7 Perfect Red Lip Colours (Non-tox & Palm-oil-free)

By Nath @ BEAUTYCALYPSE

As September goes on, our agendas get filled with events: art week here, trade fair there; openings, launches, dinners. Time to mingle, to socialize and… to rock a classic red pout, green style!

red-lipstick-sep13

It took me several weeks of research to pick lipsticks (lip tints and lip conditioners) that were:
a. Fabulous red.
b. Toxin-free and vegan/cruelty-free.
c. Free of any palm oil derived ingredient.

(NB: If you wonder why “that palm oil obsession” keeps occurring, you might have missed this post.)

So I searched for different textures: a classic lipstick with great coverage, more transparent lipsticks or lip tints… Not everybody looks good with an exactly contoured red mouth, and a red that works for me might not work for you etc.

Additional obstacle: as I proceeded with my orders, I found out that a lot of colours advertised as “classic red” turned out too brown, too pink, too mauve (?) – and I didn’t really understand why. Is it so hard to describe a colour? Or are red pigments all, I don’t know, toxic? Because when you try to sell a pale, terracotta brown for a red, aren’t you turning off customers? But anyhooo….

Eventually I ended up with two lipsticks, one lips-and-cheeks tint, and four lip conditioners/tints.

Enjoy the clean loot, reviewed in three heaps: classic red, cool red, and warm red!

CLASSIC RED

This is a perfect classic red; not too cool, not too warm; not too light, not too intense. Wear it without contour – and it’s modern; accurately contoured, it’s – …immaculate.

ilia-lipstick-wildchild
ILIA Beauty: Wild Child. A lipstick to fall in love with! The texture is silky smooth, with a fantastic wear; the scent is fine and barely there; the colour is a saturated, fresh, youthful semi-matte pure red. Will rock everything from a pair of jeans to a LBD. Already a favourite! (I’ve worn a cool, pink coloured foundation for this shot.) Ingredients: Organic Castor Seed Oil, Organic Sesame Seed Oil, Organic Sunflower Seed Oil, Organic Beeswax, Triisostearyl Citrate, Candelilla Wax, Organic Cocoa Butter, Organic Tapioca Starch, Aloe Juice, Grape Seed Oil, Rose Hip Oil, Sage Leaf Extract, Vitamin E. May contain: Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxide (Cl 77499, Cl 77492, Cl 77491), Red 7, Red 28, Yellow 5.

COOL RED

Infused with blue and purple, ideal for cool skin tones – or a great eye-catcher on warm-toned skin.

paul-penders-raspberry
Paul Penders: Raspberry. It’s a mystery why they’ve called this classic, juicy, intense femme-fatale red “raspberry”. If anything, it’s a “cherry” – with a hint of blue. A bold colour to wear on a big night out! Silky and pleasantly glossy; good wear. (Here I wear the Olive Fair foundation by Everyday Minerals.) Ingredients: Castor Oil, Organic complex called “LevensESSENTIE” (Angelica extract, Arnica flower extract, Calendula flower extract, Chamomile flower extract, Elderflower extract, Ginger root extract, Ginseng root extract, Honey suckle extract, Hops extract, Horsetail extract, Juniper fruit extract, Lavender extract, Lemon balm extract, Nettle extract, Penny wort extract, Peppermint leaf extract, Rosemary extract, Sage extract, St. John’s wort extract, Turmeric root extract, Hamamelis extract, Yarrow extract), Carnauba wax, Candelilla wax, Calendula flower oil, Pycnogenol, Vit E, Ceramide III, May contain: Titanium dioxide, Iron oxide red, Iron oxide brown, Iron oxide black.
ilia-arabian-nights
ILIA Beauty: Lip Conditioner “Arabian Nights”. A deep berry shade with a transparent texture. Another favourite 😀 (Here I wear a cool pink foundation again.) Ingredients: Organic Castor Oil, Organic Jojoba seed oil, Organic Beeswax, Candelilla Wax, Organic Sesame Seed Oil, Cocoa Seed Butter, Natural Vit E, Pomegranate Seed Extract, Grape Seed Extract, Orange Fruit Oil, Jasmine Oil, Vanilla Plant Oil, May contain: Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxide, Red 7, Red 28, Yellow 5.
ilia-bang-bang
ILIA Beauty: Lip Conditioner “Bang Bang”. A classic red – transparent, not too glossy texture; pleasant light scent. Amazing if you want to try a classic red, but don’t want the  creamy killer number. (Ingredients: view above.)

WARM RED

Lovely coppery undertones!

inika-lip-cheek-tint
Inika: Crème Colour Rosehip (Vegan). This mousse-like texture is for cheeks and lips, but I only use it as lip colour. “Rosehip” is a very intense, opaque, classic red with deeply warm, tomato-red undertones. Ingredients: Sweet Almond Oil, Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Copernicia Cerifera Cera, Natural Vit E, Magnesium Stearate, Iron Oxides.
hibiskiss-gloss
Crazy Rumors: Hibiskiss “Sunset” (Vegan). The colour is lovely: a coppery red, highly transparent, with golden shimmer. It’s not described as a gloss, and it doesn’t have a very glossy texture, but it has a somewhat glossy, soothing wear (and a lovely, fruity scent of hibiscus!). Ingredients: Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Macadamia Oil, Organic Shea Butter, Candelilla Wax, Soy Wax, Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxide, Jojoba Oil, Carnauba Wax, Organic Fragrance, Vit E, Rosemary Leaf Extract, Natural Stevia.
badger-balm-lip-tint
Badger Balm: Lip Tint & Shimmer “Red Jasper”/”Opal Shimmer” (Fair Trade and Certified Organic ingredients/ Cruelty-free). In the picture, the top photo is “Red Jasper”, a coppery red loaded with shimmer, worn alone, and under it – “Red Jasper” topped with the hardly shimmery, beige “Opal Shimmer” that tones the colour down a bit. Both Tint/Shimmer shades smell heavenly of cocoa! Ingredients: Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Beeswax, Organic & Fair Trade Cocoa Butter, Organic Castor Oil, Organic Aloe Extract, CO2 Extracts of Organic Rosemary, Seabuckthorn and Rosehip. Mineral tint contains: Iron Oxide, Titanium Dioxide, Silica, or Mica.

I hope this has been of any help for those of you looking for a new colour to start off the season!
But wait, have you got a red lipstick you adore but it has been discontinued?
Or found a new, toxin-free lipstick/ lip tint you want to share?
Know of a gorgeous vegan brand?
DO SHARE! xoxo
______

About Nath @ BEAUTYCALYPSE

Geeking out about all things truly green, healthy and ethical over at BEAUTYCALYPSE.com (Avatar illustration by A. Goncharenko)

34 Responses

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  12. Anonymous

    Thanks so much for this post! I’ve been looking for palm oil free lipsticks for a while now and your reviews are a great help in choosing the perfect one for me!

    1. beautycalyptique

      this party is always on 🙂

      (re palm oil: it’s often just the raw material – for example, for capryc diglycerides; in fact it comes in dozens of disguises)

  15. Sonja

    Great round-up! I love the look of Paul Penders Raspberry – never heard of it before, but now I’m on the hunt to find it! Also, I know you were reviewing Kjaer Weis – what did you think of that brand/purity of its ingredients?

    Sonja
    lifeinblush.com

    1. beautycalyptique

      thank you for dropping by! I was on holiday so only just getting back to all comments.
      well, I discovered the brand at one of my fave online shops, never seen it anywhere, neither blogs, nor mags. guess the buyers did my job here, hehe 😉

      I’d love to use KW but their formula contains Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, and I couldn’t find any info on whether it’s coconut oil-based or palmoil-based. coconut would be awesome, palmoil not so much. I am trying to avoid PO stuff.

      1. Sonja (@lifeinblush)

        holidays are the best! which online shop do you love? I’m super curious know about about KW – going to try and get in touch with her and see if I can get any kind of clarity. I’ll be sure to keep you posted!

        1. beautycalyptique

          here in germany, there is amazingy.com and all for eves (what a glorious name), and in austria, ecco-verde – that’s where I get my green fix 😉
          plus the shops of the brands, like everyday minerals etc.

    1. beautycalyptique

      oh, what I love particularly about all of those (except paul penders, this one is really bold) – they can be layered for only a tad of colour or for extra coverage 😀

  18. Just Add Attitude

    My favourite is Hibikiss sunset it looks a little less true red than the other. I hope being ‘on the road’ is not too busy and difficult. I empathise with your lack of internet connection as I am without broadband in my new home – something I need to get sorted very soon. 😉

    1. beautycalyptique

      oh dear 🙂 I saw your post the other day. looking forward to you coming back!

      hibiskiss sunset has the most lovely scent I’ve ever smelled on a lipstick/gloss and NO aftertaste (which sometimes goes together with scents)

    1. beautycalyptique

      raspberries aren’t that colour here 😀 more pink, and more bright. though this summer I’ve seen (and eaten) strawberries that were so dark red, they almost looked black.

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