How To Perfect a Red Pout

Here's How:

1. Prep.

   Smudge on a liberal coat of creamy moisturizer, let it soak in for a few minutes, then buff off with a soft toothbrush (preferably clean and tooth-paste free!).

2. Plump.

   Lip plumpers, which give your lips a temporary "sting," can really make a difference. The $10 drugstore variety will last for an hour, while the $100 makeup counter brands will hold up all evening.

3. Line.

   Choose a shade of lipliner that matches your lipstick exactly and be sure to line inside your actual lip line. Never try to "overline" to boost the size of your pout.

4. Brush.

   Use a lipbrush to apply lipstick. Not only can you control where the color goes (your lips are a coloring book; stay in the lines), but you can control how dark the shade is.

5. Pucker.

   Bypass the embarrassing red teeth fiasco by puckering up around your index finger, then pulling it - and any overzealous lip color - out.

Tips:

1. Prevent the red lipstick from "bleeding" by applying a touch of concealer around the border of your lips.
2. Don't play up your eyes. "Pair red lipstick with the lightest possible eye makeup," says lipstick designer Poppy King. A little mascara and beige shadow will do.
3. Classic red is universally flattering. Pink- and orange-reds look great with olive skin tones, while blue-reds look best on fair-skinned girls.

What You Need

• red lipstick
• matching red lipliner
• lip brush
• concealer