Which Red To Wear?

Hi there beauties! Recently, I've read posts from Sarah and Sheri on their picks of a festive red lip and I wanted to join the bandwagon. Here are my picks on some awesome reds from my collection that I or you (if you have them) can wear on Christmas Day. It'll have to be before the feasting starts as there's no hope for me to keep up the appearance post-eat.


At least I'll look good for the present opening photos haha. So vain.

Let's start off with my favourite red right now. Can you guess? My latest purchase is the Napoleon Perdis Mattetastic Lipstick in Veronica (blog post with swatches here). I can't stop talking about this lipstick! A beautiful medium red with a non-drying and long lasting matte finish. The bullet is an oval shape which makes application a little less precise so a lip brush is recommended (and maybe some concealer). Otherwise, I can wear this product all day long!

Napoleon Perdis lipsticks are a little on the pricey side for most people, so here are a couple of affordable brands from the chemist. The first is Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate in 11 which is a creamy deep red with a hint of berry. This is very comfortable on the lips and the lasting power is pretty good. This next lipstick is from an amazing new Australian company called Shanghai Suzy and I'm so happy to see the company get more and more coverage, my hairdresser even stocks it! The shade I have is Miss Hannah Blood Red which is from their first collection so unfortunately you can't purchase this anymore. This a beautiful blue based red with a creamy finish. I find this one to be a little more slippery than the Kate lipstick but it feels awesome on the lips!

For those that prefer more of a gloss, I recently received Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stain in New York Scene in the Spring edition of The Parcel (subscription box from Marie Claire). The gloss has a nice gel like feel with a little stick but not annoyingly sticky. The shine lasts for a couple of hours on me with general wear and leaves behind a lovely light wash of red on the lips. Sometimes the color should be checked in case there's no uniform stain.

Lip crayons have been all the rage this year and of course I had to try a couple... or ten. I have two from Maxfactor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks. Designer Blossom is a sheerer pinky red which is good for those not wanting to sport a bright bold red lip on such a talking and eating filled day. I just ate dinner with this on and the colour stayed put. There is a slight tacky feeling but it's not too noticeable. A more opaque bright red option is Passionate Red and this one has some fine shimmer throughout which is so pretty! These need a pencil sharpener to keep them pointy.

And finally, a lip liner to line the lips in preparation for your festive lip or you can wear this alone for a matte finish or layer a clear gloss on top for some shine. My pick is Rimmel Lasting Finish 1000 Kisses Stay on Lip Contouring Pencil in Red Dynamite. I used this as my red lip for my dance concert because I didn't want my hair to smear a creamy lipstick over my face when I danced. I also applied a little gloss for some shine.

These swatches are pulling a little more berry than in real life for some reason.

• Shanghai Suzy (Miss Hannah unavailable) - RRP $12.95 from Shanghai Suzy
• Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stain - RRP  $25.95 from Priceline (constantly on special)
• Napoleon Perdis Mattetastic - RRP $38 from Napoleon Perdis, David Jones, selected pharmacies
• Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate - RRP $11.95 from Priceline (currently on sale for $8.36)
• Maxfactor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Sticks - RRP $9.95 form Priceline
• Rimmel Lasting Finish Lip Pencil - RRP $8.50 from Priceline (currently on sale for $5.95)

Will you be trying to 'look festive' on Christmas Day?

xxx Kat