The Sultry Season: Benefit La La Land Lipstick

Benefit La La Land Lipstick ($18.00 for oz.) is a pinky-brown nude with full-color coverage and a light, glossy sheen and no perceptible shimmer.  I love this with a lighter smoky eye or paired with greens. It’s dark enough to be worn on its own for a pop of color on lips, but it’s light enough to complement heavier eye looks, too.  Benefit’s lipsticks are very moisturizing and creamy, so they’re comfortable to wear, and they last about three to four hours on my lips.

Is this the right deep nude for you? Would you wear it?

The Sultry Season is a series of posts featuring deep, rich shades of brown, berry, plum, and wine lipsticks and lipglosses — just right for autumn — that runs through October 2010.

See photos and swatches…

Benefit La La Land Lipstick

Decadence in Nude

Last week, I shared Red Abundance (R2), one of eight shades of Cle de Peau Extra Rich Lipsticks ($60.00 for 0.14 oz.). This week, I’m sharing Just Joey (T2), which is a browned-tan nude with a little peachiness to it. It is completely opaque in just one stroke, and it delivers a beautiful soft glossed finish without shimmer. This would be a beautiful, upgraded nude on both cool and warm skin tones, but particularly so on warmer skin tones.

The Extra Rich line-up includes a total of eight shades: R1 Black Bacara, R2 Red Abundance, R3 Leonardis, R4 Danse du Feu, T1 Halloween, T2 Just Joey, T3 Baby Julia, and T4 Calliope.

The Extra Rich Lipstick formula is opaque, smooth, and easy to wear. I get between three and five hours of wear, even with more nude shades like Just Joey. It clings and hugs lips without being drying (but actually hydrating), but it is still a lovely textured lipstick. It’s just not this thick or overly creamy lipstick that slips around lips, but it doesn’t feel tight or heavy either. I’ve also found that it de-emphasizes the lip lines with the effect really settling in after about fifteen minutes of wear.

Price aside, is this a nude you’d wear?

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• Product: 30/30
• Value: 7/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 5/5

Recommendation: It’s a fabulously lightweight lipstick with excellent color pay off that delivers exceptional wear with a luxury-level price tag.

Availability:  Saks Fifth Avenue

See more photos & swatches!

The Spring Season: Temptalia’s Favorites

After many, many months of swatching and testing, these are my favorites–a whopping eighteen of them! During the Spring Season, we featured cooler nudes (9), cooler pinks (8), soft corals (8), lipglosses (15), warmer nudes (15), and warmer pinks (17) for a total of 72 different lipsticks and lipglosses in varying shades of soft coral, nude, and pink.

Comments & Thoughts

When I picked my favorites, I went through all the different folders I had for Spring Season shades and marked the ones I loved.  At the end, I wound up with eighteen–a little much, but who says there is a limit on favorites?  I do, however, obviously gravitate towards certain shades and tones over others.

• #1 (Benefit I’m With the Band), #3 (Cle de Peau #2), and #17 (NP Set Mauritius Lipgloss) are all in the same family.  #3 is my favorite of this shade family, though.
• I also love the texture of Cle de Peau’s Extra Silky Lipsticks, which necessitated the inclusion of both #4 (Cle de Peau #103) and #5 (Cle de Peau #106).  You’re just lucky I held off on including #124, too!
• Oh, Guerlain! Similarly, Guerlain’s Rouge G lipsticks still have my heart–as evidenced by #6 (Guerlain Garance), #7 (Guerlain Gardenia), #8 (Guerlain Gemma), #9 (Guerlain Georgia), and #10 (Guerlain Guerlinade).  I haven’t found a dupe (nothing even similar enough to bother talking about!) to Garance nor Gardenia, but I feel like Gardenia may be substituted with a peachy nude and satisfy some enough.  Gemma is similar to #12 (Korres #22).  Guerlinade may be duped the best (based on my current lipstick repository) by #14 (MAC Freckletone), but Freckletone is significantly sheerer, glossier, and brighter/peachier–Guerlinade looks more muted in comparison, and obviously creamier and more opaque.
• #8 (Guerlain Gemma) is similar to #9 (Guerlain Georgia) except with that cool gold sheen and a rosier pink base, but #12 (Korres #22) is like a more muted version of #8, too.  #8 is my favorite of the three, but #12 comes close and it’s what, a third of the price?
• #11 (Korres #13) is a lighter, pinker version of #15 (MAC Velvet Teddy).

1. Benefit I’m With the Band Lipgloss
2. Chanel Santal Rouge Allure Laque
3. Cle de Peau #2 Gloss
4. Cle de Peau #103 Extra Silky Lipstick
5. Cle de Peau #106 Extra Silky Lipstick
6. Guerlain Garance Rouge G Lipstick
7. Guerlain Gardenia Rouge G Lipstick
8. Guerlain Gemma Rouge G Lipstick
9. Guerlain Georgia Rouge G Lipstick
10. Guerlain Guerlinade Rouge G Lipstick
11. Korres #13 Natural Pink Guava Lipstick
12. Korres #22 Rose Guava Lipstick
13. Lancome Voile de Rose Lipstick
14. MAC Freckletone Lipstick
15. MAC Velvet Teddy Lipstick
16. NP Set Mauritius Lipgloss
17. Smashbox Splendid Lipstick
18. Urban Decay Naked Lipstick

The Spring Season: Warmer Nudes Lipstick Wrap-up

I’m partial to warmer nudes myself, and I discovered several new favorites through the Spring Season–I hope you did, too!  One reason I love doing end-of-series roundups is because it gives me an opportunity to see if there are good dupes for certain shades.

• For instance, #7 (Guerlain Guerlinade) is a new favorite nude for me, and the closest dupe here is #12 (MAC Freckletone), but it’s not quite there.
• On the other hand, #9 (Korres #34 Nude) and #14 (MAC Touch) have similar coloring but different textures.
• #8 (Julie Hewett Simone) is a pinker, more pigmented version of #2 (Chanel Mythic).  #10 (Lancome Rich Cashmere) seems similar to #11 (MAC Cherish).
• #3 (Cle de Peau #103) seems like a cross between #9 (Korres #34 Nude) and #12 (MAC Freckletone).

1. Benefit Sugar Cookie Lipstick
2. Chanel Mythic Lipstick
3. Cle de Peau #103 Extra Silky Lipstick
4. Guerlain Barbara Rouge G Le Brilliant Lipstick
5. Guerlain Forever Beige Lipstick
6. Guerlain Gardenia Rouge G Lipstick
7. Guerlain Guerlinade Rouge G Lipstick
8. Julie Hewett Simone Lipstick
9. Korres #34 Nude Guava Lipstick
10. Lancome Rich Cashmere Lipstick
11. MAC Cherish Lipstick
12. MAC Freckletone Lipstick
13. MAC Honeyflower Lipstick
14. MAC Touch Lipstick
15. Maybelline Caramel Kiss Lipstick

The Spring Season: Cooler Nude Lipstick Wrap-up

We’re winding down the Spring Season, and the best way to do that is by giving you a visual summary of all of the colors we’ve taken a look at in the past three months!  This post features cooler nude lipstick shades.

• MAC may have a lot of nudes, but it definitely looks like you don’t need to own every single one to have your nude lips covered.  #5 (MAC Creme d’Nude), #6 (MAC Fleshpot), and #7 (MAC Myth) are all quite similar–Creme d’Nude is sheerer and glossier, while Fleshpot and Myth have similar textures, Fleshpot is pinker, Myth is peachier.
• #1 (Benefit Lady’s Choice) and #4 (Korres #13 Natural Pink) seem to be similar, except Lady’s Choice has a glossier finish; #8 (MAC Velvet Teddy) is also similar to these two, but seems a little darker and cooler.

1. Benefit Lady’s Choice Lipstick
2. Guerlain Beige Mousseline Lipstick
3. Guerlain Galia Rouge G Lipstick
4. Korres #13 Natural Pink Guava Lipstick
5. MAC Creme d’Nude Lipstick
6. MAC Fleshpot Lipstick
7. MAC Myth Lipstick
8. MAC Velvet Teddy Lipstick
9. Smashbox Charming Lipstick

Guerlain Guerlinade Rouge G Lipstick

The Spring Season: Guerlain Guerlinade Rouge G Lipstick

Guerlain Guerlinade (01) Rouge G Lipstick ($45.00 for 0.12 oz.) is a creamy, opaque peach-nude with a glossy sheen. I have tried my fair share of Rouge Gs, but this shade in particular really showcases the Rouge G formula to its fullest potential. It’s soft, lightweight, but oh-so-creamy. It delivers incredible full coverage color in a single layer and wears a solid four hours on my lips. Guerlinade may become one of my go-to nudes for smoky eyes. I can’t believe I had never bothered to take a look at it prior to the Spring Season–thank goodness that’s been rectified!

Is this the right nude lipstick for you? Would you wear it?

The Spring Season is a series of posts featuring my favorite soft beige, coral, and pink lipsticks and lipglosses — all perfect for the first blossom of spring — that runs through March 2010.

See photos and swatches…