Lancôme's Maison Lancôme Gentle and Long-Lasting Powder Blusher ($40) is part of the 29 St Honoré Fall 2011 Color Collection by Aaron de Mey, named after the company's original Parisian boutique at 29 St. Honoré. The stamped powder is a little work of art. It's extremely pretty.Maison Lancôme
in #01 is an extremely gentle pure pink color when all the shades are blended. When you use the top layer, which has an overspray on the design of the lamp post and Eiffel Tower, it definitely adds shimmer. That shimmer will diminish with use.I was surprised by how light this blusher is. It reminds me of Chanel's new Pink Cloud. You can control how pink it is with some careful brush work, but if you swirl your blush brush around all the shades, you'll get a very light pink.
I know the moment I tried Maison Lancôme that it wouldn't photograph well, and I was right. I took 20 swatch photos and those included here were about the best I can do. The shade is so light, it barely shows on my skin. If your skin is darker than mine, it may be more visible.
Firs
t I used a sponge-tipped applicator and applied it very heavily at the top of my arm near my wrist. The blue arrow at the top of this photo points to that location. Then I took a dense blush brush and swirled it around all the shades in the compact. The blue arrow at the bottom of the swatch points near the center of that large swatch.
Hard to see, right? It's even hard to see in person. The blush adds a light pink color that's pretty, but it's more like a pink-tone face powder than a blusher.
Would I have bought Maison Lancôme if I had tested if first? Probably not, for the same reason I didn't purchase Chanel's new Pink Cloud. I have plenty of light pink powders, including some lovelies by Giorgio Armani Beauty. I didn't need more.
If you need one, you will find Maison Lancôme to be a pretty option. I purchased mine at Lancôme's Web site. I saw the 29 St Honoré Fall 2011 display at Neiman Marcus Mazza Gallerie, so it should be available at Lancôme counters.
Photo at top courtesy of Lancome; other photos by Best Things in Beauty