Get the Look: A Bold Red Lip With Dior

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve put a makeup look on here. Partly because I’m guilty of being that girl that watches endless tutorials on youtube…and then reaches for the same three shades of brown every day, and partly because I don’t really consider myself to be that good at doing makeup. I like to use makeup to enhance my face, but when it comes to doing anything spectacular (well, if you consider winged eyeliner or applying false eyelashes to be spectacular) I’m not really that good, or it takes me a ridiculously long amount of time to do those things.

For someone like myself, achieving a bold makeup look with minimal skill and effort can be difficult, BUT it isn’t impossible people. Personally, I find that when it comes to enhancing the key features of my face, I have a choice between eyes and lips. I mean, I could go all out and go crazy on both, but in doing so I run the risk of looking like Pennywise’s long lost sister, so I think I’ll play it safe for now. The point I’m making here is, an easy way to achieve a statement look is to focus on one of these key features: the lips.

As you will know from my giveaway post, I was recently lucky enough to be sent a gorgeous box of goodies from none other than Dior! This box was sent to me in celebration of their iconic Rouge 999 lipstick, which I received in both liquid and lipstick form! I am usually somewhat terrified of wearing red lipstick because I just don’t know how much it suits me, as it’s something I don’t wear on a daily basis. However, I really wanted to give the products I was sent a try and see what I could create!

So I started by using the Rimmel radiance primer that I recently purchased as I was interested to see how it performed. I found it was a really nice, light texture that dried quickly on the skin and gave it a subtle glow!

Next was foundation. Dior also sent me one of their Forever foundations in my box which was lovely. I chose the shade 2CR (cool rosy) and opted for the matte finish because I usually always get dewy and was really interested to see how a matte performed with my skin! I must admit, I think I should have got a slightly lighter shade as it does oxidise slightly, so sometimes in certain lights, it looks like my face doesn’t match my neck. However, it’s nothing too drastic, and I think light can often be deceiving so I still love it!

The foundation applies really nicely, as a matte finish, I was worried that it would be difficult to blend compared to my usual thinner formulas. But the consistency still applies very well. I apply it in dots around my face using my finger and then blend it out with a brush because I think this method works best for me, and unlike a beauty blender, it doesn’t absorb too much product during application! Due to its matte formula, I only apply a very light dusting of powder after concealing just to set the foundation into my skin.

As I said, I like to choose between eyes and lips, so I wanted to keep my eyeshadow simple for this look. Now I know I said I’m guilty of doing the whole ‘same three shades of brown’ thing, but I guess this isn’t always a bad thing. I mean why change a winning formula? So for my eyes I began with a light brown for a base shade, then followed it up with a darker brown in the crease, which I blended out with a fluffy brush.

I then went back over the lighter shade with a lovely light and shimmery brown, nothing too OTT, but enough to give my eyes a little glow. This is one of my favourite eye looks for when I’m doing a bolder lip because I think it looks so light and fresh, but still looks like you’ve made an effort!

I finish off my base with my usual bronze, blush and highlight routine, if you would like to see that in more detail then then click here to watch my IGTV on instagram!

Finally, it’s time for the lips! So, I don’t have tiny lips, nor do I have particularly big ones, so it’s important to optimise what I have when applying loud lip colours. My number one rule when doing this is to use lip liner. I would happily apply a gloss or a lighter colour without any liner on, but when it comes to brighter colours, it’s an essential. 

So I start by making sure that my lips are exfoliated and moisturised, then I begin to trace the outline with a liner. It’s usually best to match the lipstick colour with the liner, but I find using a darkish brown liner works pretty well with a few different shades of lipstick!

I begin in the middle at the cupids bow, then work my way outwards, finishing off with the bottom lip line. The trick I’ve found with this is to avoid temptation to overline the lips. I think you can get away with this when using lighter / nude or brown shades, but with a colour as bold as red, the overlining just results in that whole ‘Pennywise’s sister’ look that I was trying to avoid. Lining your lips will already make the outline seem bolder and bigger, so don’t be tempted to go crazy with it!

I used the liquid lipstick to create this looks because I find it so easy to apply. The formula is super light on the lips, to the point where it hardly feels like I’m wearing anything at all! I love the smell of it and the heart shaped wand makes it easy to follow the shape of your lips! I begin with the bottom lip and use the excess to press colour onto my top one- a little bit of product goes a long way. Other than that I just try my best to make sure I apply neatly within the lines of my lips, this can be a little difficult and take some time but patience is key. Once applied, I pat a tissue between my lips to get the excess and that’s it!

I was initially scared that I wouldn’t like this shade of lipstick on me, as someone who usually always opts for lighter browns and pinks, but I think I’m kinda loving it? A red lip is such a classic look that works for lots of different occasions, especially during the winter months! I also think that red lipstick compliments darker haired girls like myself so I feel like this could definitely become my new friend.

The only criticism I have of this lovely liquid lipstick is that, like many other reds, it does tend to transfer more than other lipsticks I have, so this is something to be aware of when you’re wearing it. But other than that, I love it!

As for the foundation, I think it has a really flawless finish and it isn’t overly matte and drying like I was worried it would be. It’s 100% buildable although I find that the coverage is really good anyway. It also feels weightless on the skin like the lipstick, it hardly feels like I’m wearing anything! Combined with the primer, it gives a lovely, long lasting finish that still allows for that ‘glowy’ look, without product sliding off your face by the end of the day. Looks like a win-win situation to me!

What did you think of the look I created? Do I suit red lipstick? What’s your number one go-to lippy shade? Let me know in the comments below!

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