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Beauty Notebook: Rings, Things, and Fine Array, an Interview with Bésame Cosmetics (part 4)
Beauty Notebook: Rings, Things, and Fine Array, an Interview with Bésame Cosmetics (part 4)
Posted by Dain, Tuesday, October 09, 2007 8:58 PM (Eastern)
Truly, the lipsticks from Bésame ($18) are superlative. Though I normally cast a dubious eye on browns and their lesser cousins, nudes, I find myself wearing these from the Neutral Collection without anxiety, if not exactly comfort. As with the Red Collection, the colors are masterfully mixed, the vanilla-scented formula pleasant, the packaging adorable, but they are not so pigmented, as the shades are not so bold, and except for Champagne and Chocolate Kiss, less creamy, some are downright dry.
Gold Lamé is the lightest, a light peach infused with gold frost and even a tiny bit of sparkle, with a somewhat dry texture. Like any pale shade that isn't sheer, it mutes the natural color of the lip, but the frost adds a foil-like effect counters that flatness. It gives me an odd feeling, this lipcolor: when's the last time I encountered frost lipstick? Not since the old MAC frosts, Lame and O and all that. I wonder what this is inspired by? The 70s? It is a bit much on me, so I soften it up with clear gloss, so the frost particles don't lie flat for that foil-like finish, but are in suspension, for more depth.
About the same in depth is Champagne, a subtly silvered peachy nude that looks quite lush, not dead on the lips. It has a softer, balm-like texture and semi-sheer coverage, so it is a good training nude because everything about it is soft soft soft like silk. Nudes can make the lips disappear from the face, a look I've never been fond of, but this gives you a lovely soft lip that still has a lot of depth.
Many corals are essential warm pinks with a little orange to them, but Coral is a true coral, an equal marriage between pink and orange, though it actually has a tendency to lean towards the orange, because of the gold flecks that very prettily ornaments this shade. It also has a dry texture, and can be a little rough going on because it has less frost and more sparkle, but it doesn't feel harsh once it's on the lips, and the sparkle is surprisingly soft. Nevertheless, I prefer to apply a touch of lip balm over it, to alleviate the dry texture, and sheer the gold so that it is a more balanced coral, for lips drunk from nectar.
Recipe for Aztec hot chocolate: heat milk almost to boiling, add Ghiradelli hot chocolate mixture, and a dash of red pepper. Or, wear Chocolate Kiss, a creamy medium brown that has much pink added to it, plus a dash of spice. It looks a bit out of place on my face, but for those who like warm colors, this is just a little more fun than the usual pink-brown, the equal and opposite counterpart to a cool shade like my beloved NARS Gothika.
I was curious about Merlot when I heard it described as a "berry red", so I expected something rather cool, but my imaginings were off, because it's a very muted, almost murky warm berry red, very beautiful, like old roses. Apply with a slight hand, it makes a gorgeous stain over lip balm. I find myself at a loss for the words to describe this color; "murky" is appropriate but not exactly flattering. It is soft yet deep, warm yet without any orange tones and very little brown just berry. The image above fails to do it justice: apply and you will see.
Labels: beauty notebook, besame
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