The perfect red lipstick
How to find the shade most suitable for you and manage to create the makeup look exactly you want
Style & trends
The first and most important thing to know is what type of a look we want to create. Some shades of red are associated with eras in fashion and styles or trends from the past so we should make sure to choose a color in accordance to this. For example if you’re trying to create a Marylin Monroe inspired look - you should surely opt for a brick red colour while if we’re trying to dress up as Cruella de Vil, who is an extremely popular character right now, for Halloween - you shall chose a bright bold classic shade of red.
Type and texture
It’s usually a matter of choice and preference only but it’s also pretty important. You can opt for a more liquid textured red lipstick or a more creamy/matte one.
A benefit of liquid lipsticks is that they are light and hydrating - so your look won’t be too formal. Unfortunately they will probably be less pigmented and might get runny if you don’t use a lip pencil. Yes, this could be used as creative approach but most of the time it’s just annoying. Especially fond are moments when we flaunt a colored in red smile on important photographs while actually believing we look classy.
A benefit of creamy and matte lip colours is that they are less likely to run or smudge, they are usually more pigmented and long-lasting and you can even mix two different shades - darker for the lip corners and lighter for the middle part of the lips. The only warning here is in regards to lipcare because you need to get your lips properly moisturized before applying the creamy/matte lip colour in order to get the lipstick to both look and feel good.
Lipsticks: DIOR, Maybelline, HM, NYX Cosmetics
Undertones
It may sound a little bit complex especially for someone who doesn’t know a lot about painting and colours because we talk about colour mixing. However, it is very logical and easy to understand - every colour can vary and have either a warm undertone or a cold undertone, as the warm undertone is yellowish and the cold undertone is blueish. For example a warm undertone red is the colour of bricks, the traffic light red, the strawberry red. A cold undertone red is the raspberry red, the dark red rose colour and the wine red.
The same thing about undertones is true for our skin colour - and each of us has a warmer or colder undertone to their skin.
The key advice is to choose a lipstick colour with undertones that match your skin undertones. So if you have a warmer skintone - you shall choose a more orangy, brick red or classic bright red and if you have a cold skin undertone - you should opt for a colder shade such as wine red or some raspberry shade. Simple as that.
Despite these little “rules” I just shared with you of course you may fall in love with any red lipstick shade regardless of anything just said simply because you like it or it matches an outfit you have - and of course it’s all fine!
I hope I managed to help you find “your” red lipstick shade. Anyway if you’re like me - you’ll always have many favourites.
- Nicole
