We Tried Recreating Red Velvet’s Irene Trademark Look – Here’s How It Went.

As someone who follows K-pop a lot, I’ve gotten gradually sucked into the realm of Korean makeup along the way. Most K-pop groups usually become the face of a Korean beauty brand and start endorsing their existing products, which was why I was a bit surprised when Etude House said that they launched 5 lip colours inspired by their latest ambassadors, Red Velvet. The Matte Chic Lip Lacquer is a matte liquid lipstick and the entire range has 12 colours in total, including the 5 new colours named after each Red Velvet member. Just like their bubblegum-pop music, the Red Velvet lipstick colours are all bright and intense. Check out the swatches below.

Swatches of all 5 Red Velvet-inspired Matte Chic Lip Lacquer

(L-R): BE101 Peach Beige, PK001 Rose Pink, PK002 Wink Pink, PK003 YERI Pink, OR201 JOY Grapefruit, OR202 Too Much Orange

(L-R): RD301 Ready for RED, RD302 SEULGI Burgundy, RD303 IRENE Red, PP501 Very Berry Plum, BR401 WENDY Brown, PK004 Romance Rose

This liquid lipstick basically claims to be long-wearing, matte, moisturising and rich in colour. When a box of all 5 Red Velvet Matte Chic Lip Lacquer lipsticks landed on my desk, I knew I had to test it out because I was still searching for an affordable liquid matte lipstick.

I picked the Irene Red as a bright red lip is my go-to, and I was pleasantly surprised when I first swiped it on. The colour was much brighter on my lips than in the tube and is really pigmented. It only took one pump to draw my lips, and it dried pretty quickly without cracking. Off to a good start! Here’s how it looked throughout the day:

I have to say that I was very impressed by the staying power of Matte Chic Lip Lacquer. I didn’t feel the need to reapply my lipstick at all throughout the entire day, and I didn’t. That’s right, I didn’t reapply my lipstick at all, and the colour on my lips was just as intense as when I left my house in the morning! Even though my lipstick bled around my lip line because I had an oily noodle dish for dinner, a little swipe was enough to fix the shape of my lips. I liked how my lips didn’t crack (matte lipsticks can be very drying) even though I did feel my lips becoming a bit dry once I hit the eight hour mark. This can easily be solved by applying a lip balm before you apply the lipstick, so I would say that this lipstick is quite worth its price. Just in case you are interested in adding the lipstick to your collection, they’ll be available at all Singapore Etude House outlets from 1 June.

While I was wearing Irene’s signature lip colour, I thought it would be fun to recreate her look as well. Together with all of Red Velvet’s beauty tips, I managed to pull off their statement look. I initially thought that a minimal eyeshadow and really thin eyeliner would be too natural, but the intensity of the Matte Chic Lip Lacquer really made my lips pop.

I recreated Irene’s Red Kiss look, which focuses on the Matte Chic Lip Lacquer in RD303 (Irene Red)

Not only can you wear Red Velvet’s signature lip colours, you can also cop their entire look too! If you browse Etude House’s Instagram, you’ll see Red Velvet rocking all sorts of looks from the girly next door to gorgeous, sultry looks. The secret to really making your look stand out is in the lips – instead of fading out a natural, gradient lip like the Koreans love to do, swipe the colour on fully to make your lips pop. This also works with nudes and pinks. We’ve put together a list of products that you can use to look like your favourite Red Velvet member.

Red Kiss

Most people tend to avoid dark lip colours as it come across as too gothic, especially if you wear a lot of eye makeup like eyeliner and smokey eyeshadow. Go light on the rest of your makeup (even the eyes) for a clean, statement look. Even your blush should be a subtle pink.

Irene

Products used:
1. Look At My Eyes BR401
2. Double Lasting Foundation in #Rosy Pure
3. Berry Delicious Cream Blusher in OR201
4. Lash Perm Curl Fix Mascara #1
5. Doctor Mascara Fixer #Super Long Lash
6. Matte Chic Lip Lacquer in RD303 (Irene Red)
7. Play Color Eyes Palette – In The Café
8. Brow Contouring Multi Pencil #4

Joyful Scandal

If you want an equally powerful statement lip but something a little brighter, try this look. The Joy Grapefruit Matte Chic Lip Lacquer has a cool, orange undertone that brightens up your face without compromising on the intensity of the lips. Just like the Red Kiss look, go light on the eye makeup. Perfect your mascara as it’ll help to open up your eyes without having to use falsies.

Joy

Products used:
1. Berry Delicious Cream Blusher RD301
2. Drawing Eyebrow #1
3. Beauty Shot Face Blur
4. Double Lasting Foundation in #Light Vanilla
5. Doctor Mascara Fixer #Super Long Lash
6. Matte Chic Lip Lacquer in OR201 (Joy Grapefruit)
7. Lash Perm Curl Fix Mascara #1
8. Play Color Eyes Palette – In The Café
9. Super Slim Proof Gel Pencil Liner #2

Lively Peach Crush

For an everyday makeup look that still exudes confidence, use oranges and pinks to bring out your natural flush. Note how Wendy matches the colour of her eyebrows to her ashy brown hair so that her eyebrows don’t look too harsh. Because it’s summer weather all year round here, you can make this your trademark look.

Wendy

Products used:
1. Double lasting cushion in P02 Rosy Pure
2. Colorful Drawing Water Color Blusher #4
3. Dear My Matte Tinting Lips Talk OR201
4. Drawing Eye Brow #7
5. Mini Two Match RD303
6. Mini Two Match BE101
7. Play Color Eyes Palette – Peach Farm

The Matte Chic Lip Lacquer, $19.90, will be available at all Etude House outlets and on Lazada.sg from 1 June onwards