Introduction to Red.

The era of soft glam encourages us to believe it’s all about smooth skin, soft muted gold eyes, and bronzer in the crease. Not making a specific loud statement per se, but everything just looks better and appears cohesive.

As a make-up artist, it’s business versus creativity. Soft glam sells; everyone wants it, but I fear losing makeup’s uniqueness and becoming boring! I want to push you to break free and venture away from the nude glossy lip and the brown lip pencil you have, sis.

Pushing women of colour to the red lip. Red lipstick is a look that suits EVERYONE. All skin tones have a red lip that awakens their complexion, and in time for Autumn-Winter, it’s time to find out which one works for you.

Understandably, women of colour are hesitant about the idea of wearing a lip so bold because of how it has been stigmatised in the media.

So how do we find the perfect red lip? Firstly it’s about discovering your undertone.

Warm/Red and neural gals would enormously benefit from the blue-red. A blue-red is a red lipstick with blue undertones. A notable fave is Ruby Woo and Feel So Grand by MAC, or Stunna lip paint by Fenty. I live! Blue reds can be worn with a dark red lip liner like Date night by Morphe or Nightmoth by MAC. If you’re super hesitant, a brown lipliner will do an excellent job.

Warm-toned Reds: This shade has a fiery but neutral underbelly. This lipstick is excellent for golden skin tones and lots of blush. Blush is a fantastic accessory for this lip shade.

Examples include –

Fashion Legacy and Russian Red by MAC,

The underdog and a great accompaniment to the soft glam look is orange-reds. Orange reds give me that sunset Vibe. Imagine Ibiza in a bullet lipstick package. They wake up cool complexions that tend to look ashy, and you can also dab a little on your fingers and push into your cheeks for that cream blush look (This technique works for POC)!

I love Lady Danger, Charlotte Tilbury K.I.S.S.I.N.G, Smashbox Always On Liquid Lipstick in Thrill Seeker.

My final tip for red lips is the colour corrector. You want to ensure your mouth area does not appear ashy and grey. Apply your orange colour corrector on any obvious discolouration during skin prep under your base makeup, and let the red lip show off your talents.

Red is a beautiful colour, especially against deeper skin tones, the key is finding a red lip that you love and can wear happily. You’ve got this!

Written by Ranti Adeyemi. Find her on Instagram – @rantsmua