5 Tips for Rocking a Red Lip This Holiday (and Beyond!)

Few things in the world of aesthetics spell timelessness, glamour, and festivity more than a red lip. As such, for many, it has become a Holiday makeup classic and are the fastest and easiest way to pull together any look but especially when you want to be having fun whether enjoying the holidays at home or gathering together or virtually with all your loved ones or just wanting to put on something festive for yourself. For many, though, red lips can seem intimidating. But anyone can rock a red lip both look dynamite and feel comfortable. Here are some things to keep in mind.

Discover Your Skin's Undertone When Searching for Your Perfect Shade: There is a nearly endless array of red lipcolors available, and while there is a shade out there for everyone, not all shades will look the same on everyone or be as flattering. To pick your best one, it is often heloful to determine whether your skintone is cool or warm in undertone. Cooler-toned skin will often look best in reds that lean a bit pinkish or more towards a berry color while warmer skintones harmonize better with reds that have more of an orangish cast or a more earthy, browner quality. Once you find out your skin's undertone and a know which shades of red will likely suit best, you can play with lighter and deeper and brighter and more muted versions of red within that same undertone and experiment the different effects all of your best reds have with your skin and any other makeup you pair them with. For more info on how to determine your skin's undertone, check out my article here.

Opt for a Balm or Gloss As a Starting Point: One of the common reasons why red lips may seem intimidating at first is the inherent boldness of the color. If statement lips are generally not your thing usually, you can still try out red but just look for a red in a gloss or a balm form instead of the traditional bullet lipsticks which tend to apply more thickly. Brands like Nivea and Fresh make beautiful red shades in their lipbalms that offer great opacity of shade but with a softer texture that looks more natural on the lips and is also easy to touch up without a mirror.

Don't Discount Lipliner: Lipliners are not always requisites in my mind for wearing lipstick, but if you are trying to make a red lip stay in place (especially if you are using a traditional bullet lipstick), lipliner can certainly lend a helping hand when it comes ensuring longevity throughout eating and drinking. For the most subtle effect. I prefer applying lip pencil before I do the lipstick so I don't go past my natural lip line. If, however, you want to even out or exaggerate smaller lips, you can outline the lipstick by applying the liner afterward. You do have the option of matching your lip pencil to the red of your lipstick (or endeavoring to get close), but an easier thing to do is to opt for a neutral beige or brown lipliner that also has some tones mixed in that match your natural lip hue. This makes the same lip pencil more versatile to wear with multiple shades of red as well as other lipsticks and can also make a great "my lips but bolder shade if you wear it on its own.

For more tips regarding lip liner technique, especially in how to use lipliner to avoid the "downturned mouth effect", which can happen when wearing bold colors of lipstick like reds, watch this video by renowned celebrity makeup artist Lisa Eldridge by clicking here.

Blot With Coffee Filters: Blotting down a red lip is a great way to turn a red lip down a few notches to create a stained or flushed effect on the lips. It also is a great way to help meld the color into the skin of the lips for longer wear or to set in multiple coats. However, I don't like to blot with tissues or cotton rounds. These not only blot the color unevenly but also can leave fuzzies on the lips (YIKES!) instead blot with a coffee filter for a cleaner blot, and if the color still smears a bit at the outside corners, the edges can easily be corrected with a tissue.

Go With Neutral or No Blush: This last tip all comes down to personal preference, but a struggle I have with red lips sometimes is choosing a blush that perfectly coordinates with the lipcolor without having the whole of the face looking too red. I have recently discovered brown or beiged tone blushes are great balancers that offer some accent to the cheeks but without detracting from or clashing with the red lip. For more on the topic of neutral blushes, check out my article here. Of course, however, sometimes the best solution is to leave things natural and undone, so I often also wear no blush, highlight, or contour at all when wearing red on the lips. Experiment and see what you like best on yourself!

Whether enlivening Christmas just among your house or going out to celebrate, a red lip is certainly a way to help you look and feel merry and bright. I hope however this article finds you this week, it is well on the way to a joyous Season. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to a;l!