Get Lippy for Your Valentine

So...Valentine's Day is almost here.  Yikes.  that means my birthday is almost here too!  Do you have plans yet for Valentine's Day (or should I say Valentine's Night?!)?  I do!  You're going to be sooo jealous when I tell you this, but my Valentine's Day plan includes working late.  Boy, do I know how to live or what?

My husband and I have been together forever, so we don't make special plans on Valentine's.  I guess we fall into the "I don't need Hallmark to tell me when to love my partner" camp.  But still, I get that it's a fun "holiday" and that special plans can make it all the more exciting. 

I received the tips below from makeup artist Jemma Kid.  Here is her advice to getting an enviable, romantic red pout, just in time for Valentine's Day.

Application:
- No lipstick looks good on chapped lips and some matte lipsticks dry lips even more. Keep lips smooth and moisturized with a balm containing natural oils, such as beeswax, and SPF. If you have chapped lips, apply balm and after a few minutes massage gently with a soft toothbrush or muslin cloth.

- Dab foundation around the lip are and over the lip itself. It will tone down any redness and ensures the line of the lips will be sharp and defined.

- Use a matching waxy lipliner to prevent any bleed around the lips. Spend time drawing the outline, making sure the lips are completely symmetrical and the bow is even. An uneven top lip shows up with red lipstick more than any other color. Start at the V of the Cupid’s bow and take the liner right into the corners.

- Fill in the lip with the pencil to hold the lipstick in place and make it last longer. Go over the pencil color with a lip brush, working it into any creases.

- Paint on the lipstick using a lip brush for precision, starting in one corner and working inward. Use the tip of the brush for the edges and the flat of the brush for larger areas. Blot with a tissue and apply another coat.

- Add a dab of gloss in a clear or slightly lighter shade at the center of the lower lip and press your lips together. High-shine glossy lips create instant glamour, make the lips look fuller, and draw attention to your mouth-a luscious evening look.

Attitude:
- Red lips spell grown-up glamour and should be worn with confidence.

- Hair color is irrelevant when choosing the right shade of red – it’s skin tone that counts. Pink tones are best suited to cooler “blue reds,” while darker, Mediterranean, and Asian skins are better suited to “orange reds.”

- Deep, plumy reds look fantastic on dark skin, cool blue-based reds suit pink-toned and pale skin, while orange-based reds are less draining on a warmer complexion (but make sure it doesn’t accentuate any redness in your cheeks).

- Red lips will be the focus, so keep the rest of your make-up minimal.

- A red-tinted lipgloss will give a more subtle effect.

- Try not to touch your mouth so you don’t risk smudging the lipstick. Matte finishes are more resistant to smudging than gloss.

Jemma says: “Lip color is one of the most fun and accessible areas of make-up, and also one of the most noticeable. From pretty and natural through classic and sophisticated to glamorous and vampish, how we make up our lips can change our mood in an instant”