Make Up For Ever #43 Moulin Rouge Rouge Artist Intense Lipstick
Lips That’ll Sing for You!
Make Up For Ever #43 Moulin Rouge Rouge Artist Intense
($19.00 for 0.12 oz.) is a rich, bright orange-based creamy red with a satin smooth finish. There’s a slight sheen but no shimmer or glossiness. The color itself is opaque in one layer, and it holds on and on and on. As such a vibrant shade of red, I get six hours of really good wear and then a slight staining as it fades off for the next two or three hours. Some of the Rouge Artists can be on the drier side (especially the frosts), but this one was particularly creamy and easy to apply.
Mine had no scent whatsoever, but I have heard others say they’ve found them rose-scented. In fact, none of the ten or so Rouge Artist Intenses I’ve tried have any scent!
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: This is one of the best Rouge Artists I’ve tried; it’s very opaque and pigmented, but it is also creamy and applies smoothly.
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
Chanel Pink Pulsion Glossimer
Chanel Holiday 2010: Pink Pulsion
Chanel Pink Pulsion Glossimer ($27.00 for 0.19 fl. oz.) is a brightened fuchsia pink with medium pink shimmer. It’s semi-sheer on my lips; it gives them a nice dose of pink and glossiness with subtle shimmer that sparkles like glinting water. It’s a new and limited shade from their holiday collection, which is complemented by two other shades (to be reviewed). Glossimers are not quite perfectly non-sticky, but they don’t have much tackiness to them. They’re lightweight, on the sheerer side, and wear three to four hours on me. In order to get the full effect of a Glossimer, though, you have to see it dance in the sunlight!
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: It’s not the most original or showstopping color, but I like it a lot. I see this as a shade I’d really like best and use most often over lipsticks to give an extra dazzle and glossiness. I think if you’re looking for only the most original shades, you could skip this, but if you like your glossimers with a little more color, Pink Pulsion might be worth looking into.
AVAILABILITY: Chanel
Chanel Confidentielle Rouge Allure Lipstick
Pretty in Pink with Chanel
Chanel Confidentielle Rouge Allure Lipstick ($30.00 for 0.12 oz.) is a petal pink with a frost finish. It has very subtle micro-shimmer of gold and pink with a frost-gloss sheen. It’s nearly opaque, and it wears well, being part of the Rouge Allure family. It’s a new shade introduced alongside the new Extrait de Gloss line-up. It has a nice yellow undertone, making it a warmer pink, and more suitable for warmer complexions. It doesn’t lean too yellow, though, and will help brighten cooler complexions as well.
Rouge Allures have a slight rose scent, but I’ve found that the scent is usually subtle though occasionally a tube will have a more concentrated rose scent. (I’m not personally bothered by the scent, but those with more sensitive noses may want to check it out in person.) I wore this shade alone for five hours and a coffee, so it holds up with the rest of the Rouge Allure family in respect to wear.
I really thought I was going to find a plethora of dupes for this one, but warmer pinks are certainly a shade range that could use more options. I figured to find at least a few in the Spring Season, but nothing matched quite right to me. Between the medium-pink color and the yellow undertone, it was difficult to dupe.
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- Product: 28/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: For a warmer pink, Confidentielle may be that perfect pink!
AVAILABILITY: Chanel
Zoya Nail Lacquer: Tiffany, Gloria, Crystal
Zoya Fire & Ice: Hot or Cold, It Works
For winter, Zoya has six new metallic shades: Tiffany (soft champagne sparkling metallic), Gloria (pink champagne sparkling metallic), Crystal (frosty blue sparkling metallic), Lisa (celebration red sparkling metallic), Sarah (possibly the prettiest sparkling red metallic ever!), and Valerie (deep purple baby in a sparkling metallic). You can purchase all six together for $40 or individual shades for $7 a pop. Not sure about a shade? Consider Zoya spoons, which cost $0.50 each, but the cost will be refunded in the form of a coupon that you can use on your next order.
- Tiffany is a peach-copper color base with flecks of gold glitter pieces and peachy-pink shimmer. Two coats.
- Gloria is a pinky-red jelly color base with flecks of shiny gold glitter and pink shimmer. Two coats.
- Crystal is a medium sky blue foil with flecks of green-tinged gold glitter and light blue shimmer.
- Lisa is a ruby red with pink-red shimmer. The bottle looks like there is gold shimmer in it, but I couldn’t detect it once applied. In the third natural light photo, you can see a little gold edging around the nail. Two coats.
- Sarah is a deepend brown-tinged red base with pink and copper shimmer. It almost has a duochrome feel to it, but it’s very subtle. Two coats.
- Valerie is a deep blackened burgundy color base with fuchsia-purple and copper-gold flecks of shimmer. I thought this was the most unique shade out of the collection. Two coats.
First and foremost, there is NO DUPE of MAC’s Bad Fairy. I’ve included swatch comparisons just to be absolutely clear about it, but Bad Fairy has a strong duochrome, while Zoya’s collection is more about a sparkling, metallic finish. Tiffany is incredibly peach in comparison, as well as lighter. Gloria has a very similar composition, but because it lacks the duochrome finish of Bad Fairy, it looks different on the nail; it is also less pink, more orange-red. I think the shade should stand on its own, rather than as a comparison to Bad Fairy.
Crystal and Valerie are my personal favorites out of the six; I think both shades are standouts. The way Zoya did a foil base with foil glitter flecks is fun, but I love that it’s a blue base with green-gold layered on top. I love duochrome polishes, and I don’t have anything like Valerie, so that makes it a winner in my book.
The formula was even, smooth, and not too thick or thin. Everything applied with ease, and I didn’t have any trouble removing them. The glittery shades like Crystal may leave some glittery bits on your fingers, but it’s not at all like removing a large particle glitter polish. I used two coats on all six shades, but Lisa, Sarah, and Valerie were quite pigmented in just one. I found to get a smooth, even distribution of shimmer/glitter, two coats were optimal.
P.S. — I can’t believe that Zoya still has common names like Lisa and Sara available in their arsenal!
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: Great formula, fun shades, easy application–any of these are worth checking out if a shade catches your eye.
AVAILABILITY: Zoya
Illamasqua Alluvium Pure Pigment
Illamasqua Art of Darkness: Alluvium
Illamasqua Alluvium Pure Pigment
($24.00 for 0.04 oz.) is just like Ore: beyond gorgeous when you see it in person, but it just doesn’t photograph quite the same way. It’s a metallic medium-blue with a violet-blue tinge and flecks of multicolored shimmer.
I actually did a look with Ore on the lid and Alluvium in the crease, and it was such a lovely combo, but the photos make it look like garbage. I’ll have to see what I can do about the lighting situation and find a way to capture the brilliance of both of these shades in a photo. Hopefully it stays sunny for the rest of the week!
If these were a better value, I’d try making a nail polish with Alluvium–seems like it be a gorgeous shade for nails. (You can read my quantity/price ratio and packaging griping here.)
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 6/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION:
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
Illamasqua Ore Pure Pigment
You’ll Need to See This to Believe It
Illamasqua Ore Pure Pigment ($24.00 for 0.04 oz.) is one of those products that shocks and awes the minute you swatch it. Ore is a medium-dark metallic bronze with soft red undertones, multicolored shimmer, and a dazzling sheen. It’s like a metallic bronze base with Christmas (green, pink, gold shimmer flecks) strewn through it. The frustrating part about this particular shade is it really needs to be seen to be believed. It’s so luxe and full of depth, but it looks better in person than it does in photos.
I loved it patted atop a shimmery primer and blended up with nothing else, but it also works well to layer with or use alongside your favorite coordinating eyeshadows. I had several people stop me when I went out with this look on to ask what I had on my lids (which is not the norm). Over a stickier base, Pure Pigments can easily be used dry, but I do prefer using them wet, as they hold together and apply smoothly and vibrantly.
There are, however, two things about Illamasqua’s Pure Pigments that I don’t particularly like: quantity and packaging. As far as similar products, Illamasqua weighs in with a rather tiny amount (Make Up For Ever wavers between 0.07 and 0.09 oz., while MAC tops in at 0.15 oz.). You don’t need much, so you won’t be finishing a Pure Pigment any time soon, but it’s still worth noting.
The other thing is the packaging, which I find cumbersome and a pain to open. If you’re not careful, it’s easy to loose hold of it and see your precious 0.04 oz. pigment soar across the air. (There is actually a bunch of Ore embedded in my carpet, because it happened yet again to me while photographing.) My best advice for opening these is to wedge your nail between the lid and base and run it around the perimeter a bit, then pull it open. This seemed to alleviate a lot of the fumbling. When it comes to a loose product, I think a screw-top lid might be a lot safer for us clumsy folk.
So why not an A product? Because the quantity is well below average of other comparable, high-end brands and the packaging could be less prone to slipping out of your hands and losing half the product to your carpet, sink, or bathroom floor. This is one of my favorite shades for fall, and I will be purchasing a back-up because it is that stunning.
P.S. — Sephora has it listed as a new shade, but it shows as “out of stock,” though I believe it just isn’t in stock yet. If you can’t wait, you can get it directly from Illamasqua.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 6/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 3/5
RECOMMENDATION: This is a shade that will be so flattering on warmer skin tones, because it will just give eyes added warmth and glow. Cool-toned beauties can work this, but if you have a lot of pink undertones, make sure to use an opaque base to avoid pulling the subtle red undertones out.
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
