A Different shade of red – choosing a red lipstick that’s right for you

Let’s put the serious stuff aside for a moment ladies and have a chat about one of the most popular and fun products in your cosmetics drawer, your prized red lipstick.

Every girl’s experimented with a bit of rouge in her lifetime, but more often than not, it can be a challenge to select a shade that compliments you well. But don’t worry, that’s why I’m here to help you choose a shade of red that’s just right for you.

Red lipstick: a history

So, I thought to start of by telling you a little bit about the history of red lipstick and why this popular colour continues to remain current whatever the era!

Red lipstick has been a prime makeup tool for thousands of years, starting with the ancient Mesopotamians and Egyptians, who crushed up ants and other natural materials to create a reddish paste they’d put on their lips. It’s a global trend, having been worn by the ancient Chinese and also by Japanese geishas, and has seen its fair share of ups and downs, from being an indicator of status during the Roman Empire, to being the sign of a prostitute in ancient Greece (blimey!). It’s been banned, glorified and promoted by powerful leading women including Elizabeth I, Liz Taylor and Marilyn Monroe, and our own current queen even had her own signature shade created exclusively for her. Clearly, red lipstick is a thing of legend and that’s why we continue to love it.

Picking your perfect shade

Now for the science part! When it comes to picking the right shade, there are a few things you need to consider:

The right shade has a lot to do with your skin’s undertone, so the best thing to do is to determine your own. The easiest way to figure out your skin’s undertone is with either a veins, jewellery or colour test.

Veins test:

Blue veins = cool undertones

This means you should choose blue-red lipsticks. Why not try “Russian Red” by Mac

Green veins = warm undertones

This means you should opt for warmer lipsticks with orange and yellow bases. Mac “Dangerous”or “Lady Danger” is a good example.

A bit of both? Lucky girl. Your skin is neutral, which means either end of the red spectrum will look perfect on you.

Jewellery test:

This is a slightly easier test to do to figure out your undertone. Simply hold a silver and then a gold piece of jewellery to your skin. If silver looks best, then you’re a cool undertones kind of girl, which means blue-reds again, but if gold looks best, well, then you’re more on the warm undertones side and should stick to orange and yellow based lipsticks.

Clothes colour test:

Lastly, there’s the complimentary colours test you can take to determine your undertone. Ever wonder why certain colours look better on you than others? This has a lot to do with your undertones again. If you tend to stick to wearing cool blues and bottle greens, then you have a cool undertone, whereas if bold reds and bright oranges are for you, then you’re definitely looking at warm undertones.

There you have it ladies. I hope this post has been both insightful and helpful. I look forward to seeing how you get along with selecting your own perfect shade of red by tagging your Instagram posts with #makeupbymirna.

Enjoy!