Sexy Red Lips!

Hey Cherubs,
There is a misconception that red lips only look good on "certain" women. I am here to dispose that myth. The only thing you need to wear red lipstick is CONFIDENCE! It takes confidence to pull off red lips. I will agree there are factors to consider when sporting a bold red lippie, but the fear of the red lip is greater than the actual wearing a red lip.
As creatures of habits, we tend to stick with things in our comfort zone. In that same vain, soft pinks, neutrals, and anything that is viewed as soft is what we tend to feel we look our best in. Add to that the attention bold or bright colors tend to arose, it's natural for people to get nervous about wearing a bold red lip. So, today I'm going to give you some tricks to help you rock the red lip.

First of all, reds come in a wide range of shades ranging from yellow based to blue. An example of a yellow based red, is an orange red. Blue based tend to be brick red almost, think of a red Gwen Stefani would wear. The colors in between range from strawberry red to rasberry red and so on.
Next, teeth play a very important role. If you are wearing a yellow/orange based red, your teeth are going to look YELLOW. That's not a bad thing, the only people with winter white teeth, are those who have used chemical agents or had dental procedures to remove the stains from their teeth. Teeth change color due to trauma, aging, diet, tobacco, caffiene, etc. It's normal so don't be embarassed, just go to the store and get some white strips, mouthwash, or hydrogen peroxide if you are uncomfortable with your teeth.
The next tip is to make sure your skin is as close to flawless as possible. I don't mean you need perfect skin, but if you are having a particulary bad day and your skin is being tempermental, forego the red lipstick for another day. Not that bad skin=boring lipstick, if you're confident, go for it! But to those of us who are a bit new to bright, bold lips, not having too much going on on the rest of the canvas is a way to avoid doing a belly flop from the deep end.
What you'll need is a base/concealer, a red lip liner and your favorite red lipstick.
Assuming you have already exfoliated and moisturized your pucker, dab some concealer or foundation lightly over your lips. You want to cancel out any pigment and start with a clean base. Pat the concealer lightly and make sure your lips are somewhat dry. Take your lip liner and trace your lips being careful not to go out of your natural lip line, this will cause the lipstick to bleed or feather. Once you've traced your lip line lightly fill your lips in with the same lip liner. The next step is to take the lipstick (ensuring it's the same shade as the lipliner) and apply it to your lips. You can use a brush, apply it from the tube, dab it, whatever you feel comfortable doing. Now, take a tissue and place it between your lips and gently press your lips onto the the tissue. This step is what you need to ensure your not left with lipliner and no lipstick as you go about your day. Now, once again, apply the lipstick and you're done!
* Red lipstick is thought to be a risky look for daytime, but if you wear it right (i.e. neutral face) you can go boardroom to bedroom without raising a brow.

Meow for now,


B.P.