A pair of fire-engine lips are a guaranteed way to get yourself noticed– but you want to make sure it’s because you’re looking red-hot; not because you look like you just finished tonguing down Ronald McDonald in a fast-food parking lot. There is much room for error when trying red lipstick for the first time, but follow these tips and your look will be hot enough to warrant a call to the firehouse.
1. Find your shade: Don’t just run out and buy the first red lipstick you see. Color (in any situation) is not one-size-fits-all. If you’re pale or fair-skinned, buy a red with cool or blue undertones. If your skin appears to be pink in tone, opt for a plum red. Ladies with yellow tones(me, pre-tan) should try warm reds with brown undertones. Olive and medium skin tones should try a warm red; one with an orange or golden tone. Dark skinned women get the most fun option: a bright, fuscia red that pops against the skin for a drastic contrast. If you’re still c0nfused, coral works on most people.
2. Invest in lip liner: Sorry, this needs to happen before you go all Gwen Stefani on us. Red lipstick tends to bleed all over the mouth area, more so than any other shade of lipstick. I don’t know why, just like I don’t know why orange TicTacs are softer than the other flavors. That’s just the way it is.
3. Prep your canvas: First off: don’t go crazy on the rest of your make-up regimen. The more minimal your make up application is, the easier you’ll pull off red lips. Use mascara, your typical cover-up routine, and a tiny bit of blush. No cat eye (unless you’re jetting to Egypt), no over-the-t0p eyeshadow (unless you’re a drag queen). You have plenty of time to figure out what ultimately looks good on you, but if you’re a red lipstick virgin, it’s not time to pull out all the whistles just yet.
You’ll also want to make sure your lips are exfoliated. Use a sugar-scrub gloss (I like this one). Or, a fun at-home remedy: take half a lemon, cover it in sugar, rub it on your lips, then rinse with cool water. Once your lips are smooth, you’ll want to moisturize them (any chapstick works fine).
4. Apply lip-liner: You can just go ’round the edges of your lip with most colors, but beauty pros will tell you to fill the entire lip to make sure your lipstick stays in line. It’ll act as both a primer and a boundary. Powder your lips lightly with your face powder to ensure your lipstick has something to grab on to.
5. Apply lipstick!: Seems like a lot of work to prepare just one body part, but red lips are a statement, and wearing them requires confidence and know-how. You’re not learning to tie your shoes, you’re learning one of the most feared beauty tricks in the game. Apply red lipstick with a lip brush so that you have more control over where it’s going (ie, not outside of your lips).
To maintain the look, make sure you have facepowder on hand. You’re going to need to blot and re-apply throughout the day/night, and powder will help keep your makeup in place.
My lipstick brand of choice for newbies isMegaLast Matte Lip Color by wet-n-wild. It’ll stay put for four hours, and it’s cheap enough to try a few shades on for size before finding your color of choice. Try Cora-line, Red Velvet, or Stoplight Red for $2.99, found in most drugstores.
Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.
