Guerlain

Guerlain Summer 2015: Bronzed Skin, With Accents of Blue, Hot Pink and Yellowy Gold

April 15th, 2015 by Karen 24 Comments

Hand on my heart, toes in the sand and face to the summer sun, Guerlain’s Summer 2015 Collection threw me for a loop.

Mind you…it was a colorful, lovely loop, but still — a loop, nevertheless.

I’m more accustomed to seeing them summon golden goddesses for summertime, with baked bronzes, toasty tans and luscious corals, all of which, you know, I absolutely LOVE, but they took a different path to the sun this time down a boulevard of bronzed skin (of course), with accents of blue, hot pink and yellowy gold.

It’s more color than I’m used to seeing from them this time of year, but I’m cool with that. I love wearing color, especially when it’s handled elegantly like this.

The collection includes two bronzers, two lipsticks, two waterproof cream eye shadows (a first for the brand!) and a nail polish. All of them are limited edition and coming to Guerlain counters and online this May.

This being Guerlain, and with us talking about summer, it only seems right to start with a Terracotta bronzer. This year, the two My Terracotta Bronzing Powders in the release ($55 each) are wearing special outfits! The pans come with a — I’m not sure how to describe it — scuba suit?

A very fancy scuba suit…

Basically, the cover slips on and off the compacts like a rubbery, silicone sleeve. The sleeve for 02 Natural Blondes is turquoise, while the sleeve for 03 Natural Brunettes is coral.

The first thing I did when I opened 02 Natural Blondes was sniff the pan. LOL! You have to do it, man. Like Guerlain’s other bronzers, these have their trademark tiare flower scent (which I love!).

Tiny flecks of shimmer wink at me when I see the pan sitting in the sun, but the shimmer doesn’t really register on my skin. I’m fine with that, though, since my pores and I usually prefer matte bronzers to shimmers.

Even though the bronzer shown here in this post is 02 Natural Blondes, you don’t have to be fair-haired to wear it. This deep, warm and toasty orange-bronze should suit a wide range of skin tones, depending on how it’s worked. It’s easy to blend and very pigmented, so the bronzed effect is noticeable immediately. You don’t have to use much at all, and if you do, things will go orangey.

As for eyes, the new Summer Waterproof Cream Eye Shadows ($32 each, available in two shades — a shimmery beige called White Sand and a shimmery turquoise called Blue Ocean) are a first for the brand. Cream shadows with a fluffy mousse-like texture, you apply them directly to bare lids with the included doe-foot applicator. Wear them alone or as bases for powder shadows.

Guerlain Summer 2015 Collection: Pictures

guerlain blue ocean nail — Guerlain Le Vernis Nail Lacquer in 700 Blue Ocean, $26

guerlain blue ocean eye — Guerlain Summer Waterproof Cream Eye Shadow in Blue Ocean, $32

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Guerlain KissKiss Lipstick in Rosy Silk Floats Like a Shimmery Pink and Gold Kiss on the Wind

February 26th, 2015 by Karen 20 Comments

If I were wearing Guerlain’s KissKiss Lipstick in Rosy Silk ($37) and blew a kiss across a room to a handsome stranger (let’s call him Nick Jonas), that kiss would drift off my lips and float like a shimmery pink and gold apparition.

The featherweight formula is eminently forgettable…in that I forget sometimes when I’m wearing it because it’s so comfortable.

But the color is anything but forgettable. The slightly see-through pink with golden shimmer alights on my skin like sunshine filtering through the petals of a blooming cherry blossom tree, tender and romantic, ah…

I think one layer works best, which I apply directly from the tube, and then pat down with a finger. When I add more layers, they don’t help, and the formula starts to seek out flakes and settle into my lip lines.

Guerlain KissKiss Lipstick in Rosy Silk Swatch — Rosy Silk

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You Don’t Have to Be a Nimbus to Wear the Guerlain Les Tendres Écrin 4 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Nuées

February 18th, 2015 by Karen 20 Comments

Guerlain Les Tendres Écrin 4 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Nuees — Wearing the new $65 Guerlain Les Tendres Écrin 4 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Nuées

“En Français,” as my high school French teacher used to say! The name of Guerlain’s new spring eyeshadow palette, Les Nuées, means “The Clouds,” and when I wear it I feel like I’m floating in a blue sky surrounded by puffs of white cotton candy clouds…

Les Nuées is what I like to call a “glisten-y” eye palette, because when I buff any of the three lightest shades — the frosty white, the pale pink or the baby blue, which, truth be told, all look pretty similar on my NC42 skin — on my lids with a fluffy eye brush, I end up with glowing, almost glossy, lids.

Then I line my lash lines with the fourth shade, a deep blue, and pat it in the outer corner for depth before cleaning up any fallout (because there is a little) and finishing with mascara.

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Whether Seated in a Balcony or on a Bus, You’ll Look Elegant in Guerlain’s Night at the Opera Holiday Collection

October 28th, 2014 by Karen 35 Comments

Unlike me at karaoke, Guerlain’s new Night at the Opera holiday collection hits all the right notes, tra-la-la-la-laaaaaaaa!

Please pardon my need to insert a vibrato on that last laaaaaaaa! It’s leftover trauma from living with a slightly overbearing opera singer in college. She regularly criticized my breathing technique when I sang around the house (Really, dude? It was just a little Alanis Morissette while I did my chem lab homework.) and held notes out for a beat too long when she covered pop songs.

I still can’t listen to I Still Believe by Brenda K. Starr without thinking of her take on the chorus…

The 10-piece limited edition Guerlain Night at the Opera collection

At any rate, one does not have to enjoy opera, or to have lived with an overbearing opera singer, to derive great joy from the classic holiday reds and golds in this 10-piece limited edition collection for eyes, cheeks, lips and nails.

But an appreciation for opera may translate into a greater appreciation for the release’s finer details, like the bows on the packaging, which are supposed to represent the bows worn by men at big galas, or the bows worn by the ballerinas in their hair.

Me likes. I’m a sucker for strong themes and collections that tell a story. 🙂

Guerlain Meteorites Perles d'Etoiles Illuminating Pearls, $60 — Meteorites Perles d’Etoiles Illuminating Pearls, $60

Guerlain Petrouchka Palette for Eyes and Cheeks — Petrouchka Palette for Eyes and Cheeks

I also like that when I’ve worn pieces from this collection over the past couple weeks, I’ve gotten pretty good feedback — both from El Hub, also known as “the man who never notices anything,” and from you guys, too.

I was wearing pieces from A Night at the Opera on my eyes, lips and cheeks in the Mia Bun Ease post last week and received a number of positive inquiries about the makeup I was wearing.

Guerlain Gloss d'Enfer Maxi Shine Lipgloss in 901 L'Oiseau de Feau — Gloss d’Enfer Maxi Shine Lipgloss in 901 L’Oiseau de Feau on my lips, and the Petrouchka Palette on my eyes and cheeks

The fresh, glowing peachy golden cheeks, shimmery beige and copper eyes, and glossy golden lips — those are pure Guerlain, man. What I affectionately refer to as (in air quotes) “that magical Guerlain holiday glow.” It’s makeup that catches your eye but doesn’t SCREAM IN YOUR FACE.

In that way I think Guerlain totally got this collection right. Yes, it’s a holiday release, and it’s made to feel glamorous and indulgent, but the pieces are also versatile enough to wear during the workweek leading up to the big gala.

Typical for Guerlain, the products are hella expensive. Thankfully, they also exude quality. The eyeshadows, powders and blushes blend effortlessly, and everything — from the lipsticks to the glosses to the nail polishes and that to-die-for jar of golden pinkish peach highlighter (SWOON!) — looks high-end.

If you’re going to take a closer look at the collection on counter, don’t miss the Petrouchka Palette for Eyes and Cheeks, the Meteorites Pereles d’Etoiles Illuminating Pearls, Gloss d’Enfer Maxi Shine Lipgloss in L’Oiseau de Feau, or the nail polishes, especially if you like subtly radiant golds, beiges and coppers.

Le sigh! I could happily wear these pieces every day for a year. With these colors and finishes, warmer skin tones will make out like bandits.

Meteorites Perles d'Etoiles Illuminating Pearls — Meteorites Perles d’Etoiles Illuminating Pearls

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Purple Plus Matte Equals Music to My Ears: The New Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Violines

September 4th, 2014 by Karen 14 Comments

Guerlain Les Violines Ecrin 4 Couleurs Long-Lasting Eyeshasdows — Wearing the new Guerlain Ecrin 4 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Les Violines ($63)

It occurred to me while fiendishly gurgling on my third cup of coffee this morning and scouring every surface of my office (including the floor) for my missing, precious pan of MAC Soft Brown (I eventually found it) that on any given second of any given day, there are women, and makeup-loving men, around the world joining Team Matte Eyeshadow.

If you’ve already been drafted, congratulations, and welcome. 🙂 Now check it — Guerlain’s new Ecrin 4 Couleurs in Les Violines is like the Super Bowl for violet eyeshadow lovahs.

It’s $63, which, ya know, is business as usual at Guerlain, but if you’re open to the idea of paying that much and have a yearning, burning love for matte purples, I think these are pretty great.

Les Violines strums a tune about violet. Its three lightest shades are tonally near and dear to each other, making them ideal for blown-out matte purple looks with smooth transitions, like what I’m wearing on my lids in these pics. I paired Violines with contoured cheeks and a slightly shiny berry lip, for a look that I think has that meow-rrific ’90s thing going for it.

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Cheeks, Lips and Nails Bask in Bronze, Coral and Pink Shades With Guerlain’s New Summer 2014 Collection

May 8th, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Wearing the new Guerlain Summer 2014 collection

I know you’re not supposed to stare at the sun, but in the case of Guerlain’s new summer 2014 collection, it can’t be helped.

The sun symbol on the new Celebration Powder Compact and the bottle of Terracotta Le Parfum is so mesmerizing that I keep losing myself in its golden glow…

While daydreaming about the many eco-adventures I could have while wearing the bronzer and blush compact on my face (I’ve been flirting with the idea of a trip to Costa Rica or Belize), Tabs hopped in my lap! It gave me such a start that I accidentally dug my nails into the pan.

Shoot.

Oh, well. Whatcha gonna do, right? #makeuploverproblems #bronzeraddictissues

This succinct six-piece limited edition collection basks in bronzy, sunny, summery shades of brown, orange and coral for lips and cheeks…and there’s also a gorgeous bottle of perfume.

Not much going on in terms of eye makeup this year — just a single waterproof mascara in Guerlain’s fabulous Cils D’Enfer Maxi Lash formula, which, no joke, makes my lashes look like Zac Efron’s.

I like what I see, but it would’ve been nice to also get some cool metallics or eye kolhs this year.

A few thoughts on the new collection, which is available now at Bloomingdales, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Sephora, Bergdorf Goodman stores and online…

Guerlain Terracotta Sun Celebration Powder Compact ($76): Two shades of matte bronzer to sculpt, and matte pink and coral blushes to brighten cheeks and skin. There’s also a touch of gold (it’s an overspray) for shimmer.

The bronzers apply sheer when I swatch them with my finger, but deposit more color on my skin when I apply them with a brush. Same goes for the blushes. The powders appear effortless and natural on the skin, and blend sans drama.

Guerlain Terracotta Le Perfum — Terracotta Le Parfum EDT ($73)

Guerlain Terracotta Le Parfum ($73): My new favorite “summer in a bottle” scent, it has notes of bergamot, tiare flower, ylang ylang and vanilla.

This soft, summery fragrance is like a forbidden kiss on a tropical beach at sunset… I like to reapply after about 5-6 hours to keep the scent going.

Guerlain 940 Nahema Stack Gloss DEnfer maxi Shine — Gloss D’Enfer Maxi Shine in 940 Nahema Stack ($30)

Guerlain Gloss D’Enfer Maxi Shine in 940 Nahema Stack ($30): Non-sticky and smooth, this sheer bright orange gloss feels delightful on my lips, where it lasts about two hours. It tastes and smells a little like rose-flavored candy, too.

Mmm…

Guerlain 602 Tonka Imperiale Le Vernis Nail Lacquer — Le Vernis Nail Lacquer in 602 Tonka Imperiale ($25)

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Guerlain Is Cooking Up Delicious New Lip Looks With Seven New Rouge G Lipstick Shades

March 28th, 2014 by Karen 29 Comments

Guerlain Rose Grenat — Cooking with K-Dawg and T-Money!

[OK, GUYS, WE’RE LIVE ON THE AIR IN THREE, TWO, ONE…]

Hi, everyone, and welcome to Cooking With K-Dawg and T-Money, the number one cooking show on TTCTV (Tabs the Cat TV), where we teach you absolutely nothing about food.

That’s right! — not a damned thing. 🙂

Hungry for homemade pasta? Salivating over sushi? Craving killer creppes? GURL, you won’t hear about any of that stuff here.

That’s because we dish about makeup, and today we’re cooking up delicious looks for lips with some new products from Guerlain.

Wearing the new Guerlain Rouge G in 864 Rose Grenat ($51), new for Spring 2014 — Wearing Guerlain Rouge G in 864 Rose Grenat ($51), new for Spring 2014

Shoo’, I couldn’t cook my way out of a paper bag, and my cat co-host Tabs lacks opposable thumbs, so he’s no cordon bleu chef, either.

Oh! — I’ve just been corrected by my producer. Apparently, I should have referred to my kitty co-host as, “Internationally renowned plus-size kitty supermodel, hip-hop mogul and founding member of Kitty Mensa Tabs the Cat.”

My bad.

Let’s get started. Step one: prepping our ingredients. 🙂

Four of the seven new Guerlain Rouge G's — Four of the seven new Guerlain Rouge G’s, $51 each, coming next month to Guerlain counters and online

It’s important to use the freshest ingredients, so today we’ll be working with a new crop of Rouge G Lipsticks ($51 each).

Four of the 7 new Guerlain Rouge G's — Four of the seven new spring 2014 Guerlain Rouge G’s

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Get a Fabulously Faux Glow With Guerlain’s New Terracotta Joli Teint Foundation

March 17th, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Guerlain Terracotta Joli Teint — Working my heart-shaped sunnies and a faux bronze glow with Guerlain’s new Terracotta Joli Teint

Taking bronzer to “the next level” (air quotes!).

Raise your hand if you’re a bronzer enthusiast — also known as someone who wears bronzer almost daily, hook or crook, without fail.

I am totally raising my hand right now. 🙂

Guerlain’s new Joli Teint was made for you.

Like a lightweight liquid bronzing foundation, or maybe a primer for your bronzer, it couples SPF 20 sun protection with a warm-toned matte finish and a flexible formula you can wear sheer or built up for more coverage.

Comparable to sunshine in a tube, this magical, lightweight fluid gives skin an instant touch of summer, leaving behind a perfectly radiant glow. Used on its own or paired with Terracotta Powder for buildable color, there is no easier and healthier way to create the perfect customizable tan for every complexion. Terracotta Joli Teint has a feather-light texture that glides on, leaving an incredibly fine and silky veil over the skin. It contains nourishing natural ingredients which counter the visible effects of fatigue, reviving dull skin for a radiant, even complexion. .
–Guerlain PR

Available in five shades — Light, Natural, Medium, Dark and Ebony — it can be worn all by itself as a standalone foundation, or combined with bronzer, which is the way it was designed to be used.

I like it both ways.

The shades are warmer and darker than the shades in Guerlain’s mainstream foundation line, Lingerie de Peau, giving your faux glow an extra boost, like a bronzing support tool.

Wear a little for sheer coverage, or build up layers for more.

Guerlain Terracotta Joli Teint swatches in Natural — Guerlain Terracotta Joli Teint swatches of Natural on my NC42 skin — that’s unblended on the left and blended on the right

Natural, the shade I’ve been wearing, has noticeably warm/orangey bronze undertones, and I like the way it partners with Guerlain Terra Nerolia, the bronzer I’ve been hooked on since last summer. It even has the same wonderful tiara flower scent.

At $53 a tube, it’s not budget by any means, but at least it performs. It goes on smoothly (no patchiness, not even on my dry spots, yay!), doesn’t settle into my exuberant pores, stays put all day long, and best of all, feels lighter than a feather on my skin — almost like nothing at all.

I wore it both days last weekend with a bit of bronzer and some blush, and my pores could breathe. I didn’t feel like I was suffocating under a layer of foundation.

I do a single pump on the back my hand, and then, using either clean fingers or a foundation brush, stipple it on my cheeks just under my cheekbones where I need the coverage. Then, I run whatever remains on the brush along my jawline, down the bridge of my nose and across my forehead.

By that point, if I feel like I need more coverage, I’ll do an extra “half pump,” patting and blending that to build up the level of coverage on my cheeks.

Then I followup with bronzer.

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