Guerlain Blush G Serie Noire
Guerlain Spring 2011: Blush G Serie Noire
Guerlain Blush G Serie Noire ($65.00 for 0.28 oz.) is a pink and coral lover’s dream. There are four distinct shades in the palette, though it is expected to use either the two top shades or the two bottom shades together at the very least. It’s not really feasible to use just one of the shades individually, as the size of each strip doesn’t lend itself to that–perhaps the upper most shade which is also the largest stripe.
There is a coral-red strip with subtle gold shimmer, a softened fuchsia pink with gold sheen, a peachy-pink with gold sheen, and finally a soft rose pink with pale gold sheen. When swirled together, I managed to find a shade of medium peach-pink with gold sheen, which I found a bit like NARS Orgasm (and the many dupes for it). However, keep in mind that it easily gets darker, more coral, or lighter, pinker, depending on the concentration of each shade you use.
I swished my brush across the surface (once forward, one back), then tapped against my forearm to remove any excess product, and applied to cheeks (using MAC’s 116 brush). On me, it was a pinked coral with subtle gold sheen. As someone who loves corals, peaches, and variations on them, this moves me. The black lacquered palette is beautiful, and the design of the shades inside is beyond elegant. The texture is smooth, soft, and easy to blend on the skin.
P.S. — On lips, I wore Guerlain Rouge Sensual Rouge G Serie Noire + Chanel Insouciance Extrait de Gloss.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 7/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 5/5
RECOMMENDATION: This will work for any shade of skin tone (light, medium, or dark), because it can be intensified or softened, depending on the look you’re going for. I do think it will be flattering on both cooler and warmer skin tones, but the golden sheen found in all four shades does make a more compelling case for warmer skin tones.
AVAILABILITY: January 2011
Benefit Dandelion Powder
Quick Review: Benefit Dandelion Box Powder
Benefit Dandelion Box Powder
($28.00 for 0.35 oz.) is a softened peach with a hint of pink and a golden shimmer-sheen. On me, it definitely leans a little peach, but I could see the pink tones being pulled out on cooler skin tones that have more pink in them naturally. This is meant to be a soft color, so it works best as a highlighter or if dusted lightly, an all-over powder. I would the very palest of skin could use this as a subtle blusher. One box will last you quite awhile, given the massive size of the powder, as most blushes are half the size!
Welcome to Swatch-all-idays! To start 2011 off on the right foot (or post, as it may be!), Temptalia is going through a backlog of products we have photographed, swatched, and often tested but in a slightly different manner. Quick reviews may be partially incomplete, such as a blush may only be swatched on the arm rather than shown on the face. It is our hope that what we are able to provide is still helpful!
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- Product: 28/30
- Value: 9/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: For something that adds a natural glow without going overboard or adding a lot of color, Dandelion works well. It flatters both warmer and cooler skin tones, too!
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
Estee Lauder Radiant Peach Blush
Quick Reviews: Estee Lauder Radiant Peach Blush
Estee Lauder Radiant Peach Blush
($26.00 for 0.25 oz.) is a golden shimmered coral with the same soft, silky texture Estee Lauder’s powder blushes are known for. It’s a beautiful blush and highlighter combo–the way the golden shimmer plays with the coral really makes it unnecessary to use a highlighter on top. For me, this is the kind of shade I can never get enough of; it doesn’t matter if there are dupes, I always have to have every iteration! Estee Lauder’s shimmer is a shimmer-sheen with nice pigmentation, too, which makes it a nice variation.
I have done a comparison of many peachy-corals here. This is Estee Lauder’s version of the cult-favorite NARS Orgasm. It is also similar to MAC Springsheen. You can also check out a whopping six pages worth of dupes for NARS Orgasm over at The Dupe List.
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- Product: 28/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: Another good choice for your coral blush needs!
AVAILABILITY: Nordstrom
Becca Tuberose Lip & Cheek Creme
Quick Reviews: Becca Tuberose Lip & Cheek Creme
Becca Tuberose Lip & Cheek Creme ($29.00 for 0.10 oz.) is an elegant shade of subdued coral with a flush of pink. It has a creamy, smooth consistency and blends effortlessly on cheeks. It’s not too sheer or too intense, but it will certainly deliver a lovely layer of color with little work. The formula is excellent because of the natural finish (no shimmer, no real sheen, just color) and the all-day wear (at least eight hours). This works well as an easy, everyday kind of blusher that wears well and flatters both warm and cooler skin tones.
As much as I liked it on cheeks, it didn’t do much for me on lips–too drying, a little sheer, and overall, not a product I’d use again on my lips. It works so much better as a cream blush that I don’t see any reason to waste it on lips when there are far better lip products in my stash. I also wish that there was more product for the price tag (or the reverse would work, too!). Please take heed that this product as a blush is easily 29/30, but it’s supposed to be dual-purpose and I think it falls short of being a worthwhile lip product.
It reminded me of NARS Cactus Flower Cream Blush, but it is less intense and contains no gold shimmer. It is also pinker and more coral than the nude MAC Ladyblush Blushcreme.
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- Product: 26/30
- Value: 7/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: It is a universally flattering cream blush that not only looks beautiful on the skin and blends easily but it wears impeccably throughout the day–not an easy task at all for a cream blush!
AVAILABILITY: Becca
Estee Lauder Radiant Berry Blush
Thinking of Sugar Plums This Winter
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.
AVAILABILITY: Nordstrom
Urban Decay Spring 2011: Afterglow Glide-On Cheek Tints
Urban Decay Afterglow Glide-On Cheek Tints ($24.00 for 0.14 oz.) are a new way to get a hint of color with the “glow of a cream without any greasy feel.” The shades have “lightweight, sheer, buildable color” that can be used on bare skin or over foundation. There are seven shades: Bang (sheer coral red), Crush (sheer hot pink), Fetish (sheer mauve with fine pearlized finish), Greedy (sheer blackberry), Indecent (sheer apricot with pearly gold shimmer), Quickie (sheer bubble-pop-electric pink), and Score (sheer pink lemonade with fine pearlized finish).
- Bang is a sheer darkened orange–almost like a burnt orange but not burnt in a bad way. I think this is a shade suitable for medium to dark skin tones, likely with yellower undertones.
- Crush is a semi-bright Barbie pink. It seems to blend seamlessly against my warmer complexion in a way that makes it look natural, and I think it’s due to the very subtle blue undertone.
- Fetish is a pinked mauve with soft white shimmer. It looks more like a soft rose on my cheeks, and the shimmer is detectable but not overpowering.
- Greedy is a cool-toned purple-berry. It looks intimidating in the pan, but like all of the shades, it is sheer, so it is more workable. I think this is a shade that suits cooler skin tones in particular.
- Indecent is a shimmering peach-orange with soft gold shimmer. On me, it kind of disappears, but it gives a natural glow/flush that I do like. Lighter skin tones will see more color pay off, though.
- Quickie is a cotton candy pink with blue undertones and a light white shimmer. Despite the bluer undertones, it doesn’t look too cool or pale on my skin tone.
- Score is a rosy pink-brown with pale champagne shimmer. I’m not sure what about this is really “pink lemonade.” On my medium skin tone, this gives a slight rosiness to cheeks, but it would work better on lighter skin tones.
I always find that cheek stains/tints always do better on bare skin than on foundation-covered skin, and it held true (for me) when I was testing out these new tints. They are touted as a tint, and there is nothing in the marketing materials that speaks on expected wear time. With shimmering shades, wear definitely seemed reduced with three to four hours of nice wear, but then some fading as the day worn on. For the shimmer-less shades, wear was better and gave four to six hours of color and began fading thereafter. I could extend the wear (for either finish) by another hour or so by applying it directly on bare skin. (I, unfortunately, do not have perfect or anywhere close to perfect skin, so I don’t see myself wearing the tints on their own very often.)
They are very easy to use, and Urban Decay is right when they say they are difficult to mess up. These blend into the skin very well, just with fingertips alone, but they also worked well with a small stippling brush (I used MAC’s 188). My preferred method of application is to use a brush to deposit the color on the cheeks and a (clean) fingertip to blend out the edges.
These can be used on the lips, but they work best on freshly exfoliated lips. I also felt like I needed several swipes of product to get enough to give my lips a boost in color. I don’t feel like it works much like a stain, because it easily wipes off (napkins, coffee cups). The consistency is also thin, so it does not seem to lock moisture in. It has a slightly creamy, but more gel-like consistency and texture–I would say they are a cross between MAC’s Cremeblends (that were limited edition) and Tarte’s Cheek Stains. They would also be comparable to Stila’s Convertible Color.
When compared to Tarte’s Cheek Stains, these are a lot less for your money, but against other high-end brands (like NARS, Stila, etc.) for cream or gel blushes, Urban Decay’s pricing/quantity seems to be right there on average.
All seven shades looked natural, and all but Indecent gave my medium skin tone noticeable color. I see Crush, Fetish, and Quickie being popular amongst most skin tones. Indecent is lovely for fairer skin tones or as a highlighter on medium to dark skin tones. I like Bang and Quickie for cooler skin tones, while Bang and Indecent seem best for warmer skin tones.
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- Product: 25/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you are a fan of Tarte’s Cheek Stains, I think you will like these. They have a similar consistency, but they come in pot form.
AVAILABILITY: January 2011 @ urbandecay.com, early February 2011 @ Beauty.com, Macy’s, Sephora, ULTA
