Beauty bites: reigning reds

April Fools' Day, where all the girlfriends tell their boyfriends that they are, indeed, pregnant.

In celebration of today, I am listening to a musical comedy station on Pandora (The Axis of Awesome's "Birdplane" is playing) so if I seem wonkier than usual... you get me.

As of now I am juggling whipping up some tasty mac 'n' cheese (holy cheesy yummy macaroni from the finest of Kraft boxed macaronis) and this post! Being constantly pulled in different directions and priorities simultaneously comes as second nature with this package. 

Like I promised, this post will be featuring my collection of reds as my blog's first ever cosmetics feature! Lipsticks, glosses, liquid/cream formulas, true and warm and cool, you name it. And on another note: I won't be using the decoden app I've been frequently using for my first few posts because it degrades the quality of my pictures, and I don't want that - especially in consideration to beauty posts!

My collection of reds reign supreme in my lipstick drawer - that, and Barbie pinks.

From top to bottom:

• Sonia Kashuk "Red Orange" lipstick
• $9.99 at Target; punchy orange red, pigmented but buildable color, semi-transparent satin
• Rimmel (Kate Moss collection) in shade 12
• ~$6 at drugstores; salmon-y red, pigmented cream
• Rimmel (Kate Moss collection) in shade 01
• ~$6 at drugstores; true red, pigmented cream
• Neutrogena "Poppy (420)" lipstick (d/c)
• Discontinued but you can buy on eBay or Amazon for $4-$6; true red (my first red), pigmented cream
• Milani "True Red 02" lip liner
• $3-4 at drugstores; a pigmented, warm red that runs more matte than most lipsticks can and probably has the most staying power because of wax properties
• tokidoki Prisma Gloss in "Devil Girl" (d/c)
• Discontinued and I can't find it on discount sites either; a sheer blue red gloss with a Japanese paddle applicator and cute Devil Girl decoration in the cap, runs a little sticky but isn't too glossy (picture of Megan Fox's lips in "Jennifer's Body")
• Wet 'n Wild "Purty Persimmon"
• $1.99 at drugstores; almost the same exact color as Sonia Kashuk's "red orange" but more orange than red, pigmented matte formula
• L'Oreal Paris Color Riche "300" lip gloss
• ~$6 at drugstores; a warm brick-berry (mauve-ish brown) red that has buildable coverage and is totally wearable alone, or you can layer on top for a high-shine finish
• CoverGirl "Hot Passion" lipstick
• ~$6 at drugstores; my least favorite (I never touch this, I just have in the nooks and crannies of my lipstick drawer) - pigmented true red, but feels like moist clay on your lips and the staying power is blahblah at most
• Disclaimer: I actually don't like most CG cosmetics, so you're not going to be seeing a lot about this brand from me.
• Stila Stay All Day "beso" creme liquid lipstick (I saved the best for last!!!)
• GLORY BE, PRAISE BE, HALLELUJAH, MY HG LIPSTICK FOUND AT LAST, FOUND AT LAST
• $22 at Sephora; unlike liquid lipsticks which can be drying, this is a pigmented cream formula that's satisfyingly moisturizing when drying, and then dries to a "barely there" sensation on the lips; has a doe-foot applicator which isn't for everyone but I'm able to make clean lines without the use of liner with the applicator just fine (you can use a separate lip brush)
• $12 dupe: the Sephora brand has something in the same shade and formulation but I think, at half the size (so you're not exactly saving money) which... surprisingly I can't find on the Sephora website!

First row: Sonia Kashuk "Red Orange", Rimmel Kate Moss in 12, Rimmel Kate Moss in 01, Neutrogena's "Poppy", and Milani's "True Red 02" lip liner
Bottom: tokidoki in "Devil Girl", WnW in "Purty Persimmon", L'Oreal Color Riche "300" gloss, CoverGirl's "Hot Passion", and Stila's "beso" 

Textures and formulas galore!
These swatches were taken under a cool-toned white light (I edited the photos on Pic-Stitch, which surprisingly has an impressive editor panel, to show the truer colors). 

Uncannily, like all my lippies - tinted, pigmented, or balm - I carry at least 2-3 with me all at once and in different bags and purses and jackets so I had to perform my own personal scavenger hunt to round all these babies up. If you'd like me to review each individual lippie in detail, or certain lippies, leave a comment below!

Now excuse me, I'm gonna catch 'em all on Google.

xoxo