Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense

You know what I like better than lipsticks? Their miniature version, like this 1.5g/0.05oz. mini tube of Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense in 36 Satin Fuchsia! It was a freebie from Sephora.

I've heard about these lipsticks a couple of years ago. One of my Japanese language classmates was crazy about them, but they were not readily available in Japan, at least at the time, so I helped her buy one online as she didn't speak English. So when came my chance to try one, although I wasn't too thrilled about the color, I figured it was free so why not, right?

36 Satin Fuchsia. All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

This Rouge Artist Intense is scented with a powdery rose fragrance that's identical to the now-discontinued Lancome Le Rouge Absolu Lipsticks (not sure the L'Absolu Rouge is the line revamped or an entirely new line though...)! And while it blows all the Lancome lipsticks I've ever tried out of the water in terms of pigmentation, it's nowhere near as comfortable in terms of wear. The formula is surprisingly thin for such a pigmented lipstick! I can't speak for the whole range of course since I've only try this one color, but I was expecting a full-bodied, somewhat creamy, may be even a touch waxy texture but there was none of that. Just a thin layer of super pigmented color!

This means layering over a clear balm is required for me, because I've tried it on bare lips and could feel them withering up after 15 minutes or so. The balm also adds some translucency to it, sheering it out a bit, which is exactly what I want. Layering over or under clear gloss will help with the moisture too, although the gloss will amplify the color instead of toning it down :X I also expected it to stain at least a little, but it didn't. On my bare lips, just a few wipes of the tissue and it came right off! I guess despite all the hype, a lipstick is just a lipstick!

- 36 Satin Fuchsia: a bright opaque and shimmer free fuchsia that swatched a tad warmer on the back of my hand but turns much cooler on my lips, pretty much stays true to how it appears in the tube. It's very pigmented and provides full coverage with just 1 layer! So this color, for lack of better words, is just too intense for me and is more of a statement color, at least for the faint of hearts like me ^.^