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Striking red lips, a beauty trend spotted on the 2024-25 fall-winter fashion runways, recently made a mark on another international stage: the Paris Olympic Games. The unmissable shade worn by Canadian bronze-winning pole vaulter Alysha Newman and Ilona Maher, the U.S. bronze medalist rugby star, has now been locked into sports history along with their respective athletic feats.
The hue has stood the test of time, featuring in the signature looks of icons such as Marilyn Monroe, Frida Kahlo and Tina Turner. More recently, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift has chosen it on multiple stops of her global Eras Tour, showcasing once again how a simple swipe can have a transformative effect.
“Red captures attention more than other colours,” says Nick Rule, professor of psychology at the University of Toronto. “Brighter colours should be more visually and physiologically stimulating. [Some]one may choose to wear bold colours to express their own feeling of enthusiasm or to elicit an energetic response from others.”
Bestselling author and Instagram personality Lori Dyan is a convert, having made the discovery during the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s when she was forced to stop dyeing her hair brown after 25 years and embraced her natural silver locks. “With this new hair I needed a bolder lip and realized red was the perfect colour. The plums and mauves of my former life weren’t cutting it any more!” she says, noting Revlon’s Super Lustrous lipstick in Love That Red as one of her confidence-boosting staples.
To find the most complimentary red for your complexion, consider your undertone rather than your skin tone, says Temi Shobowale, a professional makeup artist and founder of the Unity in Beauty Club at Soho House Toronto. “I always go by the colour of someone’s veins on the inside of their elbow or wrist,” she says.
If your veins appear green or olive, that indicates a warm undertone. Try warm reds, such as orange or coral red hues. Blue or purple veins mean you have a cool undertone and are better suited to cool red shades that have a hint of blue or purple, such as cherry or raspberry. If your veins appear to have a mix of tones, or it’s hard to determine a clear standout, you likely have a neutral undertone. In this case, both cool and warm reds will look good on you, says Shobowale.
A fan of transfer-proof liquid formulas, Shobowale prioritizes prep work before applying any red lip colour for a flawless result. “Use a lip scrub followed by moisturizing with a lightweight lip balm,” she says. Next, line lips with a red pencil. “Start at the cupid’s bow to accentuate the point and trace the lip line outwards, then line the bottom lip from the outer corners to the middle,” she says. Blending the liner into the centre of the mouth with a small brush before adding the lip colour is also key, says Shobowale, to avoid a look that’s overly structured.
To boost the staying power of cream lipstick, try building up two to three thin layers, applying a dusting of translucent power and blotting with a tissue in between colour application. “Your lips might need a small touch up, but if you do that, the colour will stay on through anything you eat or drink,” she explains. Lately, the pro has been on a high-shine kick. “A red lip is a classic accessory,” says Shobowale. “A dab of clear gloss on top, and placed just in the centre of the mouth, amplifies it beautifully.”
Six buys to try
Be it a classic satin lipstick or a trendy high-shine balm, there’s plenty of ways to rock a red lip.
(left) Try this creamy satin-finish formula moulded with a precision-tip bullet that can contour with ease – and is also refillable. Nars Explicit lipstick in 862 Incendiary, $54, narscosmetics.ca.
(centre) A blend of apricot kernel, raspberry and rosehip oils help to nourish lips while delivering a sheer ruby shade. Tower 28 Beauty ShineOn Lip Jelly non-sticky gloss in Spicy, $22, sephora.com.
(right) Packaged in a luxe and chic tube, this deep-red hue provides a velvety texture, long-lasting matte finish and a soft floral-fruit scent. Gucci 509 Rosso Ancora Rouge à Lèvres matte lipstick, $61, gucci.com.
(left) Transfer-proof and cherry red, this lightweight liquid lipstick sets to a matte finish while conditioning with coconut oil, and vitamins C and E. Annabelle Bigshow Hydramatte liquid lipstick in 08 Love, $11, amazon.ca.
(centre) Intense pigments blended with hyaluronic acid (a well-known hydrator) create a powdery matte finish of smudge-proof colour that also has a plumping effect. L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Intense Volume matte lipstick in 193 Le Rouge Determination, $20, Shoppers Drug Mart.
(right) A blue-red with buildable opacity (in other words, apply in layers to strike the look you want) that provides intense shine and is infused with vitamin E and shea butter for moisturizing that lasts up to eight hours. Fenty Beauty by Rhianna Gloss Balm Stix high-shine gloss stick in The MVP, $34, sephora.com.