Spice up your red lip this Christmas with rusty red and gold pigments to add dimension.   In real life, this looks velvety, almost fabric-like and the gold/rusty red pigments glowed in every direction.  In this simple tutorial, I will show you how to achieve this festive look that will make your lips the talk of the town.

• Prep lips with a moisturising lip balm that has minimal slip.  I used Maybelline Baby Lips in Cherry Velvet (out in January 2012).
• Conceal lips with foundation using a sponge.  I used Face of Australia Mineral Therapy Liquid Foundation in shade Beige.
• Fill your entire lips with a deep red lip pencil using light strokes.  I used Bobbi Brown Lip Pencil in Sangria.
• Fill the outer edges of your lip with a deep red hydrating lipstick using a lip brush.  For added dimension, choose a lip shade that already light shimmers.  I used Bobbi Brown Lip Colour in Jewel Red.
• Optional: Apply a classic red lip shade to the centre of lips for a gradated effect.
• Apply red metallic pigment to the centre of both top and bottom lips & blend well.  I used MAC Glitter Pigment in “Reflects Rust”.
• Press gold glitter to the centre of the bottom lip only & blend.  I used RMK Ingenious Eyes ME-02 (Gold glitter eyeshadow).
• Apply a tiny amount of gold shimmer to the cupids bow to add dimension & create  volume.
• Clean up any uneven edges with a q-tip dipped in eye makeup remover & refine the lip line with either foundation or lip pencil.

* * *

 Wishing you all a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

This will be my last blog post for 2011.
I will resume blogging in February 2012 once I return from my holiday overseas!
Thanks so much for your support towards Beauty Swatch & I hope to see you back next year~

Most people are often surprised at the simplicity of how I approach swatching.

I actually just work with what I have at home –  a shade lamp with cool lighting & a point & shoot camera (Canon IXUS 870IS).  When it comes to Photoshop, I use it mainly to crop, watermark, and adjust lighting / sharpness to bring out the colour to its true shade.   And that’s about it really.

Using keyboard shortcuts (yes I’m nerdy enough to remember them, even on a Mac!) and pre-designed watermark templates is a huge time saver & I stick to 500 pixels most of the time so that my images are evenly displayed on the website.

Here is a video demo of what I usually do with my lip swatches.   I hope you’ll find this video useful in producing swatches for your blog.

And yes, those 2 foreheads belong to me & my husband, from a photograph on our wedding day!

Leave a comment below if there is any other topic you’d like a tutorial on, or a sneak peek in the Beauty Swatch scene!

A few months ago, I met up with MAC’s Australian senior artist Nicole Thompson, and would you believe that we chatted non-stop about lipstick for nearly 2 hours straight!  She taught me a thing or three thousand about MAC’s lipstick range, and showed me her very own tips on how to apply lipstick.

When I told Nicole that I didn’t like wearing concealer underneath lipstick, she shared this ingenious technique with me, and I was so impressed I couldn’t resist sharing it with you too! The MAC products used in this tutorial are exactly the same as she used on me. 

(1) Base: Prep lips with MAC Lip Conditioner, then apply concealer on lips and surrounding lip area.

(2+3) Reverse Definition: To create a precise lip line, dip a cotton tip in MAC’s Pro Eye Makeup Remover and erase the lip concealer on your lips.  When you reach the edge of your lip line, move the cotton tip steadily to erase a precise line between your lip and concealed areas.

(4) Colour from the inside out: For mistake-proof application, try lining your lips from the inside out.  Warm up the pencil on the back of your hand, then start colouring in your lips from the centre, and gradually shade outwards towards your lip line.

(5+6) Define: To create sharp definition for your cupids bow, hold the pencil perpendicular to the angle of your upper lip shape. (ie. when defining the left side of your cupids bow, tilt the pencil leftwards. And vice versa).  Use a cotton tip to fix any mistakes, or sharpen your cupids bow further.

(7+8) Load up the colour: Load up your lip brush with lipstick, and apply an even coat on lips.  Blot and repeat.  This ensures the lipsticks is pressed into your lips.  (Akisa’s Note: Sometimes I like to apply using the lipstick directly, then even out with the lip brush) 

(9) Voila! And there you have it. Red lips that are perfectly defined and enhanced by the natural tone and texture of your lips.

What’s your verdict on wearing concealer on lips?


Products used in this post:

• MAC Lip Pencil – Redd
• MAC Lip Conditioner
• MAC Lipstick – Lady Danger (Matte)
• MAC Pro Eye Makeup Remover
• NP Set Lip Brush
• Utowa NBR Cream Foundation (instead of concealer)*

Products marked with asterisk were purchased by me.  All others listed were sent for consideration.

Watch this video clip from BellaTV to find out how to select and apply the perfect red lipstick this Christmas~

Source: www.bellasugar.com.au

Most lip balms I’ve tried cause your lipstick to slide around, that’s until I came across Lanolips.

This lip ointment “grabs” your lipstick, and transforms your favourite matte lipstick into a soft, watery finish. It’s a softer alternative to gloss if you don’t want that sticky feeling. Also smoothes flaky lips and lines.

Here’s a comparison of Revlon’s Matte Lipstick (Really Red) in 3 versions.

Matte lipstick worn on top of Lanolips 101 Ointment

Matte lipstick worn under a sheer gloss