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Saturday, March 24, 2012

Designed by Richard Blanche of Le Métier de Beauté: Runway to Win for Barack Obama

Designed by Richard Blanch of Le Métier de Beauté, this Runway to Win ($40) set of three nail lacquers comes in a collectable make-up bag. Each piece is 4.0 ml.
  • Red-y To Win Red is a delightfully deep red, a bold pop of color that makes a statement.
  • Victory White is a soft, clean white, perfectly polished for everyday wear.
  • Bo Blue is a shimmering sapphire blue, a fun take on the classic navy.
According to Politico, the set cost around $10,000 for the Obama campaign to develop in collaboration with nail guru Richard Blanch of Le Métier de Beauté. The set was created as swag for Anna Wintour’s Runway to Win campaign event in February. Now the campaign is selling the sets.

The set was made in the USA. It's available at Store.BarakObama.com, where you can purchase all kinds of designer merchandise that supports the president in his 2012 campaign. I think I may have to order it.

Photo courtesy of Obama for America

20 comments:

  1. I think it's inappropriate for a cosmetics company to get involved in politics.

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  2. Please read my update to the post, which explains the relationship and the Obama campaign investment in the development. I'm not sure it's a LMdB endorsement of the president, although it wouldn't bother me if it were. Even companies have a right to political views.

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  3. I really want the black and white scarf, the Alexander Wang hoodie and the Jason Wu shirt. I would settle for just the scarf or just the Wang hoodie though. Oh god, here I go again. :)

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  4. Hi Leticia and Leigh!

    I think the set is adorable. Apparently, it's the first time a presidential campaign has commissioned nail polish. Must be the first lady's influence. :)

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  5. Carrie, I laughed out loud early this morning when I read your comment. There are a few other things I'd like to have as well. The hazards of window shopping!

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  6. It took $10,000 to come up with red, white, and blue? -- that's government for you!
    On a more serious note, I really hope makeup does not become political, implying that wearing one thing or another means you do/don'tsupport something / someone. I also hope it doesn't influence other things -- "Company X generated $ for the democrats, so the party will vote Company X's way on a bill related to cosmetic ingredients/safety/imports/etc"

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  7. Anonymous,

    Those were not government funds. They were spent by a political campaign. Actually, development of any beauty product takes an investment, which is one reason so many start-up beauty companies don't make it.

    While I also hate to think that participation in a political campaign affects decision making, and the politicians of all stripes swear it doesn't, I believe there is an influence. That Republican guy out there contributing millions (many millions!) of dollars to the candidates' PACs wants something. I doubt it's all about ideology. Perhaps he's decided he wants to be an ambassador.

    In the past, I have enjoyed wearing the T-shirts campaigns have sent me. I'm pretty excited that we are moving into nail lacquer now. Even more useful than T-shirts. What's next? I vote lip gloss!

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  8. Sadly LMdB is now on my 'do not buy' list of they in any way support this president. That's too bad too because I usually like their products but I choose to live by my political beliefs. It is a pretty set nonetheless but a definite pass for me.

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  9. It's kind of funny that there's a need to raise money with nail polishes after all those expensive ($30,000 a seat) dinners he appeared at in NYC. Eh, if selling stuff works ok. For me? I don't give money to politicians so I won't be buying or donating no matter how much I'd like something. I think they really are all the same, no matter the party.

    Maybe PACs should be banned. I'm not sure how to solve that problem. Any politician serves the interests of those people who give him or her the big bucks and that's not necessarily in the interest of the "little people."

    ok enough politics, I need to put on some lipstick! :)

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  10. Sadly, you will also have to boycott Vogue magazine, Conde Nast, and quite a few entertainers, just to start. I sympathize with your principles, it's admirable to live them, but we all need to give each other a break for differing political views. I think our country is so polarized because we seem to have lost our ability to realize that we have much in common, even when we disagree.

    Mr. Blanche had every right to take the campaign's money and develop the set for them. Just think for a moment, if all of your favorite brands did the same, would you go makeup-free? I don't think this is analogous to boycotting a foreign country because there's no such thing as human rights.

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  11. Evelyn,

    I don't give money to PACs either, and lately, after watching the money they have poured into the Republican primaries, I am beginning to think they are dangerous. Surprising that the Supreme Court gave them standing as "individuals" with a right to free speech. Those old dead guys who drafted our Constitution and Bill of Rights are, I'm sure, turning over in their graves. We've come a long way.

    I have given money to politicians, but it has been dribs and drabs over the years. That's how I got my T-shirts. They made nothing off me. That doesn't stop them from sending me REAMS of mail.

    Yes, off to beauty. I was thinking maybe fragrance this afternoon.

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  12. Funny - if the nail polish had been developed by the Santorum or Romney organizations, I think the posters who are offended would be singing a different tune!

    That, of course, is just my opinion!

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  13. To the woman above. Yeah they would be singing a different tune. Everyone is biased politically, obviously..

    And since I do not support this president at all (an opinion I have every right to) I will definitely not support this makeup brand by buying their products anymore. I will just have to add them to my list of no-buys. Not really any skin off my bones though.

    PS. ABO2012 :)

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  14. bisbee, lol probably saint santorum. romney supporters probably more moderate.

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  15. I agree with you CG, that companies can choose to support whomever they wish with their money (and LOTS of it now that the Supreme Court did away with limits! ;-) And Anonymous 1, 2 and 3 can choose to boycott, not wear makeup, etc. But as a blogger, it is YOUR blog, YOUR ideas, and YOUR viewpoint that you can promote in any way that you so choose. I personally would post it just because it is cute and "cosmetic newsworthy"!

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  16. Hi MamaVal,

    If anything, this feature showed that BTiB readers represent every end of the political spectrum. I already knew we had a diverse bunch, in terms of skin tone and type, age, nationality, and such, but I didn't realize we had so much diversity of political opinion.

    Guess we better avoid politics.

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  17. definately on my do not buy list - another anonymous. totally inappropriate

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  18. Since there are so many comments here attributed to Anonymous, I am cutting off comments now. I have no way of knowing whether we have one, three, or six people commenting. I did not intend to start a political feature. I wanted to share with you a cute set, and I thought the political angle was unique in beauty.

    If you want to criticize LMdB, there are many other blogs that have posted this information.

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