Estee Lauder Radiant Berry Blush ($26.00 for 0.25 oz.) is a softened rose-plum with a subtle satin sheen. The texture of Estee Lauder’s powder blushes is incredibly finely milled, soft like silk, and smooth. These are buildable blushes that deliver sheerer color initially but can be layered for a more intense cheek look. I find these are very foolproof blushes; you can never go overboard, and they look very glowy, not shimmery or frosty.
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Product: 27/30
Value: 8/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: I love this on both cool and warm skin–it is also absolutely gorgeous on really pale skin, because it can give a nice level of contrast.
Introducing the next generation of the Estée Lauder Sumptuous mascara franchise – Sumptuous Extreme Lash Multiplying Volume Mascara is for the lash extremist! Lashes are magnified and multiplied with one swipe, making eyes look outrageously big and amazingly bold. Make a high-impact statement with your lashes, and everyone will wonder ‘are those lashes real?’
What makes Sumptuous Extreme Lash Multiplying Volume Mascara extremely volumizing? It’s the synergy of the lightweight Extreme Bold Volume Formula™, a special blend of three customized lash building fibers, and the exclusive Extreme BrushComber™.
Pure energy that pulsates sultry sophistication is the inspiration behind the new vision in color by Estée Lauder Creative Makeup Director Tom Pecheux for Spring 2011. The Wild Violet Pure Color Makeup Collection is a dynamic collection of high-performance makeup and fragrance products to highlight the spring season with a burst of enthusiastic color.
In this intensely vivacious collection, lips delight in shades of electric orange, brazen cherry and violet plum, eyes are smoldering in muted neutrals with wisps of purple for maximum depth and attention while nails are rich and smokey in a modern charcoal. Adding to the collection, a vivid, lush fragrance that has a first impression of Genet Flower, Mandarin, Purple Freesia, Blue Jasmine and Wild Gardenia to create a lively experience and then Amberwood is blended in to complete scent with an energetic, multi-sensorial vibrancy.
Pure Color Lip Gelee ($20.00) (Limited Edition)
Electric Cherry Blazing red
Electric Violet Fuchsia violet
Electric Coral Fresh coral
Electric Pink Brilliant pink
Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick ($24.00) (Limited Edition)
Wild Fire
Wild Blossom
Wild Coral
Wild Violet
Pure Color Five Color Eyeshadow Palette ($42.00) (Limited Edition)
Wild Violet Mix of warm, smokey ember and neutral shades with a powerful, shimmering deep plum at the center
Pure Color Nail Lacquer ($19.00) (Limited Edition)
Storm Charcoal grey
Wild Elixir Fragrance ($55.00 for 1.7 oz.) (Limited Edition)
Compliment the look with a feeling of pure energy radiating from luminous Genet Flower, invigorating Mandarin and smooth woods blended in the new, limited edition Estée Lauder Wild Elixir fragrance. An expressive, sophisticated floral texture evolves into a dry down of soft woods and lingers sensuously on the skin for an utterly dramatic appeal.
Availability: January 2011 at select Estee Lauder counters nationwide and esteelauder.com
Estee Lauder Extravagant Night Nail Lacquer ($18.00 0.3 fl oz.) is a stunning deep dark purple wine base decked out with multi-colored flecks that range from deep fuchsia to violet to gold. Ahh! This was absolutely gorgeous from the first coat on (two coats shown). I don’t even know how to describe the way it looks, because it practically dances under bright lights (like flash), but it still retains its character and depth in natural light. It applies evenly, just like a normal shimmer polish tends to do, but the effect is so much more like a glitter–without the grittiness.
It’s sold out in a lot of places, but Macy’s still has it online! I wish it weren’t so expensive or else they put more in the bottle (0.3 fl. oz. is below average for the price point).
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Product: 29/30
Value: 6/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If it’s something in your budget, YES!
New for December, Estee Lauder’s Sumptuous Extreme Mascara ($23.50) promises to deliver a volumizing mascara that never clumps and “[makes] eyes look outrageously big and amazingly bold.” The brush even has its own name–Extreme BrushComber–which has a new shape that is said to hold more mascara, be easy to use and get to all your lashes in spite of its size. The formula has “Tri-blend Multiplying Fibers,” which include “Hollow Tube Fibers” for curl and length, “Solid Rod Fibers” for volume and length, and “Micro-Locking Fiber” for thickeness and length. Finally, it contains Lash-Advancing Vitamin Complex, which has Vitamin B5, designed to condition lashes and keep lashes flexible. It will be available in four shades: Extreme Black, Extreme Brown, Extreme Indigo, and Extreme Violet.
The brush itself is quite large–a full 1 3/4″ in length when I measured–but the way it narrows and tapers does make it easier to maneuver around the inner corners of eyes. I do find it more difficult to use it on lower lashes, just because it is so large, but I think users of Dior’s DiorShow won’t find it much larger. After using this mascara for a couple of weeks and alternating with other mascaras, I did feel like the brush itself was more helpful in defining lashes–just separating them as I was applying the mascara–than the average mascara wand.
My fringe definitely looked longer and fuller–it had a slightly feathery quality to it–but the richness of the black made the overall effect more dramatic. I was able to do several passes through my lashes without getting any clumping, and this is a mascara that you can easily do a second or third coat of, too, if desired. It doesn’t dry immediately (15-20 seconds), but it’s not so wet that you’ll have mascara residue underneath your eye if you blink. My lashes felt incredibly lightweight and soft–flexible and bendable. I was able to push and rub (gently!) against my lashes and didn’t experience any flaking either.
I was most impressed by the richness of the Extreme Black shade–deep dark black, very inky and solid. It’s definitely one of the blackest mascaras I’ve tried in recent memory. It volumizes nicely, and it gives enough thickness to my lashes to make them more noticeable, but it still feels like I’m wearing one of the lighterweight, more natural mascaras (think Maybelline Full ‘n Soft) but I get the effect of dramatic mascara. I experienced no flaking, smudging, budging, or other ill effects after twelve-hour wear.
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Product: 28/30
Value: 8/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you have shorter, sparser lashes, Estee Lauder does double-duty with lengthening and volumizing. Oh, and if you have black lashes but still want them blacker? This will make them even darker!
Estee Lauder Star Pink Pure Color Gloss ($20.00 for 0.20 oz.) is a milky pale pink with fine golden shimmer. It’s described as a “cool light lilac,” and it swatches that way on my arm, but on my lips, it ends up looking a lot pinker. I could see the lilac being pulled out if your lips are naturally cooler or paler.
Pure Color Glosses have a sponge-tipped applicator, and they are all fig-scented (as the majority of Estee Lauder’s lip products are), which is a slightly sweetened fruit scent. This gloss is just barely tacky; I hate to say it has any tackiness, but there is a touch there. I get about two to three hours of wear, which is average, and I don’t find these glosses to be drying either.
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Product: 26/30
Value: 8/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: It’s a nice gloss, and with so many shades to choose from, if this particular shade of pink isn’t up your alley, you may find another one that is.
