Beauty brains/the manual

The power of red lipstick and battling unwanted shine

Afraid of red lipstick? Read on…

It is my opinion that every woman should own one red lipstick, one classic nude and one on-season shade. With these three hues you can cover pretty much every occasion from work to weekends and cocktails. Yet I have always found red tricky, despite an admiration for the red-lipped. Carolyn Bessette Kennedy was my red-lipstick icon: she wore it nonchalantly with a bare face and scraped back hair. But no matter how hard I tried to emulate her insouciance, on me red has always felt too conspicuous, too sultry.

I know I’m not alone – finding the right red is full of challenges. Too warm and your teeth look yellow, too cool and you look hungover. A matt texture can be drying, but an overly creamy one will transfer on to your coffee cup – or worse, your teeth. While I think nothing of wearing a bright coral or fuchsia, red has long remained my Achilles heel – until I discovered Hermès’s debut make-up line, launching next week with a range of 24 luxury refillable lipsticks.

I plucked up the courage to select Rouge Amazone, a neutral-toned red. The make-up artist tasked with applying it primed the inside of my lips with a clear moisturising balm before artfully painting on the colour with a posh lip brush, which left behind a thin, elegant coat of scarlet with no need for liner. I knew I’d found my match, and just like that, I went from fearing red to confidently wearing it during the day with little more than dewy, moisturised skin and a little concealer. I urge you to try it too – just don’t forget your lip brush.