It’s been years since I’ve bought anything from Jouer but with the launch of the new High Pigment Lip Glosses ($17 each for 6 g / 0.21 fl oz) I decided to place an order on Beautylish as the swatches on social media looked promising with glowing rave reviews about the colors and formulas. I also ordered one of the popular Lip Toppers ($16 for 6 ml/0.21 fl oz). The High Pigment Lip Glosses are described as a weightless creamy gloss that gives full coverage and with a good selection of neutrals I had high hopes plus the price point seemed reasonable.
Quick take is that these were very much a let down for me and in general for quality I do not recommend them. The colors are all so beautiful but the formula is thin and streaky looking. They are described as a lightweight and they are, but the thin texture does not coat the lips easily. To get the full smooth coverage I saw on social media photos I needed to goop on layers of product which in the end seemed to defeat the point of weightless with that much gloss on my lips. I do want to note that I do think the deeper/brighter shades performed better with smoother coverage and I suspect the other darker ones in the collection will do the same.
I ordered 8 shades sight unseen which I know was a bit risky considering I hadn’t tried anything from the brand in years. I really wanted to love these and part of me loves these for color options. They’re really wearable for any occasion and classic kinds of flattering shades of nude, peach, rose and pink. Since the colors are so good, I tried to make them work by wearing them alone, over a lip primer, over a lip liner and over lipstick. Overall I found that the formula to be high maintenance. In testing each shade most of them settled into lip lines within 15-30 minutes and within an hour they faded quite a bit. The scent is extremely sweet to the point that I’m not a fan.
I think these are ok, just not great. I’ll note which colors I found performed the best below:
- PCH is a light peachy nude, this one is streaky but smooths out if you apply carefully, unfortunately lasting power is very weak
- Sloan is a gorgeous semi-bright peach, since this was brighter it had better coverage but still was streaky and settled into lip lines
- Sunset is a light-medium peach, also streaky
- Champs-Elysses is a medium peach pink brown, this performed better as it has more of a slightly deeper undertone, less streaking with this and smooth coverage, lasting power is still weak
- Maiden Lane is a yellow beige nude, coverage was pretty smooth but it settled into lip lines quickly
- Park Avenue is a pale cool pink, also streaky on my lips
- Rodeo is a very pretty medium rose, it’s deeper than most of the other colors I tried and went on the lips smoothly without issue
- Fifth Avenue is a pink brown, also deeper and performed relatively well with smooth coverage, lasting power is still weak
Based on what I tested, the three best shades for smooth coverage is Champs-Elysees, Rodeo and Fifth Avenue. Lasting power for all of these is not up to my standards, even for a gloss. All the colors settled into the fine line of my lips within an hour – the exception was with Rodeo and Fifth Avenue.
Next I tried one of the Lip Toppers in St. Tropez and I knew there would be a good chance it would be too glitzy but wanted to give it a chance because I love a good shimmer. This one photographs really nicely on the lips but for me it’s just not wearable for everyday. It has a smooth finish but it’s just way to glitzy for me to wear comfortably on any occasion. For me the best wearable shimmer like this is either MAC Lipglass in Pinkarat or Charlotte Tilbury Lip Lustres in Ibiza Nights or Blondie. Dior also makes some really gorgeous shimmers as well.
Based on this experience I don’t think I’ll be ordering more from the line. There are so many other brands out there that I love with better formulas that I know are reliable. Every once in a while I’ll try to branch out and try something more trendy. Based on the number of glowing reviews and pretty beauty looks I’ve seen with these glosses there’s a good chance I’m in the minority with my opinion on these. It looks like a lot of people love these formulas. I like the colors and the price point, but I just don’t like the formula. If you love the brand, I hope you don’t get your feelings hurt by me saying this, but I’m not impressed with the quality or texture. For a good quality high pigment gloss I far prefer the Marc Jacobs Le Marc Liquid Lip Cremes (all shades reviewed here), Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Glosses (review here and here), and even MAC Lipglasses (my picks here) even though those are more sheer.
Bottom line is that I don’t recommend these and I regret buying that many sight unseen. Even the good colors for me just don’t cut it because the lasting power isn’t doing it for me and they all settle into my lip lines. That being said there are a lot of people who like them. There are tons of YouTube videos, blog posts and detailed customer reviews online. It may be hit or miss for you. As a quick side note I also ordered 3 of the powder highlighters and much to my dismay 2 of them arrived completely shattered and broken.
You can find Jouer Cosmetics online at Beautylish, Nordstrom and Jouer. I bought mine from Beautylish.
