Chanel's Lipscanner app enables you to scan any image, find a corresponding Chanel lip product in the colour and texture of the image you've scanned and then virtually try it on. 

Pinterest offers a Try On feature within its app, allowing you to try on different lipstick shades from brands including MAC, Charlotte Tilbury and Bobbi Brown, but Chanel's Lipscanner takes this one step further by offering the image scanning functionality. 

Here's how Chanel Lipscanner works and how to use it to find your perfect corresponding Chanel lipstick from any image.

Chanel Lipscanner app: How to match and try on your perfect lipstick from any image photo 3

How Chanel Lipscanner works

Chanel's Lipscanner app will detect any colour and texture from any image - physical or digital - and find a matching Chanel lip product. All of Chanel's lip products are available in the app's catalogue - more than 400 - and the app won't just find the closest match, but it will detect the finish too, whether matt, satin or gloss. 

You can scan anything from a cup, cushion, friend, bag in a magazine, lips from a poster, or upload an image from your library, perhaps a screenshot of an Instagram image or a picture of yourself with a lippy on that you loved but need a replacement. The Lipscanner app will then use its algorithm to detect the colour and texture of your scan and provide you with an equivalent Chanel lip product, which you can then try on virtually and take a photo, or buy from the Chanel website.

Not every match is flawless, and sometimes the app doesn't get it completely right - possibly because an equivalent Chanel shade doesn't exist - but the idea is great and we've loved using it to discover new shades.

Chanel Lipscanner app: How to match and try on your perfect lipstick from any image photo 4

How to use Chanel Lipscanner

Finding a Chanel lipstick that matches a digital or physical image you've seen and loved a colour in it is very easy.

  1. Download the Chanel Lipscanner app on your iOS device.
  2. Open the Chanel Lipscanner app.
  3. Scan a colour or some lips from a magazine, poster etc. You can either use an image from your library or take a photo in the app.
  4. Tap the screen to select a colour to match and move the cursor to select a colour.
  5. Tap on "Find the Chanel Match".
  6. Swipe right to left on the options. The finish is shown at the top.
  7. Tap on "Try It On" or "Purchase on Chanel.com".
  8. The Lipscanner app will automatically apply the lipstick to your lips when you bring your face into view if you select Try It On, or take you to the exact product on the Chanel website if you select the purchase option.
  9. You can take a picture within the Try It On section, which you can then share if you want to.
  10. The Chanel colour match name will appear in the top right of the picture.
  11. Tap on the arrow in the top left of the screen to come away from the Try It On screen and back to the results screen.

By tapping the arrow, you can also try on other shades that have been selected as a result of your scan. To see all your scans, head back to the initial take a photo or choose one from your library screen.

From here, you'll see a lipstick icon in the top left corner. This is where all of your scans and results are stored. No photos you take of you trying the lipsticks on are stored within the app. You'll find these in the Photos app of your iPhone instead.

Note: You'll need to allow Lipscanner to access your camera.