Corinna B December 19, 2016

How To Apply The Perfect Red Lip

Have you been to Barnes and Noble and picked up a copy of Luca Magazine yet?
I have an article in this issue (just in time for all your holiday parties) that is all about how to apply the perfect red lip.

All images in this post were photographed by Kelly Cappelli,
Hair by Lisa Marie, Makeup by Corinna Cooke

HOW TO APPLY THE PERFECT RED LIP

Nothing says “hello, gorgeous,” quite like a sensational, bold red lip!

Red lips are the perfect accessory for winter. They’re fun and flirty! Once the new year arrives with its bleak, dull, gray days, and spring feels like it’s never going to get here, a feisty red lip adds excitement to your look and your day.

Red lips make such a statement; you barely need anything else. They look fantastic with a pared down makeup look for day, then add a cat eye and structured brow for night. They dress up jeans and a white shirt, compliment an all black ensemble, and pair up perfectly with a party dress and faux fur.

Check out these 5 steps to perfect your pout and wow the world!

1. Exfoliate

Dry, flaky lips don’t look good in red. To pull off a red lip, you need to have silky smooth lips, so the first step is to exfoliate. You can use a store bought lip exfoliator, or you can make one at home. A super soft baby toothbrush makes a perfect lip exfoliator, as does a warm washcloth. Just remember to be very, very gentle. If you rough your lips up, they’ll still look dry and flaky.

2. Hydrate

After exfoliating, and ideally, a couple of hours before you get ready to go out, apply liberal amounts of lip balm, and let your kisser soak it in. Your lips need to be nicely hydrated so that your red lipstick looks smooth and luscious. Before applying your lip liner, you’ll gently blot the lip balm away.

3. Line Your Lip

Red lipstick needs to know its boundaries, and you want to color inside the lines. Use either the lip liner that matches your lipstick or one that’s a shade or two darker, (for a little extra dimension), to give your lip a perfect, crisp outline.

4. Stain and Apply

The perfect red lip has more than one layer. Apply your red lipstick, then blot with a folded tissue to help set the first coat into a stain. This step is super important because it stops your lips from looking patchy as the top coat wears off! Now apply a second coat, making sure to stay inside the lines.

5. Get Precise

Run the edge of a lip brush through your lip liner, making it disappear into your lipstick while giving your lip a crisp, fresh edge.

My Favorite Red Lipsticks

In this story I use Infared Matte from Smashbox

I’m all kinds of crazy for Charlotte Tilbury Red Carpet Red

One of the greatest blue based reds ever made is MAC Ruby Woo

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Corinna B December 12, 2016

The Most Searched Lipstick Shade Of 2016

Do you follow The Zoe Report?
I get it in my inbox every day, I follow The Zoe Report on Instagram, and at the beginning of each season I receive the Rachel Zoe Box Of Style.

I recently read this article written by Andrea Navarro on The Zoe Report, and thought it was fabulous.

Red has long been the reigning lipstick color in the beauty world—it has the uncanny ability to take nearly any makeup look from plain Jane to bombshell status in an instant. However this year, a new shade has given the classic rouge a run for its money. According to an annual report conducted by Polyvore, searches for nude lipstick skyrocketed by 553%, making it the most searched color this year. This trend could mean that consumers are opting for more toned-down beauty looks, as nude hues are meant to resemble one’s natural lip color. To honor the newly crowned lipstick shade, we’ve compiled some of our favorite nudes for you to shop now.

image via @bitebeauty

Amuse Bouche Lipstick in Hineycomb $32

Liquid Lipstick In Ashton, Anastasia Beverly Hills, $20

Yves Saint Laurent Pur Couture Lipstick In Beige Ingenue, $37

Be Legendary Lipstick in Famous, $21

Giorgio Armani Lipstick in 202, $37

Stay All Day Matte’ificent Lipstick in Palais, $22

Sinner Lipstick in Bare Nude, Lipstick Queen $24

Charlotte Tilbury K.I.S.S.I.N.G. Lipstick in Hepburn Honey, $32

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Corinna B December 7, 2016

Jessica Chastain’s Incredible Lips In Miss Sloane

Jessica Chastain just made every lipstick you own irrelevant.

This weekend Chastain’s new film, Miss Sloane, opens nationwide.
Her Oscar worthy performance will keep you on the edge of your seat as the movie twists and turns and ducks and feints.
Miss Sloane is all intelligent dialogue, rich, delicious dialogue that happens at a wickedly fast clip, with Chastain delivering a verbal armageddon at a mile a minute.

When dialogue is so important to a film, the mouth delivering this dialogue is crucially important. Jessica Chastain’s mouth in this film is mesmerizing. You can’t take your eyes off it.

Chastain’ dialogue is delivered through a compelling, mesmerizing vermillion lip.

Elizabeth Sloane is a feminine, fashion forward D.C lobbyist who’s power is locked up in a vermillion lip that reminds us at all times that she is in charge, at all times. It tells us that she will not be falling into any traditional traps, that she is a step ahead of the opposition. It tells us that she is not frivolous and she is not to be trifled with.

A true red would perhaps be an obvious choice for a woman in power, but true reds can add an element of sexuality to a woman, perhaps giving her an implied availablity to men. Perhaps a challenge to men, but ultimately a traditional red lip would let men sexualize her as opposed to fear her.

And this is where the genius lies. The vermillion lip combines power with blood sport. At first glance you know that she would tear an opponent to pieces and walk away with no remorse.

It’s fantastic.