Here's the thing about Guerlain Le Rouge G lipstick: It annoys me. Not because the lipstick is not good. It's great, actually. Not because the colors are off. The colors are beautiful and I found a perfect medium rose, Gracia, no. 66, that looks perfect day and night and has been my go-to color the last couple of weeks. The packaging is also gorgeous, which is where the problem starts for me, even though I'm a sucker for luxurious packaging.
While the lipstick itself is a standard size, the double mirror flip top case is heavy- 91g or 3.125 oz. I weighed it on my kitchen scale. It's not refillable so the case cannot be recycled, which is a huge waste. Then there's the marketing hype about the formula with its crushed ruby powder. Do we even want to have makeup that contains crushed gemstones? And put it on our lips? I looked at the ingredient list, which wasn't an easy thing to do, as it's printed in super dark gray fonts on the black background. You have to hold the box a certain way against the light to be able to read it. Synthetic ruby powder is somewhere in the middle, right after perfume and before myrrh extract, so I'm guessing it's not that significant. So why is it even there? It's not like Rouge G is shinier than any lipstick ever made. It's pretty, shiny and looks right there with other great lipsticks from Chanel, Armani, Chantecaille and other excellent brands.
Since it's obvious we're paying more for the packaging than for the actual lipstick, it reminds me too much of Guerlain's instant-lux perfumes. Things like the $9000 bottle of Mon Precious Nectar or the $420 sugar fest of Le Secrets de Sophie. It makes you wonder, and not in a good way.
Add to that the attitude I was given at the Bergdorf Guerlain counter. I was asking about the formula, the difference between Le Rouge G and Kiss Kiss Maxi Shine and wanted some more info. All the SA had to say was "it's made with real rubies". Why, thank you. Since they were out of No. 66, I was happy to go and give my business to Saks. Not that it helps with my Guerlain annoyance, but at least the commission went to someone who would actually smile at me.
Bottom line: The lipstick is great, LVMH is still evil.
Guerlain Le Rouge G lipstick ($45) is available from most decent department stores. I bought mine at Saks in NYC.
All photos are mine.
While the lipstick itself is a standard size, the double mirror flip top case is heavy- 91g or 3.125 oz. I weighed it on my kitchen scale. It's not refillable so the case cannot be recycled, which is a huge waste. Then there's the marketing hype about the formula with its crushed ruby powder. Do we even want to have makeup that contains crushed gemstones? And put it on our lips? I looked at the ingredient list, which wasn't an easy thing to do, as it's printed in super dark gray fonts on the black background. You have to hold the box a certain way against the light to be able to read it. Synthetic ruby powder is somewhere in the middle, right after perfume and before myrrh extract, so I'm guessing it's not that significant. So why is it even there? It's not like Rouge G is shinier than any lipstick ever made. It's pretty, shiny and looks right there with other great lipsticks from Chanel, Armani, Chantecaille and other excellent brands.
Since it's obvious we're paying more for the packaging than for the actual lipstick, it reminds me too much of Guerlain's instant-lux perfumes. Things like the $9000 bottle of Mon Precious Nectar or the $420 sugar fest of Le Secrets de Sophie. It makes you wonder, and not in a good way.
Add to that the attitude I was given at the Bergdorf Guerlain counter. I was asking about the formula, the difference between Le Rouge G and Kiss Kiss Maxi Shine and wanted some more info. All the SA had to say was "it's made with real rubies". Why, thank you. Since they were out of No. 66, I was happy to go and give my business to Saks. Not that it helps with my Guerlain annoyance, but at least the commission went to someone who would actually smile at me.
Bottom line: The lipstick is great, LVMH is still evil.
Guerlain Le Rouge G lipstick ($45) is available from most decent department stores. I bought mine at Saks in NYC.
All photos are mine.
No comments:
Post a Comment