Red lips look like...

My three momentous make-up moments tell me one thing. I'm slow on the make-up uptake.

My cherry was popped in Year 10. I was accosted by friends who spent hours giving me a Pretty Woman make over. My frizzy hair was tamed straight. My face painted thick with cheap product. The result made me feel grown-up but wary of the effort. I didn't wear make-up again for years.

The second was during my first performance review for my first job out of uni. The only criticism, buy a suit and wear make-up. I'm not sure if it was to wow people with beauty to hide my lack of brains.

The third was a lightbulb moment at the London Fashion Show. I watched a demonstration on how to correctly apply eye shadow. Heaven forbid you rely on browns and naturals as your colours of choice. And did you know not blending is a war crime, or showing eyelids is equal to a humanitarian tradegy. I realised I'd been doing it wrong for years.

It's not because I have amazing skin, I don't wear make-up because I can't be bothered.

I've only just been brave enough to allow a sharp pointy pencil come near my eye but dark smoky eyes are so five years ago.

Now I watch women confidently smear their lips with red glossiness. I'm told ladies of the night in the early 1900s painting their lips red to make it look like another form of lips. You know. Under there.

They seem so sure. So sexy. So confident. I needed it. So number 37 on my 101 in 1001 was to master the art of red-lipping confidently.

Attempting the duck face while wearing red lippy

Every time I swiped on the red lippy, I swiped it back off. I felt I looked like a... Well the reason ladies of the night made their lips red was to attract men and make them think of other red, similar looking things.

I had to suck it up. And here I am wearing red lipstick and trying a duck face, the new selfie look craze. The duck face.

It's a fail on both accounts. I just feel uncomfortable with both.

But I stepped out to Sister S's engagement party red and bright. Here's proof I kept it on all night.

Me with my mum and sisters, wearing the red lippy.

Obviously it's not a look I can pull off. My uncle asked if I'd been eating a red icey pole. My grandfather asked what was wrong with my face.

I may fail in looking comfortable in red lippy. But I passed this challenge.