It’s really a matter of finding the right color with the right texture to go best with your skin tone and look.

 

The texture of a lipstick shade ranges from matte to shine, crème and satin. Matte gives a non-shiny, muted quality to the color, while shine is all about giving gloss to your lip.

 

Crème lip shades are rich and smooth, with moisturizing features; satin lip shades also have moistening qualities, with less color intensity.

 

To find the right red, try and try until you succeed. Experience all manner of shades to see which one is flattering.

 

There is an infinite variety of red to choose from, from orange reds to deep reds, purple reds, blue reds and pinkish reds.

 

For ‘morena’ beauties

 

For olive skin with yellow undertones, an orangey red works best, as it will pop out and brighten your features. For this color, check out MAC Lady Danger, the Incandescente by Chanel Rouge Allure, and the Rouge d’Armani Lipstick in 401. These lipstick shades are very intense, with a vivid bright coral red, and their warmth complements morena complexion very well.

 

Likewise, the Nars Heat Wave semi-matte lipstick and the Red Square Velvet Matte Lip Pencil work well with olive skin. Nars Lip Pencils are quite convenient, allowing you to achieve perfect lips instantly without having to use a lip brush.

 

For a darker skin tone, wine and brown-based reds work well, and for this we recommend the MAC Chilli, a brownish orange red matte shade.

 

For fair skin with pink undertones, bluish reds like Nars’ Scarlet Empress, Tom Ford’s Cherry Lush and Mac’s Ruby Woo are top-of-mind options.

 

A darker version of Mac’s Ruby Woo is Mac’s Viva Glam 1, a matte blue red shade with an intense brown. This works for my morena-colored skin, and I opt for a bluish-red lip color on days where I want some drama.

 

For pale skin

 

A bluish-red shade can look stunning on a cool pale skin tone, but can work quite well with a yellow or a sallow skin tone as well. The good thing about the blue undertone of a very rich red shade is that it cancels out yellow undertones in your skin, instantly brightening your face up. In the same way, it also cancels the yellow hue on your teeth.

 

For sallow skin, a pink red would work best, such as Maybelline Non-Stop Red. If you have a hard time finding a good pink red, make your own homegrown tint by mixing pink and red lipstick.

 

There are lipsticks that go perfectly well with any skin tone. Our personal favorites include MAC’s Russian Red, Chanel’s Rouge Allure Passion, Nars’ Red Lizard, Chanel’s Rouge Allure Lover and Revlon’s Fire and Ice, the last originally launched in 1952. This tomato red crème shade can look quite neon, and looks a different red on every skin tone.

 

If a rich red frightens you, you can start off slowly with a sheer texture. This is easier to wear as the color is less intense. Another lightweight option is Fireworks by Dior Addict Extreme.

 

Tips

 

Some tips for wearing red lipstick:

 

1. First, you need to prep your lips. Hydrate and moisturize them well. Find a good lip balm.

 

2. Exfoliate with a Q-tip to remove excess skin.

 

3. Apply concealer on your lips.

 

4. Define your lips with a lip liner.

 

5. Fill your lips with lipstick using a lip brush (A lip brush can make the lip color last longer, but if you don’t have a lip brush, you can apply direct from the tube).

 

6. Customize the shade to add definition (play around with different hues to achieve a personalized lip shade).

 

7. Clean up the edges by lightly dabbing powder around your lips.

 

8. Place gloss if you want some shine.

 

9. Lastly, wear your lip shade with confidence and flair.