A statement red lipstick is the cornerstone of any great make-up bag. Championed by beauty icons from Marilyn Monroe to Taylor Swift, a bold red lip has earned its status as a classic make-up look. 

So its little wonder that backstage at London Fashion Week, make-up artists are giving this cosmetic superstar the airtime it deserves. 

This season in particular, we've seen a plethora of creative ways to reinvent the red lip. Here are three of our favourites:

Backstage at Mary Katrantzou, make-up artist Lynsey Alexander was tasked with bringing the heart patterns of the collection to life on the face. Where do you go with that? To the lips, of course. 

She simply lined and filled the entire lip with a burgundy-toned pencil and layered with two coats of Mac's Retro Matte Liquid Lipstick in Dance with me, £21 (the two colours mixed together make this flattering beetroot tone). But don't just apply from the wand. "The key lies in the brush," explains Alexander who swears by 3.1 My Line and Fill Brush, £13.50, My Kit Co - the curved edge carves a heart-shape along the cupid's bow for you. 

When faced with a line-up of 20+ models of varying ethnicity, finding a red tone that will suit each and every woman is no easy feat.

But make-up artist Diane Kendal (who has worked with the likes of Alexander Wang and Oscar de la Renta this season) has a great trick for truly making a red lipstick your own: mix with your foundation. "It makes the colour a little more sheer and tailors the tone to flatter the skin," she says.

Isamaya Ffrench is arguably one of the most creative make-up artists on the backstage circuit, and at the Peter Jensen presentation this season, she didn't disappoint. 

She lined the model's lips with a pillar-box red liner that started at the top right corner and finished two-thirds of the way along the bottom lip. Quirky and graphic, the diffused edges of the liner make the look a whole lot more wearable. We can feel a Trend on Trial coming on here.