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Guerlain

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Spring to Summer Colors for Eyes and Cheeks

March 27, 2011

Bright blushes are a definitely must-have for me, although I usually layer two colors for more depth and dimension. Most of the time I will layer a soft wash of bright over a bronzer. For eyes I don’t really wear brights. The brightest shades I have are golds or pinky-peachy shimmers. I’ll feature a few non-neutrals, but for bright eye colors I’m a bit lacking.

Bright pink blushes (L to R)*: NARS Angelika, MAC Pink Swoon, NARS Desire, Chanel Tweed Fuschia

Bright peaches (also see my peach obsession here): NARS Taj Mahal, MAC Style , Bobbi Brown Coral Shimmer Blush, NARS Gilda


Bright corals (clockwise from left): NARS Cactus Flower Cream Blush, Guerlain Série Noire Blush G, Bobbi Brown Pink Coral Shimmer Wash, MAC Fleur Power

Brighter eye colors for me (not necessarily bright for everyone): NARS Goldfinger, NARS Étrusque, MAC Pink Bronze Pigment* (note the picture has been corrected, it’s Pink Bronze, not Pink Gold), Edward Bess Escape (which isn’t bright but I put it in just for a color reference)


The next and final part of this series will include a few tips and look ideas of how I incorporate brights with neutrals.

* Those who follow me on Twitter know that I no longer have my NARS Angelika Multiple since my Jack Russell pup Lucy ate it. Thanks to all who have asked about her! She is fine and dandy just like the vet assured me over the phone. In fact she is acting like it was any other puppy treat. The picture above at the very top was taken pre-puppy-consumption.
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Guerlain Spring 2011 Picks: Série Noire Blush G, Rouge G & Ombré Éclat

January 10, 2011

I’m venturing into newer territory with Guerlain this spring. I haven’t tried much from the line except a few seasonal items here and there over the past years. I’ve loved everything I have (quads, singles, rouge g) but for some reason still find their high prices and glitzy packaging a bit intimidating at times. However take the Twitter buzz and excitement from @naturalNchicmak and @CafeMakeup and combine it with the beautiful swatches from Yuki’s Lazy Channel and the cause-effect outcome is that I had to check it out.

Série Noire Blush G, Rose Desir Rouge G, Ombré Éclat in L’instant D’une Ondee 186 & L’instant D’une Soupir 187

The most highly-anticipated item of this collection is the new Blush G, Série Noire ($67), which is labeled on the compact as the “Secret to a Healthy Glow.” It is indeed glowy with four layers of embossed shimmers. NaturalNChicMakeup has lovely swatches on her blog as well and really captures the shimmers in great detail (see her review here). She also has a great feature on the packaging.

So does it really give a healthy glow? Yes, but it’s almost too glowy. When all shades are swirled together it creates a vibrant golden-pink blush but at the same time it applies cool on my cheeks (even if it swatches warm on my arm). To me, this is like a cool-pink version of NARS Orgasm blush. It also applies similar in the sense that it’s very easy to go one swipe too heavy and end up looking sunburned. The pigment is a difficult thing to describe – the texture is finely milled and very soft which allows you to build up layers to suit your preference. I had a difficult time playing with it today, it either looked too sheer or too fake. I have a similar experience with Chanel Fresque which is a lovely light peach, but one stroke too many leaves me looking like a clown.

I personally prefer something a tad bit warmer on the skin like Bobbi Brown’s Antigua Illuminating Shimmer Powder, but the Guerlain Série Noire is unique and beautiful. I will simply need more practice and experiment with different blush brushes to see which one will give the best application.

All the lipsticks from the Guerlain Spring Collection are beautiful. Due to the high price tag, I decided to limit myself to just one, Rose Desir #71 ($47). It’s very sparkly on the back of the hand, but on the lips it sheers out and you get a healthy pink tint. Those concerned that these might be too sheer to show up need not worry. They definitely show up! They just have a glossy shine with has a soft texture. I couldn’t detect a scent and it feels nice on the lips. The packaging this spring is still the metal mirrored tube but this season’s color is black. I like it much better than the silver ones which tarnish easily.


The last items I wanted to feature include two of the new eyeshadow singles, Ombré Éclat in L’instant D’une Ondee 186 & L’instant D’une Soupir 187 ($36 each).


I’ve found the Guerlain single shadows to be hit and miss. Some are simply too sheer, but the ones that do have a good soft texture show up better. #186 is a cool dove-grey with very subtle shimmer. #187 is a high frost bronzey taupe.

Overall thoughts: This collection has the most beautiful packaging this season. My interest in Guerlain is growing as I start to explore their primers and foundations. Still the high price tag prevents me from putting this brand at the top of my list of things to check out. I personally have avoided the Guerlain counter (like the Cle de Peau counter) simply because I find the price points intimidating, but easy to justify with an eager sales associate there to help push you along. Still, the quality is excellent and formula/textures beautiful. The packaging is a true work of art down to the little details of the embossed powders and clever mirrored lipstick.
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Guerlain Velours d’Or Ombre Éclat for Holiday 2010

October 11, 2010

I am usually able to resist Guerlain because of the hefty price tag but occasionally cave every now and then. One of my favorite Asian blogs Yuki’s Lazy Channel had a lovely preview of the quad & meteorites – I am always amazed at her excellent swatches and photographs. The holiday display was up at Nordstrom and both my mom and I were in total awe at the elegant packaging. She was convinced that I needed the pretty shimmer spray (if you see the packaging at the counter, you’ll see how fun it is to play with it), but I was able to convince her that I would never have an occasion to wear something like that. The Guerlain rep wasn’t there so the sales associates had a bit of difficulty locating where the holiday items were stashed. Luckily they found the quad and I left a happy camper.

Velours d’Or #410 ($59) is a gorgeous palette of gold mixed with contrasting darker colors in purple and charcoal. The gold resembles 24K gold but has a sparkling sheer finish instead of a solid metallic finish. The other shades aren’t completely matte in the compact but apply more like a matte on the skin (although if you look closely or apply over a cream base you may be able to get some shimmer to show). My mom fell in love with the deep purple and wished she could buy it on its own. The packaging has a cute embossed honeycomb bumble bee theme.


Swatched on bare skin by swiping my finger across the shadows and then onto my arm:



I personally don’t have many shades this dark because I don’t use them frequently. I pulled Dior’s Night Butterfly and Armani’s Eyes to Kill #3. As you can see they haven’t gotten much use yet although for this holiday season, previously released palettes seem more season appropriate than what is currently being released.

Rich in pigment and easy to blend. Beautiful to stare at. I’ve still managed to avoid caving on the $84 eyeshadow palettes. I still sneak a little peek everytime I stop by the Guerlain counter. I still can’t pull the trigger but at the same time I don’t know how much longer I can resist! $59 for a quad is still hard to swallow but is still significantly more justifiable than $84.


Have a great week everyone!

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A Few New Taupes From MAC, Guerlain, Trish McEvoy & Too Faced

May 25, 2010
I’ve recently found a few new taupe shades in cream and powder formulas from MAC, Trish McEvoy, Guerlain and Too Faced.

Clockwise from top shadow:
MAC Eyeshadow in Prepped for Glamour
Guerlain Terracotta Eyeshadow Pen in Smoky Metal
Trish McEvoy 24-Hour Shadow & Liner in Topaz
MAC Greasepaint Stick in Dirty
Too Faced Single Eyeshadow in Sitcom Siren

Most of the shades look true to what you see in the compact or stick, except for Guerlain Smoky Metal which went on my skin surprisingly warm. I haven’t tried this shade on the eyes yet, but I have tested out the others. MAC Dirty is such a gorgeous shade but unfortunately doesn’t last at all. It is extremely smudgey and by late afternoon gave me raccoon eyes. Trish McEvoy Topaz is more promising. I used it alone blended out on my lids and it didn’t budge at all. I can’t say whether or not it lasted a full 24 hours since I only had it on for the evening (from around 7:00 pm to midnight). But it lasted the entire time and when I got home looked just as good as when I put it on. My SA tested out the steel black grey shade from Trish and said it didn’t last at all on her and seemed way to soft/moist to be a 24-hour product, so YMMV per shade.

MAC Prepped for Glamour is extremely similar to Satin Taupe but the Prepped for Glamour shade has just a tad bit more red/warmth to it. But otherwise, very close. that I can barely tell the difference. Too Faced Sitcom Siren is my first Too Faced product. Pigment/blendability is nice but I actually prefer MAC. Sitcom Siren is a bit too frosty for my liking.

Swatches with different lighting:



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Guerlain Cherry Blossom, Beatrix & Blondie for Spring 2010

January 7, 2010
Guerlain’s Spring Cherry Blossom collection arrived at Saks a little over a week ago featuring the gorgeous Natalia Vodianova in soft shades of pink and rose.

The pattern on the new Blush Éclat Cherry Blossom blush is stunning, but the product itself is a bit of a disappointment since the gorgeous rose, peach and pink shimmers that you see on the top are merely an overspray. I am happy to say that the packaging is a sleek black compact instead of the usual chrome or metallic looking case. The good news is that if you liked Armani’s Sheer 12 Blush, you will probably like this one too – it’s a warmer glowy version of GA #12 (in my opinion). It’s pretty pricey at $49 USD, you might want to consider a cheaper alternative for a pale pink highlighter blush.

There were a bunch of new lipsticks in new formulas, the KissKiss Strass (too sparkley looking) & the Rouge G de Guerlain Le Brilliant (pretty, but pricey). I’m not exactly sure how the original Rouge G compares to the new Le Brilliant formula, but the ones I tested from this new line seemed glossier and a bit sheerer in finish. I ended up buying Beatrix (B60) a cherry blossom pink and Blondie (B01) a neutral pinky-beige.

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Eyeshadow Comparisons For Marina, Lakshmi & Josie

January 5, 2010

I have been procrastinating on a few comparison requests and thought I’d post this in case anyone else had the same questions. I plan to be a better blogger this upcoming year and be more on top of things!

Comparison Project #1: How does Edward Bess Intimate compare to other shades, particularly Chantecaille Pyrite & Benefit Fawn Over Me?


Chantecaille Pyrite has more gold while Edward Bess is definitely more taupe/brown. Benefit Fawn Over Me might look like a close dupe at first glance, but looking more closely will show that it’s more of a paler sandy champagne compared to the Edward Bess. Here it is compared to similar shades.

Top: Chantecaille Pyrite, Edward Bess Intimate, Laura Mercier Bamboo
Middle: Scott Barnes Sable, Benefit Fawn Over Me, Guerlain Sable Blonde
Bottom: Becca Mermaid, Nars Cyprus, Benefit Fawn Over Me


1) Chantecaille Pyrite
2) Edward Bess Intimate
3) Laura Mercier Bamboo
4) Scott Barnes Sable
5) Benefit Birthday Suit
6) Guerlain Sable Blonde
7) Becca Mermaid
8) Nars Cyprus
9) Benefit Fawn Over Me


Bottom line: In my opinion, there is nothing like Edward Bess Intimate and I find it different enough to justify owning even if you have any of the above shades. This post will be updated later this afternoon with swatches.

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Comparison Project #2: Is Bobbi Brown Java Metallic similar to the brown shade in Nars Brousse?


Bobbi Brown Java is a cooler mouse-grey when compared to Nars Brousse which seems to have a tinge of red. By itself you would barely be able to detect any red tones to Nars Brousse. I’ve also compared it to a few other medium-dark cool-toned browns.

Top: Edward Bess Mystery, Bobbi Brown Java Metallic, Nars Brousse
Bottom: Cle de Peau Satin 106, MAC Magnetic Fields, Jouer Espresso


1) Edward Bess Mystery
2) Bobbi Brown Java Metallic
3) Nars Brousse
4) CdP 106
5) MAC Magnetic Fields
6) Jouer Espresso


What’s the verdict? Are these different enough to justify owning all? Probably not unless you are a brown eyeshadow fanatic like me. This section will also be updated with swatches if my camera will cooperate with me later today. While I love the Cle de Peau 106, it can look a bit bruisey on my Chanel Shell (equals MAC NC30-35) skin and it’s the least shimmery.

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