Red lipstick can be intimidating to a gal who is used to soft pinks and clear gloss. But, if you follow these simple dos and don'ts, you'll be able to pull off the look and rock kissable, candy lips all night long!
Click any of these photos to enlarge and see the makeup in detail.
1. Don’t: Wear red lipstick with a neon or fluorescent color dress.
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Miranda Cosgrove made the mistake of pairing red lipstick with a hot pink dress. The results were blinding. Matte and fluorescent are two brights that don’t make a right, and you don’t want to end up hurting your friends' eyes on the dance floor.
2. Do: Pair red lipstick with bold colors.
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Blues, golds, or a red that's the exact hue of your lip color all compliment matte red lips nicely. Stay away from green, unless you're going for the Mrs. Claus look. Red lipstick also works well with black dresses.
3. Do: Pair red lipstick with soft, neutral colors.
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Pale yellow, light pinks, beige and white all work with red lipstick. Here, Taylor Swift uses a red that's slightly orange to compliment her peach dress.
4. Don’t: Play up your eyes.
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Heavy eyes and lips will make you look overdone & clowny, like this photo of Ashley Tisdale. Her bottom lids are lined way too heavily with black eyeliner. Remember that red will draw all the attention to your lips, and you don't want your eyes fighting with your lips: people won't know where to look!
5. Do: Soften your eye makeup.
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Stick with black or brown mascara and light-colored eyeshadow. Here, Taylor uses black mascara and gold eyeshadow. If you must use black eyeliner, use it very, very lightly and only on the top lids. Better yet, swap the black eyeliner for brown.
6. Do: Experiment with different shades of red.
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If you're not down with bright red, try other shades like rose, orange-red or deep red. Try mixing or layering different shades to create a custom color that no one else has.
