How to Wear Red

Red is a bold and sexy color. It is said that red was the first color perceived by man. Thus, red lipstick is not only bold and sexy, but a sure way to grab a guy's attention. And like mascara, it too is a woman's rite of passage.

Wearing red can be a tricky task. The wrong red can have you looking more like Bozo the Clown then they beauty that you truly are. And let's not forget the all too familiar "red on the teeth" or the "bleeding red" mouth. Such beauty faux pas.


I've enlisted the help of A-list make-up artist Sole Alberti (who has painted the faces of Mena Suvari, Jaime Pressley, and Nicole Richie... not to mention the entire cast of my film, I Heart Veronica Martin) to give us her tips on choosing and wearing the perfect red...

"Red lips look great on any kind of skin tone, from Julianne Moore’s fair skin to Penelope Cruz’s medium skin tone to Halle Berry’s dark complexion," says Alberti. "But there are a couple of reds that can work for all skin tones. They are strong, brilliant and bright." (top left, the ultimate red-lipped vixen, Marilyn Monroe)

Sole's Picks:
MAC Matte Russian Red (a favorite of mine as well), Revlon Color Stay in Rouge, Revlon #315 and Josie Maran in Devious.




How to Apply:
First exfoliate lips with a warm towel to get rid of dead skin (or try Beauty Banter's favorite lip exfoliator, Sara Happ's The Lip Scrub)
Next, apply concealer around the mouth area and powder it as well to prevent the lipstick from bleeding. Sole's pick: MAC
Line the lips and fill them in with a red liner, which gives it staying power. Sole suggests using MAC's Brick lip pencil or Cici's Red Plum.
Finally, apply the lipstick.
Sole says, "If you want to be really glam, add a coat of lipgloss like the MAC LipGlass."

Remember, red is a night-long commitment. So, it's imperative that you do mirror-checks often. An old red-carpet trick to keeping the lippy on your lips and off your teeth... VASELINE. Coat your teeth with a sheer layer of vaseline and the lippy will slide right off (not stick around for unwanted attention)!

Sole adds, "When you're wearing red, make sure that your lips are the focus and you do minimal make up on the eyes. It may take several steps to get it just right but it’s guaranteed that you will have heads turning left and right with those perfectly desirable kissable lips. Rock the red lips and feel the love!"

Tell us, what's your rocking red color of choice?