Bloggers without makeup: a #redmylips wrap up
So today (or yesterday, it’s quite hard to tell) is/was No Make Up Day on the internet.
I support this — strange as that may sound. Make up is really hard work, and I think it’s dangerous to normalise our made-up faces as compared to the ones that we wake up with. Normalising make up places lots of pressure on women — to spend money on make up, to learn ‘how to do it right’ and to look a certain way.
Having said all that, I love make up. I love the fact that it’s application is a real, tangible, get-your-hands-dirty skill I’ve acquired and honed over the years. I love it’s predictability — with a certain swipe of a certain produce in a certain direction, you can look exactly the way you did at your sister’s birthday four years ago. Also, there are lots of pretty colours, which is a big plus for the four year old inside me.
So, I’ve had a lot of fun this month. The beauty of red lipstick is how incredibly stylised it is — you don’t look at lips like the one’s we’ve seen this month and confuse them for “au naturel”, in the same way you might mascara-enhanced eyelashes or some light foundation. Red lipstick has it’s failings — (we’ve documented plenty of them) — but deception is not one of them.
It does, nonetheless, make people treat you differently. Conclusions from the #redmylips experiment
- boyfriends/husbands are generally not pro (especially if it’s coming off while kissing)
- you can get out of tram fines (potentially)
- sick mummas might need some
- everyone at work will comment
Anyway, that’s it for me. It’s been real #redmylips ladies. Red wine appreciation is on the agenda, I hear?
Super big kudos to @capnguinness for the idea and my muse and mate Leah, who was rocking some fierce red lipstick way back in Year 10 (but is much too cool for Twitter).
I have emptied my hand bag of all crimson shades and have opted for
lighter hues. My reason mainly lies in the mania that ensues when my
lips are painted red.
My red lips were very quick to speak, they encouraged me to display my
musical ability (or lack of) in front of Jazz musicians, I danced
more, drank more, turned more heads, free things fell into my lap and
I developed a serious cherry ripe addiction.
I have depicted some of the highlights of my month wearing red in a graph (see above).
Since making the switch to pink the mania has reached a plateau. I
think I have answered my original question of “will red lips make me
classier”. One more question remains — will I don my red lippie once
more and crash the #redmylips debrief at the Toff on Friday?
@embws
My poor mama has been in hospital for over two weeks, after some routine surgery developed into a bunch of nasty infections. On Mothers Day we were given permission to take her out for dinner at a crappy little Italian restaurant across the road from the hospital.
She had to be wheeled in a wheelchair, with a hospital blanket around her knees like an old lady, but she demanded that she change into a dressy top and nice pants after only wearing baggy t-shirts and trackies. Once we were sitting in the restaurant, she also demanded I put some lippie on her. More than happy to oblige!
I had a variety to pick from and went the Mac Red, since it matched her top the best. It’s not very easy to apply lipstick to a woman sitting in a wheelchair, but I did my best. My older sister then demanded that I put it on her as well. Of course we all ate dinner and it came off immediately, but the lippie definitely put a bit of much needed colour back on my mum’s face. I think it has healing powers.
P.S This is Liz Taylor, not my mum (um, obvs). But she can sure rock the whole dressing up with red lippie in a wheelchair thing. I bow down.
- Amber aka @ambiej
Dropping the Ball
I have no photos! None! Why? Cause I’ve dropped the ball. Red lipstick, it turns out, is much too hard to remember to wear every morning and looks silly with bike clothes. That and it’s been quite a mental week — I had loads of screen time to attend to: Logies liveblogs, Masterchef, C-Dev scandal and of course the UK elections. Plus you know, three days of a desk job and a lot of study. Screentime = no need for lipstick.
Next week is my last week of the challenge. There will be photos. And hopefully, there will be hilarious stories.
@bhakthi
Day #17 WHERE THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU?
In the interests of transparency I did a twitter call out to the ladies of #redmylips yesterday:
Am I all alone? Photographic evidence #redmylips ladies! I want to see your glossy kisses!!
Here is my picture:
This is what I got in response from @embws, @ambiej and @TagAlongTess (who, I’d like to point out, is not even supposed to be doing #redmylips):
And then… I tweeted again, with mentions to the remaining participants.
@bhakthi @sophblack @michaelamcguire okay ladies, pucker up for the camera #redmylips
No response. What does this say?
@elerimai
UPDATE: More #redmylips love from @ebony_bennett
“I’ve definitely been inspired by the #redmylips blog - wore lippie all weekend and trial-clicked a few signature Chanel sticks at Myer. But, as my mouth takes up two-thirds of my head, the red really doesn’t suit me unless I’m going for drunk clown/quenched vampire look. I do have a hickie on my chin as a result though. “
Friend of @embws
Day #16: Although from Canberra I can’t physically check up on the other #redmylips ladies, I’m certain they are all pathetic pikers. I am alone in my greasy red world.
Day #15
One of my best friends (a man) posted this picture on my facebook wall:
“Thought of you” he said.
I am not sure which is worse, the implied blowjob or the fact that this vixon made him think about me, given that we’ve had an entirely platonic relationship for 14 years now.
What DOES he mean?
@elerimai
One day I would be a young girl, allowed finally to wear her first lipstick; the next, I would be married.
Confessions of a pink lipstick convert
Days #12, #13 & #14
I’m sorry. I’d reached the end of my red lipped tether. The stains are to blame mostly, but I admit it… I gave in! I couldn’t do it anymore! I couldn’t bear the red smudges and the horrible rivers of bleeding scarlet wax! The gross mess left in my boyfriend’s beard when I kissed him made me blush.
IT WAS A LONG WEEKEND!!!!
In a pink fit I changed the colour of my lips to Max Factor’s “Ruby Shimmer” and I tell you what, it was pretty freakin’ awesome. While the glittering girly pout didn’t stay on for long, it also didn’t stick and stain like red lipstick.
Then I moved on to Estee Lauder’s “Starlit Pink” - my favourite. It’s not too bright, not too pale and very, very candy. It doesn’t come off either.
Finally I hit up the much darker pink shade of Lancome’s “Rose Grenade Mat” - perfect for going out, but exhibiting the same reapplication issues as red lipstick (the obvious nude lip circle caused by the consumption of food, beverages and beards).
Call me crazy, say I cheated. Whatevs. I still wore lipstick and I got well a deserved mid-month break. GO THE PINK!!!
@elerimai over and out. PS Has everyone else died from eating too much wax? Are any of you still wearing red lipstick or am I now alone in this hilarious social experiment?
