Oxblood Lip – 5 Tips for Rocking It this Winter

Oxblood rose to fame in the fall of 2012 and has been gaining popularity ever since. In case you are thinking that Oxblood has anything to do with the the pagan practices, it is not. It is a colour. It is an intriguing shade of deep red. Maroon but not quite,with a bit of purple and a teasing hint of black. That is how I see it. This is me sporting an Oxblood lip.

I had thought that sporting oxblood lips would be very difficult but it was not. Here are few things that worked for me –

5 Tips for Rocking Oxblood Lips this Winter

1. Flawless Base – I know , know what you are going to say. This is done to death! Yes, but there is a reason for it. Any redness on your face will be accentuated if you wear red tones on your lips. So get your base right. A flawless base will divert attention to your lip colour and not to bumps and spots.
2. Go Matte – Personally, I find Matte much better looking than glossy. While sporting a dark, statement lip, glossy can look over the top. A matte lip tones down the impact. Unless you are at an event that demands over the top, a matte oxblood lip would be much more appropriate. The pictures above are from when I was at my daughter’s school event and later we went for a drive along the sea. A matte lip suited the occasion perfectly.
3. Perfect Application – Crooked lines or uneven application will look sloppy. It will completely ruin the impact of your look. What I did was to get a lip pencil instead of a lipstick. Lip pencils are easier to control and give you a better application than a lipstick. It is easy to line and fill your lips with it. You can top it off with another oxblood lipstick if necessary. Try to find a product that has full bodied colour else it does not make a statement. A transparent colour will not bring out the full effect of the gorgeous oxblood colour. Unevenly fading oxblood lips can look very very bad indeed. Invest in a long lasting colour. One careful application and you can forget about touch ups!
4. Casual Look – Avoid choosing a very formal look while wearing oxblood lips. Tightly pulled back hair for example will look very severe and can age you as well. trust me, I learnt it the hard way.
5. Match your outfit – Ensure that your outfit is devoid of oxblood. You can wear clothes that have shades of maroon or dark pink. I found it went well with outfits that had a light coloured top. If your outfit has a dark top, the whole look gets too dark. A balancing act is necessary here. If you look at the picture of my outfit, I have paired maroon palazzo pants with a cream tee that has pink and maroon tones.

Have you tried oxblood lipsticks? What has worked for you? Would you like to see more of such ‘How To?’ posts on the blog? Do let me know. I have tried a few like in the past and quite enjoy them!