s on our YouTube channel.

C C: All the shades have such fun names — how did you think of the names?

KR: Honestly, that was some of the most fun I have had in this process. They are all named after my favorite things – inspirations, icons, mantras. And they all come with what I call a “love note” about the story behind the shade so that everyone knows where it comes from and can identify their personalities with each color.

C C: What’s in store for Purple Lab in the Fall?

KR: All kinds of deliciousness – we have two new colors of Huge Lips Skinny Hips and a breast cancer awareness product that supports research (we’re giving a piece of our proceeds to the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation) with a lip gloss that is totally different from Huge Lips Skinny Hips. We’re in development with a dozen other products as well – so you will see much more in the future! I just can’t give any hints YET!