2.28.2014

My Favorite {Red} Nars Lipstick

My Favorite {Red} Nars Lipstick :: Crappy Candle

For a huge portion of my adult life I was convinced that I couldn't wear lipstick. I had spent many of my teen years trying in vain to find a lipstick that would look natural but pretty with my skintone. I wish I could travel back in time and hit my younger self upside the head and say, It's called chapstick, numb nuts.


I've also got an anime mouth*, so I never wanted to draw attention to it. I convinced myself that my eyes were the only viable feature on my face, therefore my makeup collection has always been brimming with Mac eyeshadow. It wasn't until a year and a half ago that I discovered that indeed I could wear red lipstick (HARLOT!) and I would actually like it more than my eye makeup. It makes me feel like a purty lady.

Nars "Cruella" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil | imshayshay.blogspot.comNars "Fire Down Below" Semi-Matte Lipstick | imshayshay.blogspot.comNars "Red Square" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil | imshayshay.blogspot.comNars "Train Bleu" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil | imshayshay.blogspot.com
Lipsticks shown (clockwise from top left): Nars "Cruella" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil, Nars "Fire Down Below" Semi-Matte Lipstick, Nars "Train Bleu" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil, Nars "Red Square" Velvet Matte Lip Pencil

I think my favorite thing about doing a bold lip is that I can wear it with very little other makeup and still feel like I look put together. The matte formulas that Nars makes are even better because they don't make me look like I've been feasting on fried chicken.

Nars Swatches: Train Bleu, Fire Down Below, Red Square, Cruella | imshayshay.blogspot.com

Train Bleu is a very dark, blackberry shade. It requires some upkeep and maybe a hat. Fire Down Below was formulated to be as close to the color of human blood as possible, making it a universally flattering red. I'm not sure if the blood thing was a clever marketing ploy or what, but it hooked me regardless. Red Square may look like a super bright orange-red, but that's only because it IS a super bright orange-red. It's one of my favorites and has the best pigmentation out of all of my lipsticks. If it's good enough for the Grandma from Mars Attacks, it's good enough for me. Finally, Cruella. Cruella was my first fancy red lipstick. It's described as a "scarlet" red which I take to mean it's got pink undertones. It looks lovely as a wash of color, ie dabbed on lightly and topped with chapstick.

Red Nars Lipstick Swatches | imshayshay.blogspot.com

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*An "anime mouth" is the new hip word the kids are using to refer to a very small mouth. Spread it like wildfire.

PS: My skintone is light-to-medium olive so I generally gravitate towards warmer based red lipsticks like brick reds and orange-reds. Cruella was an anomaly, but maybe it's because pink actually looks okay on me (I had no idea!). 

This article is from my "Painting The Blog Red" series. For more red, go HERE.
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1 comment

  1. I just ordered Fire Down Below. So excited to try it!

    Lisa
    lisawoodbeauty.com

    ReplyDelete

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