Dior Coral (730) Serum de Rouge Lipstick
Dior Coral Serum (730) Serum de Rouge Lipstick
($32.00 for 0.07 oz.) is a softened, downplayed coral-pink with subtle gold shimmer. I like this coral shade, because it’s flattering on both cool and warm skin tones. It applies evenly, makes lips look lush, and the color
Other shades in the range: Nude Serum #510 (light peachy beige), Soft Pink Serum #640 (soft neutral pink), Peach Serum 650 (warm pink), Garnet Serum #660 (muted berry), Beige Serum #710 (light nude), Coral Serum #730 (muted coral), Rosewood Serum #740 (plum brown), Raspberry Serum #760 (berry rose), Crimson Serum #840 (vibrant pinkish red), Red Serum #850 (bright red), Violet Serum #860 (plum violet), and Mocha Serum #910 (reddish brown).
Serum de Rouge is a very creamy, silky lipstick with a bit of a lip gloss feel. The color can go on sheerly or be layered for a more opaque look. The formula and feel of the lipstick is really lovely–moisturizing and smooth–and it looks lovely on. My biggest issue with it is how quickly it disappears. I find that reapplication becomes necessary after an hour and a half, maybe two hours. Because it is a glossier lipstick, you can easily over-use the product, and the product itself is about half the size of your average lipstick, so the need to reapply often is definitely not something you want.
The formula actually reminds me a lot of Cle de Peau’s Extra Silky Lipstick. Same size, very similar packaging, but Dior’s version is $20 cheaper. Price aside, Cle de Peau does it better–creamier, silkier, glossier, and wears longer (three to four hours). Serum de Rouge is equally hydrating/moisturizing, though I don’t know if I’d agree with Dior’s description that they’re a “lip treatment.” It feels nice on my lips, when it’s there, but the moisture only lasts as long as the lipstick does, so I don’t think I’d say it did anything for me in the long-run, but I only used it a few days.
Had I not have tried Cle de Peau’s Extra Silky Lipstick, these would definitely rank higher on Temptalia’s all-time favorite lipsticks, but Cle de Peau is a little better–overall–but it does come at a steep price.
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 7/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
Recommendation: If you don’t love lipstick and prefer gloss, I think you’ll like Dior’s Serum de Rouge–it has that glossy feel but the color payoff of a lipstick.
Availability: Nordstrom
, Sephora
YSL Gloss Pur: Pure Watermelon (08), Pure Hibiscus (09)
In June, YSL will launch four new and permanent shades of Gloss Pur
($30.00 for 0.20 oz.). They are part of YSL’s Solaris Collection, which also features several coordinating shades in other product lines.
Currently, the Gloss Pur range includes: Pure Nude (01) (nude), Pure Rose (02) (soft pink), Pure Coral (03) (sheer coral), Pure Raspberry (04) (sheer raspberry pink), Pure Fuchsia (05) (sheer fuchsia), and Pure Plum (06) (sheer plum). New shades include: Pure Sorbet (07) (sheer pink), Pure Watermelon (08) (coral), Pure Hibiscus (09) (fuchsia), and Pure Redcurrant (10) (sheer red).
Gloss Pur is the perfect high-end lip gloss for someone who loves a little bit of color with a high gloss finish. I’m actually pleasantly surprised with the two new summery shades I tried, because they seem a bit more pigmented than previous Gloss Purs I’ve tested out. These glosses are neither ultra sheer nor ultra pigmented but fall on the sheerer side while still giving lips an added touch of color.
- Pure Watermelon (08) is a coral-orange. On my lips, Pure Watermelon is semi-opaque and looks like a softened, toned-down coral.
- Pure Hibiscus (09) is a softened fuchsia with a little violet edge. Applied to lips, Pure Hibiscus is a semi-opaque fuchsia that doesn’t look overwhelmingly bright, but it still feels and looks like a brighter pink.
I find Gloss Purs always make my lips look plumper, fuller–juicier–with soft color that’s great for everyday or paired with a more dramatic look. They have a sweet, mango-ish scent but have no taste/flavor that I could detect. The gloss itself is non-sticky, moisturizing, and incredibly glossy.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
Recommendation: If you’re not a shimmery lip gloss fan, I think you’ll like YSL’s Rouge Purs, which have nearly no detectable shimmer, soft color, and a high gloss finish!
Availability: June 2010
Lancome 100% Natural Juicy Tubes: Rose Pretty, Blushing Beauty
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of Lancome’s Juicy Tubes, the brand has created four shades of 100% Natural Origins Juicy Tubes
. The gloss is made out of 100% natural ingredients, natural flavors and fragrances, natural coloring agents, and FSC certified 100% recyclable material carton.
It is available in four shades: Blushing Beauty (sheer pale pink), Sheerfully Sweet (sheer nude-brown), Pink Precious (soft pink), and Rose Pretty (sheer strawberry). Each retails for $18.
Juicy Tubes are certainly on the sheerer side of things, and to be honest, I’m definitely not an expert on Juicy Tubes in general. These are some of the first Juicy Tubes I’ve tried in quite awhile. I like them for a slick of gloss, but if you’re looking for color, definitely look elsewhere. I tried three of the four shades and they all looked the same on me: clear but ultra glossy.
The gloss looks slick, juicy, and incredibly glossy. It’s a moisturizing gloss with a thicker, jelly texture. I find they last around two to three hours on my lips. I don’t find these particularly sticky–I’d say marginally sticky to non-sticky–but the thicker texture may make you feel like they’re a little sticky. They taste like sweetness (likely from the honey in it) and have an overall sweet scent that’s pleasing and not overwhelming.
I think they’re nice, but since they are on the sheerer side, I don’t see the need to own all four shades–just one will do. If you have very little natural pigment in your lip, you might see a smidgen of color, but on more pigmented lips, they’re definitely going to look pretty clear.
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 5/5
Recommendation: Those who love glossy lips with little color will like Juicy Tubes. They’re a great gloss that doesn’t dry out lips with a sweet taste and scent. If you’re more of a colored lip gloss kind of person, you may find these not to your taste.
Availability: Nordstrom
Philosophy Raspberries & Cream Body Lotion
($24.00 for 16 fl. oz.) smells EXACTLY like raspberries and cream. It’s just ripened, perfectly sweet raspberries with the milkiness of cream to temper it. Smells delicious… makes me want to hunker down with some dessert! Philosophy really has a knack for nailing the scents they’re after. You may not love the scent, but you can’t say it isn’t true to its name. I picked this up at Nordstrom last week, because I couldn’t resist — I’m a sucker for raspberries. They’re my favorite fruit! But nevertheless, I’m glad I did.
It’s a lightweight lotion that feels creamy and absorbs in about five minutes. You get a giant bottle (at least, it seems giant to me, I don’t know when I’ll finish it, if I ever do!), and you really don’t need more than a two pumps for a leg. It’s not an ultra thick, ultra rich body cream–it’s definitely a lotion. I like it for summer and as an everyday lotion, because it doesn’t take forever to sink into skin.
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 9/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
Recommendation: If you love the scent of sweetened raspberries, you may want to give this a whiff next time you’re at a Philosophy counter!
Availability: Nordstrom
Lancome Ms. Perfectly Pink Le Vernis
($18.00) is a creamy, darkened fuchsia-bubblegum pink with a glossy shine. It applies easily and goes opaque in just two coats. The formula is thick without being goopy, and it applies evenly and smoothly without a fuss. I did find the brush itself to be a little wider than the average polish, but not quite as wide as some of the OPIs.
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
Recommendation: This is kind of like a brightened, yet darker, version of Barbie pink, I’d say. It doesn’t seem like a particularly unique/revolutionary shade, but the formula is tops.
Availability: Nordstrom
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The Classy, Sophisticated Way to Wear Gold
NARS Versailles Nail Polish ($16.00 for 0.5 fl. oz.) is a softened yellow gold with champagne shimmer woven through. It has a slightly metallic look to it. It’s very spring-into-summer–the softness of the gold makes it like a gilded yellow, perfect for spring, but it has the shimmer and sheen that makes it great for summer, too. The formula runs a little thick, but it applies easily and goes opaque in two coats. I like that this is a gold that can be worn by cooler and warmer skin tones–it’s not a true yellow gold, so it should still complement those with pinker undertones!
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
Recommendation: For softened champagne-gold with pretty shimmer and a subtle, metallic look, Versailles may be the right shade for you.
Availability: NARS
