Septemberry

What with the weather on the turn and the word “September” just begging me to make a pun out of it and the usual make-up trend at this time of the year for berry tones I thought I’d do a mini-series of berry looks.

I haven’t bought any new make-up for a couple of months because I’ve just moved cities (London to Edinburgh) so my make-up budget has been going on boring household bills lately. However, it’s probably just as well as berry colours are popular every autumn so I had plenty of berries in my make-up stash already that had just been lying around neglected since last winter.

First up here’s a deep red matte cranberry lip. I used“Cranberry” matte finish True Colour lipstick by Sleek which I got in a Christmas set that came out a couple of years ago so I don’t think that it’s currently available alas, although I’m sure there are a few similar shades in their current range. This lipstick is very, very pigmented and even works well mixed with lip balm and worn as more of a shiny stain (haven’t got any pics of that today though I will post some another day if I remember).

This kind of colour can be a bit problematic and in fact you can see that it’s a bit patchy in the close up although from a distance I think it looks fine. Matte finish lipsticks are often quite dry so it was a bit difficult to apply evenly. When I’m wearing a strong lip like this I like to apply colour on the centre of the lips straight from the lipstick bullet but then work on the edges with a brush to ensure a super-crisp outline. I blotted after applying one coat then went ahead and applied a second. Worn like this this lipstick lasts for ages and ages on me – I get six hours wear before I have to worry about touching up and it even survives food and drink.

On the rest of my face I went for matte skin, slightly flushed cheeks and a slick of mascara. I think this is a really nice autumn daytime look, though if I were wearing this lipstick after dark I’d go all out and pair it with a dark, smoky eye.