I’m always drawn to matched lip and nail collections. I loved the Chanel Extrait de Gloss Collection (from 2010, see summary on Karla Sugar) and the recent MAC Fashion Sets, in particular Angel and Please Me (see lineup on Temptalia here, here and here). Right now I’m loving something that’s a little more mixed lip/nail combination and something a little less matched, but still in the same color family. Here are a few mixed and matched combination sets I’m loving right now. Swatches below as well.
Glowing neutrals
Left to right: YSL Golden Sand #54 Gloss
YSL Golden Shell #51 Gloss
Chanel Island #597 Le Vernis
Chanel Pêche Nacrée #515 Le Vernis
Corals and golds
Left to right: Chanel Nakkar #149 Glossimer
Dior Brown Panama #432 Addict Ultra Gloss
Chanel Holiday #617 Le Vernis
Chanel Delight #607 Le Vernis
Snapshot of jewelry from J.Crew’s Published June Style Guide and online at J.Crew here(I need one of those bracelets!) (Online versions of the J.Crew catalog are published on their website, currently May’s Style Guide is available to browse, I suspect June’s will be uploaded soon)
Pink lavenders
Left to right: Laura Mercier Nude Lilac Lip Glace
Dolce and Gabbana Lilac Nail Polish
Dolce and Gabbana Raspberry Lip Gloss
NARS Ratin Jot Nail Polish
What are lip and nail combinations are you loving right now?
Thanks to Best Things in Beauty for keeping us up-to-date on the latest releases from Le Métier de Beauté. Among all the store exclusives, my favorite collection includes the latest design by Ken Downing: the Haute House Hues Collection which includes a Lip Crème Lip Gloss Duo ($65) in Mum’s the Word and Two Lips and the new Snappy Dragon Nail Lacquer ($18).
The Lip Crème Lip Glosses are perfect for spring. Mum’s the Word is a bright pink with cool undertones. When I saw it featured on twitter I was a bit scared. My counter did not have testers of the items when they arrived but I am glad I purchased. The Lip Crèmes are a highly pigmented liquid creme gloss. They aren’t high shine but aren’t fully matte or satiny either. More of a hybrid lipstick/gloss. Mum’s the Word can be applied heavily or sheer for a soft tint. I was surprised at how wearable it is. If it’s too bright for you, you can always mix it with other glosses to sheer out the color.
Two Lips is a slightly shimmery nude pale peach. The texture applies a bit dry and emphasizes the lines in the lips, but let it sit for a minute and it warms up nicely to apply more evenly. The pigment is quite opaque and covers the entire lip. It gives me a nude-peach lip look which I think will go nicely with a smokey eye.
Here are comparisons to a few other shades:
Snappy Dragon Nail Polish is a shocking bright pink. It’s VERY bright, almost fuschia. There is a neon quality to this shade so it was a bit difficult to photograph. The finish is a satiny semi-matte. Two coats and you get full rich coverage. I’m still partial to the high-gloss finish nail polishes, but this one you can easily just add a clear top coat to achieve the shine.
Compared to the ShoKen Pink from spring/resort, Snappy Dragon is more fuschia/rose with blue tones. ShoKen Pink almost looks orange next to it because it has so much neon in it.
Overall perfect for spring to summer. The colors are fresh and naturally flattering. The lip cremes go perfectly with a simple bronzer or the latest Blush Kaleidoscope kit. To date I believe the collection is limited edition and exclusive to Neiman Marcus.
A quick look at the latest from Le Métier de Beauté: re-release of their limited Blush Kaleidoscope (swoon!) and Limited-Edition Haute House Hues Lip Crème Lip Gloss Duo in Mum’s the Word and Two Lips and the new Snappy Dragon Nail Lacquer. More detailed thoughts, photos and swatches to come this evening, but I can tell you – call your Neimans counter ASAP if you’re interested. The Blush Kit arrived in very limited supply.
Tom Ford’s Gold Dust Lip Lacquer ($30) is a warm sheer smooth glossy gold with slight coppery tones. Gold Dust is one of two shades available in the lip lacquer squeeze tube format. I haven’t tried the other version (which is a clear sparkle) but have heard many good things about it. Gold Dust has a soft vanilla scent (more subtle than the lipsticks) and a very smooth finish/texture. It’s fairly pigmented when swatched on the hand but sheers out to a barely-there golden sheen. It’s fairly warm and borderline yellowish but I think it’s sheer enough for almost anyone to pull off. I have mixed feelings about this. I love the scent and texture but was a bit surprised at how little color shows up on the lips. Granted I think the lip lacquer style/formula from Tom Ford isn’t meant to be a high-impact color type of gloss, but rather an enhancer. So for the intended purpose I think it’s awesome. For a gloss, I would have liked a bit more pigment, but it does give a beautiful sheen and will work well as a layering gloss.
Close up photos, swatches and more details on the packaging below.
Comparisons to some other gold glosses.
Have you tried Tom Ford’s lip glosses or lip lacquers? What are your thoughts? For reference, if you click back on the archives, I reviewed and swatched some of the regular glosses about a month ago.
Sunday Riley Crème Gloss Sheer Impact Lip Color in Beach Front was one of the goodies in my Barneys Love Yourself Beauty Event gift bag last month (retails for $28 at Barneys). Having fallen in love with her blushes and eyeshadows I was very excited to try her glosses. The product is described as “A true innovation Lip Gloss! A super conditioning, non-tacky formula adds a high hloss sheen to lips, while stable Vitamin C boosts collagen and provides antioxidant protection. Paraben free.”
Beach Front is a shimmery nude-beige color that looks beautiful in the tube. It comes with a sponge tip applicator. Although this is called a “sheer impact” gloss I found this one had virtually no impact when it comes to color. Product Doctor had a similar experience with the same color. Yes it can be layered over other lipsticks for shine and depth but sheer glosses can be found elsewhere for much less which will achieve the same effect. The sheerness is even sheerer than Becca glosses (which I love but often find too sheer to justify repurchasing once used up). The only redeeming factors are the formula and scent. The scent is something I can’t put my finger on but it smells like a spa facial in a tube (in a good way). I think it makes an amazing lip treatment. I swiped it on several times during the weekend to help moisturize my lips. (My favorite lip treatment is still Jo Malone’s Vitamin E though.)
Click to view ingredients:
I am very thankful Barneys included this in their gift bag. It was extremely generous of them to let their customers sample full-sized goodies which is definitely a step up from other retailers. I however wasn’t really impressed. I know I will use mine to the very last drop because I really like the formula but most likely will not repurchase or look into shades. I saw the colors briefly before the launch (they had prototypes at the counter during my last visit) and only a few caught my eye. After seeing how sheer these are I’m going to stick with my oldies but goodies from other brands.
Tom Ford Beauty is still relatively new in the US. The entire cosmetic line was launched first at select Neiman Marcus stores and Bergdorf Goodman and now appears to be trickling into other retailers. Ever since the launch I’ve searched for reviews, swatches and photos online but to date have not found much on the Lip Glosses by Tom Ford. Perhaps it’s the exclusivity and high price tag of $45 a tube (for .24 fl oz)? Having been impressed by the lipsticks I decided to give the glosses a chance. I ordered 3 glosses online sight unseen in Naked, Rose Crush, and Sahara Pink. Then a few weekends ago I saw the entire line in person at the Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills and came home with 2 more in Peach Absolut and Sugar Pink.
The gloss: These glosses have a similar vanilla scent as the lipsticks in Tom Ford’s line. The texture is thick and opaque with a slightly sticky texture similar to that of Bobbi Brown’s but not quite as sticky. These come in a clear square shaped tube that appears to be plastic (it could be acrylic but I’m not entirely sure). The applicator is a long brush which I find is the right length and thickness to apply the gloss evenly on the lips.
The finish: The finish is a high shine. I find the thickness makes these last quite a long time on the lips.
The pigment: Pigment overall is rich and medium-full coverage. Sugar Pink and Peach Absolut are slightly sheerer with almost a jelly-like finish, but are still rich in finish.
The colors: my descriptions for each shade as they apply on my lips (I find they apply true to what you see in the tube)
Naked – a nude flesh beige with a slight pinkish tinge and gold shimmer
Rose Crush – a neutral nude pink with brownish/tawny tones and slight shimmer flecks
Sahara Pink – a neutral rose pink cream
Peach Absolut – sheer soft peach
Sugar Pink – bright but sheer pink
Swatches (note that the swatches aren’t in the same order as the product photos above):
I’m limited on time so I decided to do comparisons rather than lip swatches.
Overall thoughts: I really wanted to hate these. $45 a tube is insanity (yet I still caved, gift cards are often used on frivolous things when I should really be saving them up for a bigger better purchase). The packaging is functional and sturdy but a bit cheap feeling. (It’s growing on me though.) I was so excited to see the Tom Ford Counter at Neiman Marcus but the service was a bit lacking (granted I was there on a Saturday afternoon when stores are at their busiest) and the lighting at the displays was horrendous. If you google Tom Ford Beauty at Neiman Marcus you will see beautiful displays. The setup is modern chic and in my opinion really stunning and gorgeous. However, the displays are lit with a neon light that prevents you from being able to see any of the colors as they are in reality. I had to hold the tester tubes several feet away out of the light to be able to see the true color.
Even with all these issues (they might just be me) I have to admit that the quality and finish of these are excellent. The glosses are made in Italy and the colors I picked just work – no tweaking required. They are perfect alone, with a liner or over any lipstick. I personally prefer them over a neutral lipliner to help even out the edges. The colors might not be all that original but in my stash I could not find any exact dupes. I wish I could recall the other shades but the lighting wasn’t the best and I didn’t swatch them all on my hand. The big question of whether or not they are worth the $45 depends on the individual person. I am inclined to say no, even with the excellent quality, finish and color selection, $45 is still extremely steep and I think you can get a similar effect with other brands that are more wallet-friendly.
More ramblings on my thoughts for Tom Ford Beauty products: At the counter I only tested the glosses, eyeshadow quads and blushes. I eyed Cognac Sable but decided to pass, most of the quads have at least 1 extremely shimmery/glittery shade which I’m not used to wearing on an everyday basis. I was particularly impressed by the blushes (I have 3 so far, but have not reviewed them, see Karla Sugar for swatches), they have a beautiful rich finish and soft blendable textures with gorgeous finely milled shimmer (why couldn’t all the quads be like the blushes?). My friend eyed the clear sparkly gloss which I also thought was interesting but did not try personally. Having a number of lipsticks already I didn’t check out the other shades. I passed on trying the nail polishes at the counter too. I have 2 that I purchased online and was less than impressed with the finish and the cap leaks nail polish around the top even when closed. At the counter, I the colors looked extremely ordinary.
That’s it. I didn’t make the most of my counter visit, but given the high price tag I was a bit scared to check everything else out, so perhaps it was for the best that nobody was available/willing to help me at the counter. That combined with the horrible lighting … I lost interest quickly. Maybe I’ll have better luck next time.
Overall I’m pleased with the glosses and I think if it’s in your budget you should definitely splurge on 1. I still prefer the lipsticks over the glosses though. (To see Tom Ford Lipsticks I’ve reviewed, click on the Tom Ford tag at the bottom of this post.)
Have you tried anything from Tom Ford Beauty? Been to a counter in person? I’d love to hear about what you’ve tried, liked, disliked, splurged on or passed.
This spring Le Métier de Beauté and Ken Downing of Neiman Marcus have created bold and bright lip and cheek colors for Resort 2012 with their Jet Set Collection. There are two new Sheer Brilliance Glosses ($32 each) that come in two juicy shades: Orange Juiced, a hot golden orange glow, and HibisKiss, a sheer but bright fuschia red. Both come in that classic sheer Le Métier glow infused with subtle shimmer and have a high-shine finish. The colors look shockingly bright in the tubes but luckily for me, they apply on the lips with a sheer wash of color. More photos and swatches below.
Another view of the swatches plus the 2 shades mixed. I love mixing and layering Le Métier shades. The colors are layerable over other Le Métier lipsticks and work well over other brands too. Here you can see that HibisKiss dominates when you mix equal portions of both colors:
Extra close shot so you can see how fine/subtle the shimmer is in the tubes. They glow!
HibisKiss goes on a warm fuschia red, which is odd because I usually associate “fuschia” with blueish-cool tones. This one is more of a neutral red leaning slightly towards the warm side. It has a sophisticated subtle shimmery glow. I found it too bright for me alone. It is definitely outside of my comfort zone although it does photograph well. In real life/in person it’s a bit too bright for right now. Perhaps I will feel more comfortable with color once the weather warms up and once I get my tan back.
Oranged Juiced was a pleasant surprise for me. In the tube it’s a borderline neon golden orange. It looked extremely unflattering at first glance but the shimmer looked beautiful and having fallen in love with other LMdB glosses I tried it with an open mind. It swatched on the hand orange but on the lips it sheered out to give a soft warm golden glow. There are neon tones in this gloss so it doesn’t always photograph well with a digital camera. The photo below was the best I could get. Sometimes neon shades tend to look, well, extra-neon-like with a camera.
Overall beautiful high quality shades. Those who like an extra punch of color will fall in love. I personally feel it’s a bit too early in the year to be completely won over right now. Even with year-round perfect weather in Southern California I’m just starting to get into spring mode and I’m more into the softer shades right now for this time of year. I do think I will pull these out for more use in a few months, although Orange Juiced seems to be versatile enough for layering and warming up other colors. These days I’m lemming their oh-so-hard-to-find exclusives like their Blush Kaleidoscope and Jan’s Jewel Lip Creme hoping they will eventually make their appearance at all Le Métier counters (one can wish).
I highly recommend reviews by Best Things in Beauty and Messy Wands for extra thoughts, photos and swatches on the glosses. These lovely ladies also have reviews of the 3 new nail lacquers on their blogs as well (equally shocking and bold as the glosses, if not more).
Le Métier de Beauté’s Resort Jet Set Collection will be out this month exclusively at Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman and online at both retailers as well. Have you spotted these yet in store? What are your thoughts?
These were provided courtesy of Le Métier de Beauté for review.
