Red edition

For me the color I most associate with the festive season is red. As a primary color it's a forceful and dynamic shade that is often linked with strong emotions like love, passion, action, courage or even anger but at this time of year for me it evokes feelings of joy and hope. There are so many shades of red in the spectrum from the lighter, softer shades that are almost coral pink to the dark brown blood red vampy shades, which is why the hunt for the perfect red lipstick or nail polish is never really over, something I think every beauty junkie will agree with. Red is definitely my shade of choice this season and here are a few of my favorite red products that will be worn a lot this Christmas.

There are so many gorgeous red nail polish shades this season but as soon as I saw China Glaze (£4.95) in the shade With Love, I knew that this would be my Christmas polish. I was really looking forward to wearing this shade since I'd never used China Glaze before, but had read some great reviews of this US brand and I'm sure I'm not the only one. China Glaze has an enormous range of shades in every color of the rainbow and there are over 300 to choose from. With Love is a true glamorous red shade with a hint of orange that creates the radiant, almost scarlet color. The formula is just the right density - not too watery, not too thick and together with the lovely wide brush it's easy to get an even streak free coverage that dries quickly, with no effort at all. It has a rich pigmentation so one coat of this fabulous red is actually enough for an opaque finish, however personally I prefer to wear two coats.

All the China Glaze nail polishes contain something called China Clay, which is the same material that adds shine to porcelain and it also strengthens the nails, so you'll automatically get a high shine finish without using an additional top coat. On me the finish stays flawless for about 4-5 days, which I think is quite good and then I might need to top up the high shine with a top coat. I love this nail polish and have worn it both on its own (getting so many compliments for it) and as a base shade for festive nail effects and if you haven't yet tried China Glaze, I highly recommend it - you won't be disappointed.

From left to right (in artificial light):

China Glaze - 112 With Love

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Snowflake effect

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Snow Globe

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Party Shoes

China Glaze 112 With Love & Rimmel Disco Ball

From left to right (in natural light):

China Glaze - 112 With Love

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Snowflake effect

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Snow Globe

China Glaze 112 With Love & Nails Inc Party Shoes

China Glaze 112 With Love & Rimmel Disco Ball

If you've read some of my latest eye makeup posts, you'll know that I've been experimenting with using a lot of red and darker berry shades and I've also tried some new interesting formulas. First we had the well known and loved Maybelline 24 hr colour tattoo, then for me Bourjois' 24 hr cream to shadow proved to be even better than that, and now we have the creme de la creme with Estée Lauder's Gelée Powder EyeShadow (£19) in Cyber Red. It comes in a stylish little compact and has a lovely multi dimensional pattern to us, that's almost too pretty to mess up and the concept behind it is very interesting; gel, powder and liquid in one. It has an incredibly soft and smooth consistency that easily glides onto the eyelid and stays without any creasing or fading all throughout the day. There are 6 metallic, intense shade in the range at the moment and they can be used either dry or wet, depending on which color intensity you're going for. This is a lovely warm and dynamic burgundy red with incredible sheen to it, and I've loved wearing it with just a dark eyeliner and lots of mascara. After a recommendation from one of you lovely readers, I use an almost white base shade before applying Cyber Red and the shade really pops and comes into its own. Thanks for that great tip!

As I've started to wear a red statement lip a lot this Christmas season I've also realised the importance of using a lip pencil, something I didn't use to bother with. But when you wear a vibrant red, or another strong shade a lip pencil is almost a must, not only for defining and maybe even correcting the shape of your lips but also to prevent any bleeding and to make the shade last longer. I've invested in some of the No7 Precision Lips Pencils (£6.75) and for me they are just perfect; soft, smooth and moisturising and they don't dry or fade in a horrible way. For a punchy red statement lip the shade Fire is perfect and it would work well with a range of red shades both lighter and darker and I've paired this lip pencil with the Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquer (£6.49) in Big Bang. I've mentioned this amazing Rimmel product a few times before, and I'm sorry for repeating myself but honestly this is one of the best lip products on the high street. The formula is so moisturising but still intense and it gives a lovely high shine. Big Bang is a glorious, vivid clear red shade which is so lovely with a neutral or even nude eye look and with this shade you don't need anything else, it does all the talking. 

From top to bottom (in artificial light):

Estée Lauder Eye shadow - Cyber Ruby

No 7 Lip liner - Fire 

Rimmel Apocalips - Big Bang

From top to bottom (in natural light):

Estée Lauder Eye shadow - Cyber Ruby

No 7 Lip liner - Fire 

Rimmel Apocalips - Big Bang

Last among some of my favourite red products is the fantastic EdP from Tom Ford - Jasmin Rouge EdP (£140 for 50 ml) which I have done a review of previously. It's a wonderful and sensual exotic blend of different types of jasmine, spice and clary sage that creates a very bold and glamorous statement. It's floral but not sweet, intense but not over powering and classic and contemporary all at the same time. This is the purest jasmine scent that I have ever tried and it's completely intoxicating. As you probably know I LOVE perfume and have quite a collection and I usually wear something different every day, but if I had to choose just one single scent to wear for the rest of my life, this would be it - and for me to say that, really does say something about this scent.

A warm, vibrant red is indeed the primary festive color above all, and although it may be a predictable color to wear, it's a classic - after all I wouldn't want to criticize what Santa wears since I hope he'll bring me something nice in a few days...