Laura Mercier Laque Rouge: Something this good should be made permanent, Laura!

One of my most anticipated Holiday 2012 items to pick up was the Laura Mercier Laque Rouge from their Art Deco collection. The collection arrived late here for some reason and I think the girls at the LM counter were quite sick of me popping my head around at every opportunity to ask about Art Deco 😀 Persistant, I am!

So the day I popped my head around the Bangsar Village 2 counter (do look for May, she’s lovely!) and asked “Art Deco?” and she said “Yes, its here!” was a happy day indeed. I ended up only picking up the limited edition Laque Rouge lip lacquer, because the rest of the collection did not quite appeal.

* mis-spelling in photo – should read Laque Rouge 😛

The Lip Lacquer is Laura Mercier’s take on a liquid lipstick. What it is is a very pigmented, opaque lip colour with a lovely lacquered shine. Liquid lipsticks were really big about halfway through 2012 and I forsee that the trend may continue over into 2013. I tried a couple but none of them held up to the staying power of this one.

Which is why I’m glad I picked it up, because it quite seriously, does not budge!

The product comes in a typical liquid lipstick case, and in fact looks pretty much like a regular lipgloss. The golden cap is a matte gold plastic which doesn’t look as glamorous in person as it does in the photos. I must confess to feeling a little let down.

I’d seen it in person before quite a few months ago, but I had forgotten what it was like. I originally also thought that the texture would be like that of a lipgloss – slippery, glossy but pigmented. Turned out I was wrong.

The texture of the Laque Rouge is thick. It has a thick but smooth gel-like consistency and very little goes a very long way. For a lip colour this bright, it can pose quite a challenge if you are hesitant to wear bright colours. But the beautiful part of it is that this product wears beautifully as a lip stain.

Laura Mercier Laque Rouge swatch – 1 layer

See what I mean by pigmented? This is straight from the tube, from an applicator that has been wiped down the side of the tube. The colour is a gorgeous true red without leaning too far towards being cool or warm. For some reason, it reminds me of molten chocolate in its consistency. Chocolate! That’s a first LOL!

Because it is so strongly pigmented, what I do is to wipe down the excess gloss on the side of the tube before applying to my lips. The sponge tipped doe foot applicator holds enough colour to coat your lips once over, and for most, this would be sufficient.

Be careful because like molten chocolate, the gloss may drip and result in the opening of the tube looking a little bloody 😛 You can see it in the photo above.

If you aren’t the daring sort, or if you want to not have such an in-your-face red lip, you can just dab one dot in the middle of your lower and upper lip and use a lip brush to sheer it out. The colour is still pretty strong, but it will sheer out quite well, and give you a lovely stained lip.

What I think impressed me the most is the staying power of this lip lacquer. It lasts for hours on my lips through copious cups of water during the day and almost made it through an oily Chinese noodle lunch. Almost. I could have easily blotted off, applied lip balm over and go about my day without having to wipe off and start over. That’s how long lasting it is, and I have to just also say that this one of the few bold lip colours that do not leave that ring of colour around your lips – you know, where it wears off from inside out? Ugh! I hate that 😛

Unlike most long lasting lipsticks, it isn’t drying at all. I wouldn’t say its moisturizing, but it doesn’t dry out my lips and in fact, seems to make my lips look smoother than they are

This is just 1 layer of colour all over. The doe foot applicator makes it easy to control the shape close to the lip line and you can see that the colour is seriously pigmented yet it gives a nice glossy finish. Its a very lovely face-brightening shade of red that I think is flattering on almost anyone.

In a nutshell

The Laura Mercier Laque Rouge Lip Lacquer is a limited edition liquid lipstick from the Art Deco collection. It only comes in 1 shade which is a very flattering true red that I think will suit most skin tones. The product feels like molten chocolate and coats lips with colour with just 1 thin layer. If you layer it on, it will look stronger but one thin layer is more than enough for most. It isn’t drying and gives my lips a nice smooth appearance with a nice glossy sheen. It is also extremely long lasting. Definitely one of the more long lasting lipsticks I own, which is useful especially when you can never tell if your red lipstick is wearing off and leaving that odd ring around your mouth. Perfect for wearing through dinners and on occasions when you need some attention drawn to you or when you just want to put your best face forward 😉

Pros: Long lasting, Pigmented colour, Smooth texture with nice glossy sheen, Can be sheered out as a lip stain

Cons: Limited Edition

Who will like this: Anyone who is in the market for a long lasting red lipstick

For an idea of what this looks like in a face shot, here’s how it looks on me.

*mis-spelling of Laque Rouge

Eyes – Smashbox Softbox palette Face – NARS Tinted Moisturiser in Finland Cheeks – Bobbi Brown Clay blush

This is seriously, one of the best red lipsticks I’ve ever owned or tried and I’m happy to have hounded the counters for it 🙂 The fact it is long lasting and does not slide off quickly despite oily meals ranks it higher in my books than some other liquid lipsticks e.g. Guerlain Rouge G l’Extrait or Shiseido Lacquer Rouge because those slipped off quite quickly after a bowl of oily noodle soup. This one held on far better so will be my pick for when I have to hungrily slurp down oily noodles whilst having to keep my cool polished composure. I have to assure you at this point that it happens far more often than I care to experience! LOL! 😉

Did you check out the Laura Mercier Art Deco collection? Did you pick up Laque Rouge?

I’m glad I did! 😀 As of now, this formula and product is limited edition and only comes in 1 colour. It would be nice to see Laura Mercier make this permanent or bring in a couple more colours to appeal to those who may like the texture but who are afraid of the bold colour. A lovely browned rose or pink rose might be a nice addition. Let’s hope those happen.

Paris B

Laura Mercier Laque Rouge lip lacquer Price: RM89 Availability: Laura Mercier at Bangsar Village II, Fashion Avenue Pavilion KL, Ken’s Apothecary stores but I don’t see it online Limited Edition: Yes, Art Deco Muse collection Winter/Christmas 2012

Ingredients: Polybutene, Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, Trimethylolpropane Triisostearate, Mica (Ci 77019), Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Diisostearyl Malate, Octyldodecanol, Sucrose Acetate Isobutyrate, Microcrystalline Wax (Microcrystallina Cera), Silica Dimethyl Silylate, Triisodecyl Trimellitate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Hydrogenated Styrene/Butadiene Copolymer, Propylene Carbonate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Portulaca Pilosa Extract, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38, Sucrose Cocoate. May Contain (+/-): Ci 15850 (Red 7 Lake), Ci 15985 (Yellow 6 Lake), Ci 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), Ci 19140 (Yellow 5 Lake), Ci 42090 (Blue 1 Lake).