Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Dior Holiday 2011 Collection - Les Rouges Or - Rouge Dior

The story of Dior and gold is a long one, with its origins in the very sound of the name Dior. This fact did not escape Jean Cocteau, who said, “Dior, this airy genius of our times whose magical name includes that of God (Dieu) and gold (or).” Rigor combined with excess: it was a prophetic name. From his first couture collections at the end of the 1940's, Christian Dior toyed with gold as the ultimate symbol of true luxury and dreams, as seen in his 1947 Champagne gold silk Aladdin gown or the 1949 Pactole shirtwaist gown.

Gold was synonymous with refinement, also appearing as a delicate highlighting touch on perfume bottles and the first lipsticks. Thus, the fascination with gold has continued over the decades. In whichever way it is used, gold is always symbolic of a doorway into a dream. Today the House of Dior is inviting us to a new enchanted experience with a flamboyant collection created by Tyen, where the color gold provides the setting for Dior’s emblematic Rouge Dior lip colors and Vernis nail varnishes. Gold reveals the potency of their shades, and like gold powder thrown into crystal fusion to color it red, gold equals refinement. It glimmers with luxury.

Last week, I was delighted to get my hands on a few pieces from Dior's Holiday 2011 Collection. I was flying blind, selecting pieces on the phone as Kathy Shoreman sent me swatch photos using her iPhone. I decided to start with two gorgeous Rouge Dior lip colors from Les Rouges Or, #217, Étoilé (the gold at left), and #527, Versailles. I skipped the reds. The shades I purchased at shown at left in Dior's photo above.

The new haute couture colors feature a new ultra-nourishing, long-wearing formula, luxuriously packaged in the House of Dior's signature cannage pattern with a jeweled emblem. These limited-edition lipsticks are infused with an ultra-fine golden powder that gives them a gorgeous shine. The finish has medium intensity and that stunning shine. The shades are extremely flattering. I wish there were more than four new shades available.

My photos were taken in full sun with just a hint of an overcast, giving the shine in the lipsticks its full glory. You can see that my arm isn't shining, but the lipsticks are. Étoilé is a gorgeous gold, one we can wear alone to add a golden touch to our own lip color or in combination with a drab lip color (under or over) that needs some help. It's much like a golden gloss, but with better staying power.

Versailles is one of the prettiest pink-peach shades I've purchased in months. It's ripe, shimmering, and warming on my lips - love at first application! I don't throw myself at every peach lip color that comes along. Even though many look good on me, I'm careful about the ones I select. I selected Versailles without a moment's doubt, and I was rewarded with a beauty.

If you look at Versailles in the tube, it appears to have some brown in it (which would be nice too). It's not brown on my skin. It's vivid, gleaming, and bright. If you don't want to wear a plum lip color with your purple-toned fall clothing, Versailles is perfect.

The Rouge Dior lipsticks do have the signature Dior fragrance. It dissipates quickly enough for my taste.

The golden nail colors in the collection appeal to me. I may be going back for a second helping. I decided to forgo the eye shadow palette. Even though I'm a neutral shadow lover, it's much like other palettes I already own. I'd be happy without another piece. These lip colors are thoroughly delightful.

Dior's Holiday 2011 Collection is available at Neiman Marcus, where I purchased my lipsticks, and should be available at all Dior counters. The collection can be seen (and purchased) online at Nordstrom.

Update: I caved and had that second helping, purchasing the two nail polishes shown on the left side in the photo above. They are gorgeous and already in short supply. I'll show them to you as soon as I can.

Photo at top courtesy of Dior; other photos by Best Things in Beauty

17 comments:

Rachel said...

I was at the lord and Taylor charity event and nabbed those two lipsticks and the red/gold nail polish (which is gorgeous btw) and now wish I'd taken advantage of my 15% for more of the collection.

lovethescents said...

Versailles IS pretty! Very pretty indeed. Must swatch.

Not sure about that golden one. I love your idea of layering it with another, but on it's own, it could make my face look.....dead. Perhaps on someone with a very dark complexion, it might look quite lovely. Not this someone, though!

Charlestongirl said...

You might be surprised, Lovethescents. :)

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Rachel,

I wish I'd had a discount! I might have bought one of these nail colors.

Soni said...

Oooooooo I definitely *NEED* Versailles. Gorgeous!
Charlestongirl, if you HAD to pick only one loose powder and it was between the Chantecaille poudre de perle OR Chanel's holiday feerie...which one would you pick?
I'm sooooo torn right now. =(

Charlestongirl said...

On no, Soni, that's like asking me to select my favorite child! When it becomes available, pull Eileen's trick and purchase the refill for South Seas Pearl. Save a few bucks and buy Chanel too. That way you can have them both. :)

Soni said...

oooOOOOooo!! That's a good idea. Are they different enough color-wise to justify it? Do you have the Chanel feerie?

Thanks for that idea!!

Charlestongirl said...

Eileen is wise! Yes, I have them both. I see the colors as being different, but they both apply VERY sheerly. My arm photo of Féérie was terrible because I applied it with a blush brush. I learned a lesson and just dug into South Seas Pearl to get enough color to show a swatch. You'd laugh if you saw my in-store photos. They looked like my arm, but with sparkle - even though I could see more color with my eye.

Soni said...

Ok, you talked me into it. I want to call Kathy...but I'm not sure Neiman's has all the items I want. (Chanel holiday lippies, feerie powder, Chante powder, Guerlain holiday lippie, Dior...)
Maybe I'll just give her my list & then once everything is in...she can just ship it all at once.
Boy it's a good thing I'm not married...my husband would be spitting nickels!

Charlestongirl said...

Soni, call her cell at 571-212-8399. They have it all, but she leaves for the day in 10 minutes. She will be there tomorrow. You can get InCicle gifts too!

Soni said...

Ok!! Thank you!!!!!

Leigh said...

And here I thought Chanel was getting most of my money this holiday season! I'm going to have to pick up that gold nail polish, and unsurprisingly the red lipsticks. Being relatively new to makeup, I think the holiday 5-Couleurs will make a great neutral addition to my collection.

Finally, what about the "Backstage Expert" Holiday Eye Palette? I think it's lovely ...

Leigh said...

On second thought, actually, I already have Chanel Famous and Guerlain Nuit d'Amour, so the Dior reds are somewhat redundant. Versailles and the gold one would be new colors for me. However, blogger descriptions of Versailles seem to be all over the map. It appears quite brown in some swatches, and someone called it a frosty mauve. Confusing! I'll have to check it out for myself.

Charlestongirl said...

Leigh,

Those descriptions of Versailles were incorrect. Look at the color in Dior's photo, and it appears to be brown in the tube. It's possible that someone assumed it's brown without wearing it or even swatching it. It's also possible that it looks like a slightly different shade on darker skin.

To me, mauve has some lavender in it. Look it up in Wikipedia, and you will see that definition. I sure don't see mauve.

One of my pet peeves is the use of the term "frosty." Everyone means something different. To me, frosty goes back to the 70's when lipstick really was frosty, not beautifully shimmering. There was the appearance of a layer of white frost overlaid on the color, hence the word. Technology changed that, and Versailles isn't "frosty" at all. Only cheap lipstick is "frosty" today, in my experience. There are some frosty MAC colors, and it's also possible the MAC generation likes to use the term.

Things have changed in makeup technology! Some of the gals throwing the term "frosty" around were not alive in the 70's, so I'm never sure what they mean.

Charlestongirl said...

Oh, and...

I bought one of the Dior holiday palettes and will feature it when the clouds lift. Pretty!

Leigh said...

Thanks for the detailed explanation. I've ordered the Versailles along with the holiday eye palette, and will let you know how it works on me.

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Leigh!

Definitely let us know if you like Versailles! Hope you enjoy your eye palette too.