I have to give credit to one of my BFs, Sheebani, aka Shebz, for being the first person to introduce me to a real red lipstick. That girl can rock red lips like no other. (I kind of wish she was in Houston so I could have gotten her to model it for you guys, but it looks like you’ll just have to settle with me). If it wasn’t for her bringing a red lipstick to Vegas awhile back – I would have never tried it. After seeing her really “own” the whole red lip look, I decided to get over my fear and buy one.
Since, drug stores don’t like you trying on lipsticks before you buy them, I decided to go to MAC and spend a few extra dollars so that I could get the right shade. I ended up loving the one I got (Viva Glam I) but still only wore it every now and then. The first time I wore it out (a couple of years ago), I caught my friend Jenny staring at my face; not going to lie, it kind of freaked me out. (Jenny, don’t deny it). Then she said “I’ve just never seen you wear it before.” Which is actually true, I hadn’t worn lipstick in 5-6 years (and I’ve never worn red) so it was kind of a big step for me.
I’ve since found two more shades of red that I really like – Revlon’s Really Red (Matte) and Sephora’s Cream Lip Stain in Always Red. (Update: Shebz’s favorite is Revlon’s Love that Red). I also wear red lipstick quite often now – it’s such a fast and easy way to add a pop of color to your face or overall outfit.
There are a couple of tips to wearing red lipstick:
- Make sure your lips are smooth. (Exfoliate if you need to).
- Brush your teeth. (Clean teeth make your red lipstick pop more – I promise!)
- For very long time wear – apply a primer. (Ameeta told me Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion is perfect for this).
- Apply a matching lip liner. This is to keep the lipstick within the outline of your lips, since red tends to bleed.
- Use a lip brush to blend lip liner and lipstick together plus cover all areas of your lips.
- If you’re going out, carry your lipstick with you because you might need to do a touch up.
Here are my three favorite shades (that I mentioned above):
MAC Viva Glam I
Revlon – Really Red (Matte)
Revlon Really Red (Matte) is very similar to MAC’s Viva Glam I and $10.00 cheaper! (See below)
Sephora Cream Lip Stain – Always Red
Shebz, thanks so much for introducing me to this amazing fashion find! You’re awesome *hair flip*!
Are there any red lipsticks/glosses out there that you guys like?
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