Beauty: DIY perfect red lips

I think that Marilyn Monroe was so stunning. I love her signature look of Red lipstick. A nice red lipstick  is my most coveted beauty product. I often rock a bright lip with a relatively neutral eye. The boldness of the color red stands out, and can easily transform a look of make-up frump, into an elegant and sophisticated starlet approved beauty do. 

Gaining the confidence to rock red lips can be a challenge. A badly executed red lip only looks sloppy and trashy. Before your paint your pout red make sure that your lips are primed, here are some of my favorite tips for red lips. 

Lip Sugar Scrub, from Lush.

First: Red lipstick will only emphasize dry and chapped lips. To erase the damage of chapped lips first use a lip exfoliate or sugar scrub. Then apply a generous amount of lip balm and allow the moisture to be absorbed before you begin to add color. 

I like to use a a nude lip liner to gently outline the shape of my mouth and to act as a color buffer. Once you have a nice outline of your lips, gently using a lip brush fill in your lips with a bright red. Using a brush will allow you to have more control of the color and the look. 

Not so cute

Cute 

Red lips are a statement on their own, and a rich velvety red with blue overtones are not only flattering for all skin tones, but will also make your teeth look whiter.  When red lipstick it is easy to get carried away with eye and face makeup. When wearing red lipstick go for a neutral look. Let your lips be the statement.  Be careful, to much bronzer, and eyeshadow can transform the look of chic into a look of streetwalker. 

To create a fuller lip look, try adding a shimmering powder to the center of your bottom lip and cupids bow after you fill in the color. The shimmering powder will catch and reflect light which will give off the illusion of a fuller lip. 

To find the right red for you, read the Red and The Beautiful.

The Red and The Beautiful

Red Lips are so stunning. The bold color demands presence and creates a lure of Iconic Beauty on any face. When choosing the right shade of red lipstick, consider your uniqueness: skin tone, lip shape, ideal color finish, and what you plan on wearing. 

Your lip shape offers suggestions for the ideal texture: 

Thin Lips should stick to a sheer finish which boost the illusion of a fuller lips, while full lips might want to appear more defined with a matte finish. 

And your skin tone offers suggestions for color complements. 

Fair skin tones should choose a blue or pink based red.

Olive or medium skin tones should layer on warmer more coral and orange based reds.

Dark skin tones are complemented beautifully by berry based reds.

Reds I'm LOVING!

NEON RED, ala Gossip Girl Queen Blaire Waldorf

For a strong fierce, all eyes on you look. Choose neon. It's powerful, funky, and beautiful. To copy-cat, gently trace lips with a liner and then brush in the color. To maximize the longevity of the color gently dust a thin layer of translucent powder over lips.  Nars Dragon Girl is my favourite!

Glossy Brick Red

Red Brick takes a 70's flair. Use a lip pencil/crayon for definition. The pencil colors last longer due to a wax base. To amp up the glam finish with a clear gloss. Try a Nars lip pencil in Damned.

Poppy Red

The Playful poppy red looks amazing on fair skin tones as it is a blue based red. Inspired by Andy Warhol's lip stick prints. Just remember to exfoliate well before coloring lips. I like Stila Outrageous.

Red Velvet

To get this look it is supper important that lips are well prepped. Exfoliate, and follow with a lip balm to preserve moisture. For the most dramatic look apply color with a lip brush and concentrate on the cupids bow. Try Nars Vesuvio.

Burnt Red

The brown red is a grungy 90's inspired look. The burn red is a more muted red so it can be "day look" friendly.  Try Stila Daring.