Usually, I'm a lip colour minimalist, but there's one beauty preview I usually attend—which happens every spring and fall—that always inspires me to try a red mouth. Without fail, one of the effortlessly gorgeous makeup artists I meet with has <strong>totally covetable, slightly matte, crimson-coloured lips</strong>.

Of course, I could never quite master the same look at home (despite owning approximately 1,723 red lipsticks). So this year, I found out the secret: <strong>red lip pencil</strong>. Not actually owning a red lip pencil, that fun fact stuck in my mind for many months, until I got sent <a href="http://www.pupa.it/ENG/Catalogue/SchedaProdotto.aspx?IDProdotto=372&amp;IDTipologia=354&amp;IDLinea=75" target="_blank">Pupa's new True Lips Lip Liner Smudged Pencil</a> in #7 (Shocking Red). <!--more-->

The reason I'm slightly afraid of lip pencils is because they tend to be on the dry side (making them both hard to blend and exacerbating any flakiness on your lips). And more importantly, they can look weirdly dated. (One false move and you're into mid-90s ring-around-the-lips territory.)

However, this little number from Pupa changed all that. I didn't expect to like it, but it's actually moisturizing without adding any glossiness (which is <em>très</em> important—this look is all about the matte texture). The texture of the pencil itself is one of the best I've tried: <strong>smooth and blendable</strong> (again, this is key because the look requires you to fill in your entire lips, not just outline the edges).

And finally, the shade (again, it's #7: Shocking Red) is the ultimate true red. It flatters just about anyone, and you can trust me on that. I just tried it on my mom and four-year-old niece (who, under my tutelage, is a products junkie in the making) and it looked great on all three of us.

<strong>Pupa</strong> | <a href="http://www.pupa.it/ENG/default.aspx" target="_blank">pupa.it</a>

At spas and select drugstores across Canada.
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