Guerlain Spring 2012

This spring is la vie en rose, according to Guerlain. Pink comes back every spring, and I know you pink-lovers out there are as happy about that as I am about the seasonal recurrence of my beloved corals.

Several brands (Lancome, Guerlain, Chanel, Laura Mercier) are making the statement that pink can be worn anywhere — lips, lids, and cheeks. (And nails, of course.) Hanging around the counters, I often hear ladies express a reluctance to put on pink eyeshadow. Pale pinks are easy, of course, often acting as lid-brightening shades — but PINK-pink? This photo of Ginta Lapina makes me believe that anything is possible with enough eyeliner.

Anyway, Guerlain’s spring collection is full of eyeshadow palettes. Let’s start with the two new eyeshadow quads ($59).

12 Les Aqua is not as similar to the holiday palette (10 Les Ombres de Nuit) as I originally thought. The shades in Les Aqua are a matte, dark, muted, charcoal-greyed blue-green; a satin sky-blue/lagoon-aqua with a subtle gold duochrome; a shimmery Greek blue/justice-blue; and a shimmery white.

11 Les Roses includes a red-purple-brown/burgundy-brown shimmer; a frosty bunny-rabbit white-pink; a matte carnation pink/candy-strawberry pink; and a very similar shade in a satin finish (though it’s just a bit more red-violet than pink).

There’s also a new six-pan eyeshadow palette (Ecrin 6 Couleurs, $84). 66 Boulevard du Montparnasse includes a soft, matte/satin white; a matte/satin dusty pinked-lavender; a matte/satin bruisey purple-rose; a soft, matte/satin black violet; and a shimmery bubblegum pink. The liner shade is a satin black plum when swatched dry. Wet, it brightens into a royal plum.

There are four Rouge G de Guerlain lipsticks in the spring collection, and they’re all quite sheer. 72 Rose Innocent is a sheer, pale, cool-ish pink. 73 Rose Ensoleille is a ruddy peach (my favorite, of course). 74 Rose Piquant is a warm pink. 75 Rose Barbare is a deeper, more red-violet pink. The lipsticks are $46 each.

There are also four Kiss Kiss glosses. 869 Rose in Bloom is a warm, sheer baby pink with lots of gold sparkle. 870 Cherry Pink is a sheer flamingo fuchsia with fewer silver sparkles. 871 Frosted Pink is a frosty, shimmery, pearlescent white-pink. 872 Flush Pink is a warm candy pink with a medium number of gold sparkles. The glosses are $32 each.

And the coup d’grace: Cruel Gardenia, a flower-embossed, pressed Meteorites highlighting powder ($67, and one of this spring’s most sought-after makeup items). It provides a delicate veil of shimmering iridescence; you really don’t see the pale pink until you swatch it heavily.

This collection also includes the nationwide launch of Noir G mascara (Saks had the early exclusive). The mascara comes in the same packaging as the Rouge G lipstick (mirror included), and is refillable. The complete unit is $49; the refill is $26. I got my hands on a sample, and it is an impressive mascara. Every time I wore it, people were really noticing my lashes — Noir G made them full and extremely long, and that can be addicting. But if I’m nitpicking, I worried that it was too mascara-y a mascara. I’m all for implausible lashes, but I want to think “lashes” when I look in the mirror, not “mascara.” I had to remember not to go overboard with the number of coats, or I felt I could almost see the thickening fibers. I definitely recommend a metal lash comb. Noir G mascara is also rose-scented (which I think is nice).