Red Lip Revolution

Shortly after I turned 30, I rediscovered the power of red lipstick.

Mind you, it is not as if I had never worn it before. During the dance and theater years of my adolescence, red lipstick was a mandatory part of my stage makeup arsenal. However, once the lights went down and the makeup wipes came out, so went my rouged lips. After the curtain call, I was done playing dress-up for the stage and returning to my reality as a high school student who was not allowed to wear such a vibrant hue in my day to day. This "rule" stuck with me into my twenties. I internalized the belief that my lips were only suited for nude glosses and lip balms to offset their fullness, and that to call attention to them would be inappropriate. Red lipstick was too bold, too attention-seeking, and just simply too much for a "good girl," like myself.

Then, I grew up.

Between the resurgence of numerous women’s empowerment movements encouraging us to take up more space and the brilliant Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez wearing fabulous red lips to speak truth to power in Congress, I was inspired to reintroduce red lipstick to my makeup bag. It seems silly on the surface, I know. After all, what do cosmetics have to do with female empowerment? Why would women find strength in an industry that is overwhelmingly ran by men and preys on their insecurities to fill their pockets?

What I found, however, is when we reclaim the use of cosmetics as a way of controlling the narrative of our image rather than acquiescing to the manufactured beauty standards of the day, we take the products and the power of an industry meant to feed off of our insecurities and turn it on its ear (and we look damn good while we do it, too).

Of the many lipsticks that I experimented with, the one that has a permanent spot on my vanity is The Lip Bar's Liquid Matte Lipstick in Bawse Lady. The formula itself finishes to a velvety texture that hugs my lips without suffocating them. The hue itself is a gorgeous berry red that would complement any skin tone. The handy little tube fits into the tiniest of clutches, and yet I can count on one hand the times that I needed to reapply it throughout my long days and festive nights. Also, I can say with certainty, that it is mask-proof. No embarrassing popsicle lips here!

Mind you, purchasing a lipstick from an online retailer sight unseen was a risk. However, it was love at first swipe when I introduced this ruby wonder to my face. In a sea of nude lip glosses, Bawse Lady makes my skin glow, and my eyes light up like no other. During the pre-mask days of the year, I wore it with pride, my smile a little broader and my back a little straighter as I sashayed through life. Even as COVID-19 swept through the nation and I found myself homebound waiting for the plague to pass over (and am still waiting), I found myself swiping Bawse Lady onto the lips of my otherwise bare face as a reminder of better days ahead.

Mind you, my beloved Bawse Lady is more than just a stunning red lipstick. For me, it represents my support of a Black- and female-owned beauty company that is claiming its rightful stake in the cosmetics conversation. It represents my promise to myself to stop hiding and start showing up, to stop dwindling and start expanding, to stop being quiet and start speaking up. It was my way of stepping out of my girlishness and fully taking ownership of my womanhood. It is my symbolic gesture that shows the world around me that I am no shrinking violet, but a bold blooming rose: vibrant with new life and armed with a few thorns to defend myself against anyone who would dare try to stamp me out.

Red lipstick is arguably the oldest cosmetic known to (wo)mankind, and has reclaimed a place in the collective conscious as a symbol of our rebellion against a society that seeks to undermine our strength. So, to join women from millennia past and present in beautifying myself in a way that asserts this power is nothing short of a privilege. As we walk into a new era of healing after a tumultuous year, I pledge to continue to stand up and stand out, fully present in my femininity. But before I do, rest assured that I will be swiping Bawse Lady across my lips before I walk out of the door.