Read my lips

Blush, eyeshadow, and powder, I do not have much of. But lipsticks and glosses, I have more than my lips really need (and this only because lip color is the only makeup I can apply correctly, by myself). Imagine my amazement though when, as I was going through my makeup box, I realized that I did not own any honest-to-goodness red shade. I had pink-reds, brown-reds, wine-reds –– but ironically, none that was just simply red.

The day I got married, I did as all brides do: I wore something new, something old, something borrowed, something blue and to finish off the look, Tita Mila Garces swept a bright red shade on my lips. To this day I remember what it was –– MAC Russian Red.

Several days after my I-don’t-have-red-lipstick discovery, I went to the mall to get Richard some stuff he needed for work. I also took the chance to make a beeline for the MAC counter at Glorietta 4 to get my very own stick of Russian Red. Before I reached the counter though, I was derailed at the Origins nook, which happens to be another of my favorite haunts for kikay products. Because the packaging of their products is always so beautiful, I took my time sniffing and smelling, trying on one product after another. One of my favorite lip glosses happen to be Origins Liquid Lip Color because not only does it come in such beautiful shades it has a minty, refreshing feel on the lips as well. I love the bright colors now (I’m tired of the nude look that has ruled makeup for much too long). I got two new shades in Mango Smoothie, a fresh peach-orange shade and Hot Date, a bright red gloss that looks good worn alone, or topped with a lighter shade. I tried it with Mango Smoothie and the mix of colors came out very nice.

Their Ginger Body Scrub is wonderful, too. I have been using it for years. (I used to be a fan of their Salt Scrub but I sometimes find it too painful on the skin.) I think their Ginger Scrub is a better alternative. Because it is laden with oil, I like applying it on dry skin, right before a shower. Skin becomes incredibly smooth after that. They now also carry a Whipped Body Cream in Ginger Glimmer. It smells and looks heavenly on the skin, especially on the chest, neck, and shoulders. It is actually a golden-beige body cream that has bits of glimmer evenly blended into it. It succeeds in giving the skin a subtle, pearlized glow that does not look contrived or blatant in a showgirl kind of way. If a fresh breeze on a cool summer night at the beach had a scent, this would be it. I have pale skin and yet it looked pearly; I can imagine how beautiful it would be on tanned or honey-colored skin.

Happy with my Origins loot, I then inched my way to the MAC counter right across. My coveted Russian Red was out of stock. Very sad. But the helpful person behind the counter suggested an alternative. With a hand flourish he brought out a stick of MAC in Ruby Woo. I totally fell in love with the bright shade that was an uncomplicated red. I also ended up buying their lipliner in, but of course, red.

Done with shopping for the day, I passed by a magazine stall on my way out. One international glossy cover had a blurb that said color is back. That made my purchases for the day even more worthwhile. Amazing how it can take that perfect shade of lipstick (and a beauty loot bag to boot) one more good reason to smile about.