It’s Monday and it’s day nine of my Simply Lippy challenge. The days are flying by and I only have two weeks before I start my new job, eeek. The nerves are starting to build, I’m one of those people who gets super nervous about change, but thankfully my Simply Lippy challenge is keeping me distracted and focussed on the blog.

I didn’t sleep great last night and it took me a while to decide what lippy to go for today, but after some deliberation, I finally decided a wintery red was the answer. Russian Red, a matte red lipstick from MAC, is what I opted for and it captures my mood perfectly. It’s strong, a bit sultry and moody, and perfect for a cold winter day.

When I first bought Russian Red I was in two minds about it; it is a deep red with a blue undertone, which most beauty experts will tell you is better suited to fairer skin tones. Whether or not there’s truth in that for everyone I don’t know, but it generally is true for me.

As you will have seen from my red lip choices so far, I usually opt for reds with an orange, warm undertone, rather than a blue, cold undertone. I have sallow, olive toned skin and warmer shades have always been more flattering on me, hence my reservations about Russian Red. However, after wearing it for a while, it kind of grew on me and paired with a nude eye and strong lash, this red gives the perfect colour pop to the lips.

I do love MAC matte lipsticks, and while shade wise this wouldn’t be my favourite red, it has strong holding power and pigment. I don’t tend to wear this shade in Spring or Summer as it is very rich, but that’s just a matter of preference really.

What do you think about this shade? Are you a blue-red or an orange-red kind of gal?

The beauty of this challenge is that it’s allowing me to play around with all different shades and tones, some will work and some won’t, but that’s all part of the fun!

Don’t forget to come follow my journey over on my social media pages too, or you can just search for the #simplylippy and #365days365shades hashtags on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook either.

Sorcha 💋