Sometimes the days just get away from you. December was like that for me. (Also November. And, well, most of Januaury, but that was time lost to a much needed vacation.) As a result, I'm a little backlogged on posts. >.<
This post - for the few items I picked up from the
Nars Guy Bourdin collection - is one such straggler. Reviews have been out since the dawn of time for this collection, but since it is still available to purchase (from
Murale and
Hudson's Bay) and it's entirely possible some folks are still on the fence, I figured adding my voice to the fray wouldn't hurt.
(Note: I'm well aware of the controversy regarding Guy Bourdin and his approach to women in both his personal life and in his art. Far smarter people than I have spoken with greater eloquence than I can manage on the problematic nature of that art, and whether we have a moral responsibility in consuming products that capitalize on it. My personal feelings aside, I've opted to purchase and consider these products on their own merits rather than by their association with the artist.)
These two are the only limited edition shades I picked up from the collection:
Cinematic Eyeshadow in Cambodia, and
Cinematic Lipstick in Goodbye Emmanuelle. None of the other individual items really spoke to me.
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Cinematic Eyeshadow in Cambodia and Lipstick in Goodbye Emmanuelle |
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Cinematic Lipstick in Goodbye Emmanuelle |
You know I had to get this. A softer, more pastel version of the fuchsias I'm drawn to, Goodbye Emmanuelle is an incredibly pure, cool-leaning medium-toned pink. It's also rich and creamy-looking, with a fair bit of sheen, and instantly opaque. I think I had a Barbie with high heels that were this exact shade.
Despite the sumptuous look, the texture is not particularly thick, but it does feel hydrating on the lips. It wears for an average length of time, and progressively loses some of that sheen.
I'm not generally a fan of buying single eyeshadows at this price point (28$ CAD), but I was completely seduced by the colour and texture of the Cinematic Eyeshadow in Cambodia.
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Cinematic Eyeshadow in Cambodia |
Cambodia is a gorgeous, incredibly pigmented red-bronze, with a frosted, almost metallic finish. It is dense and buttery, but also a little soft and almost crumbly. The payoff is amazing, but it's almost better when it's buffed in with a fluffier brush rather than patted on with a lay down brush.
In the pictures below, you can see the effect when applied straight on versus blended out.
One of the sets in this collection is the Fling Lip Set (55$ CAD, 49$ USD) - which is still available for purchase from
Murale.
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Fling Lip Set |
I have to admit the giant red lips alarmed me more than a little. Technically it's a hard plastic cosmetics case that can be used to store makeup or trinkets. In reality, it haunts my dreams, some weird Andy Warhol/Rocky Horror Picture Show mash-up that just gives me the jeebies.
The stuff inside, however, cannot be faulted. At 55$, that breaks down to 13.75$ per full-sized lipsticks and just slightly smaller lip pencil. (Regular prices are 30-32$.) Even considering the slightly smaller sizes of the pencils, that's still about half the price for each item! That's a really great way to try out four shades that are part of the regular collection.
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Fling Lip Set |
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Top: Lipstick in Roman Holiday and Damage
Bottom: Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dolce Vita, and Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil in Baroque |
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| Left to right: Dolce Vita, Baroque, Roman Holiday, Damage |
The lipsticks are both listed as having a "sheer" formulation, and that's very accurate. The finish is glossy, with enough tint to alter the colour of the lip but not enough to cover it. Wear time is a couple of hours at most, and these do feel more hydrating that the formulation of Goodbye Emmanuelle, though not balm-like.
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| Top to bottom: Nars Lipstick in Damage and Roman Holiday |
Damage is described as a "sheer muted grape" but I would consider it more of a plum that appears more mauve on my lips.
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| Damage |
Roman Holiday is described as "sheer delicate pastel pink", which is correct. It leans a bit cool when swatched on my skin, but picks up more warmth on my lips. Colors like this can sometimes look a little chalky, but I actually love the way this looks on me - a clean baby pink with no ashiness.
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| Roman Holiday |
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| Left to right: Velvet Gloss in Baroque, Velvet Matte in Dolce Vita |
Baroque is described as "raspberry sorbet". To me this has a much stronger reddish-brown undertone than I would expect from something called raspberry, though I would still place it in the plum family.
The texture is quite glossy, even a touch buttery, with a nice amount of slip. Lasting power is comparable to a lip gloss, though it does have a slight staining effect (possibly due to the shade) and a moderate level of sheerness.
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| Baroque |
Dolce Vita is described as a "dusty rose". To me it's a warm-leaning, slightly peachy rose, strongly muted. It's a nice everyday shade, especially if you're looking for something a little deeper than a nude, with a warmer cast. The pigmentation is medium, meaning it can take a few swipes for full opacity.
I have to say I'm not wild about the texture. It's the kind of matte that can feel drying, and will pick up on flakiness. Definitely one that I need to wear over lip balm. Worn alone, it lasts several hours, though not through a meal.
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| Dolce Vita |
Regarding the size - end even though they look smaller, some of that is due to the cap on the end extending the length rather than a substantial difference in size. Here is a comparison with a full-sized Satin Lip Pencil, which is 0.07 oz (or 2.2 grams), compared to the 'mini' sizes of .08oz (2.5 grams) for the Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil, and 0.06 oz (1.8 grams) for the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. I don't have full-sized versions of these formulations, but the weights listed online are 0.09 oz for the Velvet Gloss and 0.086 oz for the Velvet Matte.
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| Size comparison. |
I developped a MASSIVE lemming for the
Promiscuous Lip Set after watching
Ania's Sephora VIB Haul video. Of course, it was sold out on Sephora and everywhere else. I stalked it non-stop for days and when it finally popped up back in stock (for like, five minutes) I snagged it faster than you can say "Crazy Lipstick Hoarder".
I feel a little unkind even writing about it now, since it is completely sold out everywhere, but at least all the items contained within are permanently available, so the only you're missing is the packaging and the makeup bag. And of course the satisfaction of acquiring said shades for 50$ CAD (45$ USD) - 10$ per pencil! Weee! (And slightly less giddiness upon realizing that one of them, Dolce Vita, is a repeat from the Fling set. But that's still 12.50$ per
new pencil!)
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Promiscuous Lip Set |
The packaging is also way less frightening to me, though still kinda tacky. What can I say, big blue lips just aren't my thing.
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| Nars Guy Bourdin Promiscuous Lip Set |
The colours here include one Velvet Gloss (New Lover), with the others being Velvet Mattes - strangely, with somewhat varying degrees of matte-ness.
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| Left to right: Velvet Gloss in New Lover, Velvet Matte in Sex Machine, Dolve Vita, Never Say Never, Cruella |
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| Left to right: New Lover, Dolce Vita (again), Cruella |
New Lover is apparently a "gold infused strawberry pink". The gold is less obvious when applied, more of a faint shimmer. The base shade is muted pink with a slight peach undertone, and a sheer, glossy texture concordant with the Velvet Gloss formula. Lasting power is similar to Baroque's, though without the latter's staining effect.
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| New Lover |
Cruella is described as a "scarlet red" and....yup. A true, medium-toned red, it's actually a touch deeper in real life than it photographed here. This is classic red, and one that applies beautifully. The formulation is, for some reason, creamier and more opaque than the other Velvet Matte lip pencils in this set. It will still pick up a bit on dryness, but it feels a lot smoother going on and needs no re-swiping to achieve colour saturation.
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| Cruella |
Lasting power is fantastic. It didn't make it through a meal, leaving a lipliner ring where the oils in my meal didn't eat away the pigment. In the interest of accurate reviewing, I left it in place to see how the remaining colour would last. (Classy - it's how I roll for you guys.) Shockingly, it made it through the rest of the night, a tooth-brushing, AND a full night of sleep! I assume that if I opt to subsist on a diet of air, Cruella will last forever. (Oh, how aptly named.)
As a note of caution: long-lasting and matte does NOT equal smudge proof.
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| Top to bottom: Sex Machine and Never Say Never |
Sex Machine is described as "pink mauve", and on me this pulls
very mauve, so cool-leaning and dusty that it looks almost grey.
I have to say that this one is NOT for me. The colour is singularly unflattering on me, but if you have a cooler complexion this might pick up more of that pink and look pretty. The texture, however, leaves something to be desired. Out of all the Velvet Mattes, this was the most drying, and emphasized all the texture in my lips, be it lines or dry patches.
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| Sex Machine |
Never Say Never is described as a "lilac rose". When I see "lilac" I think pale purple, which...this is not. It is, however, a very lovely cool, raspberry-ish rose. It's super pretty and English Rose-esque, and I was equally pleased with the formula here.
It's softer, smoother and far more forgiving to any texture on the lips, though perhaps not as smooth as Cruella. Lasting power is good, several hours until eroding significantly during a meal.
Overall I am quite pleased with both the single items and the sets, as the latter are a really fantastic way of trying out a variety of colours and (to a lesser extent) finishes from the brand.
Did you guys nab anything from this collection? Was it love? Do you regret anything?
(I purchased all the items. This post is not sponsored or compensated, all opinions are my own.)
