YSL Rogue Volupte Lipstick: Nude Beige

Hello, lovely friends!

When last we spoke in the Blogosphere, I shared with you my newfound obsession with YSL lipsticks and particularly my favorite holiday shade, Red Muse. Today, I bring you a review of another favorite but this time, one that falls within the realm of nudes and pinks: 001 Nude Beige. I almost didn’t purchase Nude Beige in favor of Ultimate Beige, which I was certain would be a more flattering nude however I underestimated how light my winter skin really is, even for a Florida girl. Of the two nude Voluptes offered at Sephora, Nude Beige is the most flattering nude Rogue Volupte for an NC25-30 skin tone (although I am also convinced that 002 Sensual Silk will pair well too but that one will require a visit to the YSL counter).

As with Red Muse, the formula for Nude Beige is ultra-luxurious. The product glides on with ease and saturates the lips with the desired color in one swipe. For such a light shade, I was fairly impressed with the fact that it wore well in a 12 hour day, requiring a mere 2 reapplications and not because the color had diminished but rather because my lips needed a little moisture and I hadn’t any lip balm on hand. Nude Beige transfers less while eating and drinking than the more heavily pigmented RogueVoluptes like Red Muse and Forbidden Burgundy but it does maintain the lips in that desirable nudey-pink state all day. 

I do however find that this shade in particular accentuates fine lines and creases in the lips far more than the other colors, likely because it is so much paler. That’s a problem I find with many of these light nudes and pinks when formulated into that sought-after, non-drying, not-your-grandma’s-lipstick such as the Too Faced La Crème, Revlon Lip Butters, and Urban Decay Revolution Lipsticks. To minimize or eliminate this problem, pamper your lips. Exfoliate and lay down a nice even base (I recommend Too Faced Lip Insurance) before applying. It makes a difference not just with these types of lip products but even the most drying, retro-mattes you can think of!

A quick snapshot of the complete look with Nude Beige before heading out to a Sunday Indian Brunch with the hubby and friends.  On the rest of my face I'm wearing YSL Teint Resist in shade #4 (sand),  Naked 2 for the eyes, NYC bronzer in Sunny, and my Cargo Blush in Key Largo applied with a very, very light hand.

Pros:

• Beautiful packaging, that usual unmatched luxury we come to expect of Yves Saint Laurent
• Non-drying
• Long-wearing
• Pigmented.
• Ease of application.
• Beautiful and very wearable color for light to light-medium complexioned persons. 

Cons:

• Steep price point, even for a prestige brand lipstick.
• Formula tends to settle in fine lines and creases.
• That awful artificial perfumed cucumber scent (this might not be a con for everyone. I personally can't stand the particular scent of YSL lip products).

Bottom Line:

If you can overlook that hefty price tag, this product will no doubt become a cherished addition to your lipstick collection.

Hope you all are enjoying the holiday season! 

Daily Tidbits:

• We went out to Indian Brunch at Copper Chimney in Sunny Isles about a week ago. I can't recall the names of any of the dishes. All I know is that everything was delicious. Highly recommend their Sunday brunch to all you adventurous foodistas out there.  
• I baked a low-sugar, vegan pumpkin pie last night and it's almost half-way gone!
• I unexpectedly achieved VIB Rouge status today at Sephora with the purchase of my Hourglass Immaculate Foundation. Oh well, there are worse addictions.
• It is approximate 12:30 am right now and I just finished packing for our trip to Portugal. Why do I leave things for the last minute?
• Going to Portugal tomorrow! 

YSL Rogue Volupte Lipstick: Red Muse

Hello, friends!

As Cyber Week comes to a close, I've awakened a very dangerous narrow addiction within the scope of a much broader addiction (cosmetics). Having heard a lot of hype about Yves Saint Laurent cosmetics, particularly the lip products, I decided I needed to see for myself what it was all about. I had serious doubts, admittedly, as spending over $30.00 on one lipstick is not something I've ever done. A little over $20.00 is usually as high as I'll go (think Too Faced La Creme and UD Revolution) but what with the holiday Family and Friends discount on YSL's website two weeks ago, I couldn't resist picking up 3 entirely different shades of the Rogue Volupte lipsticks -- the perfect little sampler for a YSL n00b. Stepping out of my economic comfort zone for these products may be the best and worst thing I've ever done...

Yesterday, my husband and I were scheduled to have our holiday pictures taken at Matheson Hammock Park, an enchanting little woodsy place tucked away off of Old Cutler Road in Coral Gables. I, of course, am my own makeup artist and elected to put my Rogue Volupte in Red Muse to the test for a traditional, bold red holiday lip. One swipe of this creamy, luscious formula was sufficient to saturate my lips in vivid red. The formula imparts a lovely sheen for the effect of voluptuous, youthful lips, eliminating the need for a gloss. As the wear time reaches about 3 hours, the color does mattify slightly (but not at the expense of dry lips) and lose some of its original vibrancy; nothing a little touch-up can't rectify. And don't you just want to show off that luxe, show-stopping tube in public anyway? As this is such a wet, hydrating formula, do expect the color to transfer when you eat or drink. Lasting power is still excellent considering that it has so much slip.

Did Red Muse pass the test? Absolutely. I was able to keep my lips red for 12 hours, only having to re-apply twice.

Bottom Line

Pros: 

• Packaging embodies an unmatched sense of glamour and luxury.
• Quality matches the level of effort and detail invested in the packaging.
• The formula is hydrating, youthful, and extremely pigmented without sacrificing at least average lasting power. 
• Red Muse is an all-around flattering shade for many skin tones. 

Cons:

• At $34.00 per lipstick, this is, unquestionably, a splurge and a luxury for the average cosmetics consumer. 
• The description for this particular shade, according to Sephora and the YSL website which describe Red Muse as "a bright orange-red," is inaccurate. The color is a true red with a perfect blue balance. On warmer skin tones, it may appear/photograph warmer than it is.
• The lipstick has a scent approximating perfumed cucumbers. For some it might not be a turn-off, but that's just my two cents.

I will be reviewing my other two Rogue Voluptes next. More to come!

Daily Tidbits:

• I'm going out for Indian brunch this morning. 
• I had the honor of doing my best friend's makeup for her engagement pictures a few weeks ago. It was my first time applying makeup to a face other than my own!
• Our Nespresso machine has been acting up and it is such a nuisance. It's never satisfied no matter how much we descale. Such temperamental coffee makers!
• In less than 2 weeks I will be overseas in Portugal! Going to spend Christmas or "Natal" with the Portuguese side of my family this year. :)

On my way to the holiday photo shoot.

Review of Essence Lipsticks: "Almost Famous" and "In the Nude"

Hello, everyone! Hope you are enjoying the long weekend, whether you are out of town, catching up on your favorite Netflix series (watching Orange is the New Black, as I type this), or just catching up on sleep. I got an early start to my annual holiday beauty hauling last month and in my latest Ulta-specific haul, I picked up a few products by Essence, a brand I've heard much about on Youtube and other beauty blogs but have never had any experience with myself.

So far I only know 3 things about Essence:
1. They are a German cosmetics company.
2. I've only ever seen their products at Ulta.
3. The prices are extremely affordable; we're talking the ELF price range, here!

In today's review we are focusing in on two dramatically different Essence lipsticks: "Almost Famous," a bright sheer red, and "In the Nude" a wearable everyday color.

Now, right off the bat, before we even get into formula, pigmentation, and all that jazz, I'd like to point out that I really like the packaging! Sure, it's plain, plastic and cheap, but I really like the way that the outside accurately matches the color of the lipstick inside. This makes it pretty easy to select your lipstick without having to pop the tube open or look for the label.

Now, as for the lipstick itself, on the lips it feels moisturizing and buttery (think Revlon Lip Butters!). Although they are called "lipsticks" I'd say, texture-wise,  they approximate more of a balm than lipstick. Both of the colors I picked up apply very sheer with one coat. You'll need to build it up the opacity with several coats in order to get a fuller, richer pigmentation, especially when working with "In the Nude." These lipsticks aren't long-wearing so expect to reapply every few hours or so. "In the Nude," being the sheerer and lighter of the two, fades quicker than "Almost Famous."

Almost Famous: I really like this color. In the tube it is a bright pinup red. When applied it is nowhere near as bright as it looks but you can definitely build up the color to a pretty sheer red, and, boy, have I've been digging those sheer reds lately (Revlon's "Rich Girl Red," I'm looking at you.)!This color and formula is reminiscent of the Revlon Lip Butter in "Wild Watermelon," one of my faves from its line!

In the Nude: I didn't know how I would feel about this color when I first bought it because in the tube it looks the type of nude that would wash me out. However because it is so sheer and buttery, when applied, the color seems to "nudify" my lips while letting some of my natural pigmentation shine through. It's quite nice for everyday looks and subtle smokey eyes. Now, one thing I don't like about the Essence lipsticks, and "In the Nude" in particular, is the fact that (as you can probably tell from the picture above) the formula is prone to settling in fine lines or dry areas of the lips. 

Bottom Line...

Pros: 

Low cost - $2.99 each

Packaging: sturdy and an efficient way to accurately display the color of the product

Cotton Candy Scent - although opinions may vary, I find the scent of cotton-candy to be quite pleasant and cute for a lipstick :)

Lovely colors

Not drying

Sheer but buildable 

Cons: 

Wears off easily

Sheer

Formula may accentuate the fine lines or dry patches on lips

For whom would I recommend this lipstick...

I'd recommend the Essence lipstick line for someone who is new to lipstick or perhaps new to a particular color. The Essence line has many more colors than just the two featured in today's post. They've got your pinks, purples, nudes and reds covered. They also offer lipsticks with a frosty finish and without. Bottom line is that there's something for everyone. Interested in trying a purple lipstick but aren't quite ready to invest in MAC's "Up the Amp" just yet? Try out "Sparkling Miracle" by Essence for $2.99 and test out how comfortable you are sporting "purple lips." And although I wrote off sheerness as a con, for some this may be more of a pro (hence why it is featured in both lists). Sometimes you just don't want all that drama on your lips! If lipstick is foreign to your vanity, you may want to take baby steps before you can strut your way to bright bold lips. Or maybe you're a curious makeup addict like moi and you'd be just as justified for buying these up just "because" curiosity and impulse say to do so. That's fine too.

I may consider picking up one or two more shades in the future. But what I'm more interested in trying from the Essence line are the matte bronzer, a few polishes, and some eye products, particularly the mascara, eyelid primer and a few shadows. As far as eye products go, I did purchase the Sun Club palette in "South Beach" at the time that I purchased these lippies but I'm not quite ready to review it yet. Stay tuned!

Do you own (or plan to own) any Essence lipsticks? 

Daily Tidbits:

• Not at work today! Thank God for long weekends!
• It's Carnival week at school! A week of dress down days and long weekend of roller coasters and terribly "bad-for-you-but-tastes-so-good" carnival food awaits. 
• We hit another stop down memory lane yesterday... Sunday brunch at the 94th Aero Squadron! Haven't been there since my bridal shower back in 2010. Fabulous as always.
• As it is a day of rest, I'm not wearing any foundation today, just some moisturizer and Dior CC Cream. So refreshing and light! My skin's been doing pretty okay lately despite the unnatural humidity of Florida autumns. 
• I've really been enjoying throwing pears into my green smoothies lately. Pears are a more perfect source of sweetness for kale smoothies than bananas, I dare say.
• Had "castanhas" (chestnuts) at my parents' house this evening. You know it's fall in a Portuguese house when we start roasting castanhas. Had a bowl of black beans with that. Being Cuban and Portuguese has great foodie perks!

My Favorite Pink Lipsticks

From left to right: Bésame Cosmetics "Debutante Pink," MAC "Angel," MAC "Snob," Maybelline "Pink Please," Revlon "Primrose," and ELF "Classy"

As October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, soft pink lips are definitely in! Although, the argument could be made that pink lips are perennially in... or at least for me, they are. I've come to adore pink lipsticks and 7 times out of 10 you'll catch me in pinky-nude lips at almost any given time of year. Incredibly, there was a very strange time, many moons ago, when I loathed pink lipsticks. I simply could not justify purchasing a natural, flesh tone lip product whose pigmentation was inferior to that of the unnatural yet flattering pinup reds I embraced. Convinced that I was a misplaced pinup myself, I restricted myself to many shades of red, under my misguided teenage doctrine which held that the "point" of makeup was to look as artificially, unattainably striking as possible, in other words: glamorous. And to some degree, this is indeed true! But there are many ways to achieve "glamour," as I would come to learn, and some would rely on the subtlety of the lips.

Around the time when I first started getting serious about eyeshadow (another former faux-pas of my post-pink lip self), I realized that, having perfected the art of the smokey eye, I needed now to perfect the art of a quiet, humble lip. I wasn't ready to go full-on MAC Myth nude but I was willing to try out a soft hushed pink. Nothing that would wash me out or make me look ill or corpse-like and frankly, I'm still not fond of that look. The first one I ever came across was Revlon's "Primrose" and to this day it is one of my all time favorite drugstore lipsticks. So dear it is to me, that I stocked up on backups for fear that it might be discontinued! I've not obsessed to the point of purchasing backups with any other lip product to date.

Without further ado, I present you with six of my favorite soft pink lipsticks.

Bésame Cosmetics Debutante Pink: a warm, frosty (but not too frosty) pink. Of the lipsticks featured in today's post, this is the most expensive, retailing at about $22.00 a tube. But the packaging on this lipstick is a beautiful nod to the elaborate detail that went into the packaging of vintage cosmetics, especially the lipsticks. This is the type of lipstick you'll just love pulling out of your clutch at a social event, not because you really need a touch up (after all, this semi-matte formula is super long-wearing!) but because you want to show off how fancy you are!

MAC Angel: A very recent favorite. Seriously, I don't know what took me so long! This color is so "up my ally." I had it pinned on my Wishlist Board on Pinterest what feels like forever ago! Finally got around to picking it up at MAC the other day and I'm so glad I did. Admittedly, it's less opaque that I expected of a MAC lipstick, but the color is nonetheless build-able and wearable. Not as long-lasting as my other MAC lipsticks but wears long enough before reapplication. Somewhere between a nude and pink, this color is so versatile that it is as perfect for smokey-eyes as it is suitable for fresher, lighter looks too.

MAC Snob: This is the most opaque pink of the bunch. It also has the most obvious tones of cool blue and even lavender. For these reasons, it is probably my least favorite on this list. Not that I don't love cool tone pinks; on the contrary, I love them. But "Snob" is just a little too blue. I find that this color builds up very fast and can be somewhat unflattering when applied too thick. I know it sounds like I don't like "Snob" and at this point, you're probably wondering why I even included this one in the first place! But I assure you that I do like it, wear it, and am happy to have it in my collection. I actually love the way it looks when applied with a lip brush or even just a light hand. This is also one of the few lipsticks I prefer after hours of long wear, as the stain it leaves is more flattering than when freshly applied.

Maybelline Pink Please: This one reminds me a lot of MAC "Angel," but perhaps peachier and more opaque. Unfortunately, this color was discontinued from the Color Sensational line a few years ago for reasons unknown. It is my understanding that this was one of Maybelline's most popular lipsticks at one time. I am very fortunate to still have a tube of this. If you never had the opportunity to pick up "Pink Please," Mayelline's "Born With It" (featured below), also from the Color Sensational line, is a very close match worth looking into.

The difference is subtle but "Born with it" leans more towards a nude and "Pink Please" leans more towards pink. I think it is a great alternative for anyone who missed out on "Pink Please."

Revlon Primrose: As I mentioned earlier in this post, this is my all time favorite drugstore lipstick. A lot of cosmetics enthusiasts praise it is as a good dupe for MAC Snob, which we discussed prior. I say that it is actually a perfected version of "Snob." This is what MAC Snob should be. While the cool blue undertones of this pink are still palpable, they are not as overwhelming as those in MAC "Snob" making "Primrose" much more wearable. I've worn it with smokey eyes and lighter eyes and I attest to its endless versatility. It is particularly flattering on light-medium skin tones with yellow or olive undertones (such as my own). Formula-wise it is creamy, well pigmented and long-wearing, as almost all Revlon lipsticks typically are, and it leaves a beautiful stain after many hours of wear, much like MAC Snob. Retailing at about $7.00 at most drugstores (that's half the price of Snob FYI), I highly recommend trying out "Primrose" before purchasing any high-end pastel pinks, especially if you are new to the whole "pinky-nude" thing.

ELF Classy: Originally, I had planned to feature only 5 lipsticks in this post but I decided to include ELF's lipstick in "Classy" as a kind of "honorable mention" because while it isn't the best formula, or the most nicely packaged, it far exceeded my expectations of a $1.00 lipstick. Yup, you read right-- $1.00. This lipstick is a part of the ELF Essentials line, in which all products generally go for about $1.00. "Classy" is a pretty Audrey pink, though you'd never be able to tell based on the ELF website's color guide. It applies very sheer at first so you will need to build up color with several applications but once applied it is surprisingly long-wearing. What I don't like about the formula is that the lipstick seems to melt in my cosmetics bag when I'm out and about. Granted, I know that Florida weather is typically unkind to all, but this is the one of the only lipsticks I own that travels so poorly.

Have you tried any of these lipsticks? What are your favorite pinks?

Hope you're having a great week so far!

Daily Tidbits:

Doesn't that look delish? Tony ordered a dessert consisting of blackberries soaked in honey and sage. We both shared assorted macaroons. I had a double-shot Dharkan, one of the latest and most intense varieties put out by Nespresso. 

• Tony and I hit up our favorite coffee bar, Nespresso, in South Beach this past weekend (as per Instagram). We have the Nespresso machine at home and we love it but it's always nice to go out and be waited on with an assortment of macarons. Have you ever been there? If you haven't, you've gotta check it out. The ambience is so fabulously avant-garde.
• I had a chocolate Kale smoothie today for lunch. Chocolate makes for a great way to start the week. 
• Report cards are finally printed. Can't wait to start posting those 2nd Quarter grades! 
• Making a chickpea hot pot tonight!