Color Story: Red

Clockwise from top left
Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Natural Beauty, Maybelline Color Elixir in Signature Scarlet, Revlon Colorburst Balm Stain in Romantic, NARS Sheer Lipstick in Flamenco, Esteé Lauder Signature Lipstick in Simply Red (Discontinued), M.A.C. Lipstick in M.A.C. Red, Jordana Easyliner for Lips in Sedona Red, Rimmel Show Off Lip Laquer in Big Bang

Red, oh red. What a stunning color family. I'm usually one to shy away from big blocks of red in my everyday life, but there's something about an accent of red that really brightens up my day. Growing up, my mum always treated red as a neutral. She was never one to rock a red lip but she would have no hesitation with toting around a bag as bright as a fire engine. I am not that brave when it comes to my fashion accessories, but give me a fire engine red lipstick and I'd probably slap it on right then and there.




The Lipsticks
One of my favorite red lipsticks is M.A.C. Satin Lipstick in M.A.C. Red. You thought it was going to be the ever popular Ruby Woo or Russian Red (which I own),  but I find M.A.C. Red a lot more comfortable to wear all day. It is a gorgeous vivid blue-based bright red with a creamy satin finish. Another very comfortable and easy red to wear is Esteé Lauder's Signature Lipstick in Simply Red. Just look at that packaging! Sadly it's discontinued, however Esteé Lauder's Signature Lipstick in Spanish Red is a really good dupe from their permanent line. While trying to look for the link to the NARS Sheer Lipstick in Flamenco, it came to my shock that this is no longer on the NARS website. I did find it on Beauty.com, which is a relief because this red is very low maintenance. It's not exactly "sheer" like it suggests, but more like a semi-opaque finish. It is a slightly warmer red, with a balm like texture on the lips. Definitely a go-to everyday red.

The Chubby Pencil
The chubby lip pencil/ balm/ stain hybrids are everywhere. It seems like every brand is coming out with their version--but I'm not complaining. I love this type of formula and application-delivery (is that a thing?) They are so easy to use and when Revlon came out with these, I almost flipped my banana. I love Revlon lip products and the Revlon ColorBurst Balm Stain in Romantic is no exception. I first tried this formula in the shade Honey and loved the moisturizing feel and texture that I had to pick up more colors. Romantic is sheer warm red, slightly orangey, that can be built up to be quite full-on but still with that balm-like texture.

The Liner
The only red lipliner I own. Jordana Easyliner for Lips in Sedona Red is a neutral red that doesn't lean too orange or too blue-based. This lipliner works for all the lip products I have featured. Jordana lipliners are so creamy, user-friendly and they're also retractable. But I think the best part about this lipliner is the low low price of $1.99. Yes, $1.99! And if that isn't dirt-cheap enough, Walgreens usually runs BOGO50%OFF specials on Jordana products every so often.

The Blush
No matter what the finish/ texture/ opacity of the red lip I'm wearing, it just doesn't look right when I've got no blush on. I either go very natural with a nude-toned blush or I just bring my bronzer on to the apples of my cheeks, but if I'm going for that matchy-matchy "Snow White" look, I use the Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Natural Beauty. I have yet to hear anything negative about these blushes because they're AMAZING. Colors; gorgeous. Packaging; heavenly. Pigmentation; out of this world. Lasting power; are you kidding me? They're basically perfect.

The Lip Lacquer
If we want to talk about full-on, in your face, look at her lips red, Rimmel's Show Off Lip Lacquer in Big Bang has got it. Despite it being oh so gorgeous, man is it high maintenance. This isn't one to wear when you've got a big plate of saucey spaghetti in front of you because you're going to have pasta sauce and red lipstick all over your face. Now, to prevent lipstick-sauce face, put down the fork and grab yourself a lip brush. Applying the lip lacquer in light layers and pushing the product into the lips really helps the product adhere to lips, almost creating a stain.

The Full Color Gloss
Now, I'm not about piling on the lip products to achieve a fuller lip, but for some reason, the Maybelline Color Elixir in 020 Signature Scarlet makes your lips look HUGE. Signature Scarlet is a beautiful cherry red. It's so glossy, pigmented and smooth that it makes me question why I didn't get more. I've looked at numerous swatches online and Caviar Couture and Captivating Carnation (it just occurred to me that most of the names are an alliteration, thoughts?) are next on my list.