Guerlain Météorites Pearls Carousel for Summer 2016

For spring and summer, the iconic Guerlain Météorites Pearls have been reinvented in delicate, pastel colors. The limited-edition, skin-enhancing Guerlain Météorites Pearls in Carousel ($62) will gently give your complexion a fresh glow. Warm pink pearls revive. Soft mauve pearls catch the light. Sunny yellow pearls fight dullness. The pearlescent white pearls reflect light. Guerlain's innovative stardust technology transforms UV rays into visible, soft-focused, perfect light (using a spherical pigment contained within each pearl), while the mix of harmonious shades customizes luminosity to your skin tone by your own application - light or layered.

I was a grateful recipient of the Carousel Météorites Pearls, which Guerlain sent me. I did a happy dance the day I came home from work, found them on my doorstep, and looked up and saw just enough sunshine to get a few photos. The colors in Carousel are absolutely perfect for spring and summer, a time when you want to enliven your complexion, even if you are stuck in an office all day.

Lest you ever doubted that I take my pictures at my house when I say I do, look at that gnat who flew in and landed on my tableau! Now it's too dark outside to get additional photos, so we might as well name him the now-famous Carousel gnat.

Look at these gorgeous colors! You can see them blended on the applicator shown in the photo above. The beautiful spring pink will liven up any winter complexion.

I held the container toward the sun so that there would be little shadow from the container on the pearls. You can see the beautiful pastel shades, made more vibrant by the warm pink pearls. They contribute significantly to the overall effect when you blend all the shades and apply the Météorites to your skin.

As always, I had a crazy blogger desire to show you a swatch photo. I used the applicator that came in the Météorites to apply them heavily to my arm, and I held my arm directly at the sun. I really layered the color so that you could see how lively it is; it makes my skin glow. The result is shown below.

Fortunately, unlike some of my past photos of finishing powders, you can see the color on my arm. I think it's exquisite. It glows, but doesn't sparkle. The warm pink will flatter most of us. I applied it all over my face with a fluffy powder brush, and I was thrilled with how good Carousel made me look. I also noticed that I can wear it, applied heavily with a denser brush, as a subtle blusher because my face is so pale. Another way you can apply Carousel is in a "three" on each side of the face - over the temples, across the cheekbones, down the edge of the face, and partially across the jawline.

The Carousel pearls have the same light, distinctive Guerlain scent that all Météorites have. It dissipates quickly, and it never fights with my chosen fragrance for the day.

I've never met a Guerlain Météorites introduction I didn't love. I have many versions, and I'll never discard them. When I'm not using them, they live in my makeup museum. That's how special I think they are!

I did a quick online search and found that you can purchase the Météorites Pearls Carousel at Bergdorf Goodman and Nordstrom's Web site. I know they must be available from other retailers, so I'll update this feature when I can identify them. If you've seen them in stores, please let us know in the comments.

Update 3/18: Carousel is available at the counter at Neiman Marcus.

Photos by Best Things in Beauty; last photo courtesy of Bergdorf Goodman

Guerlain Météorites Perles du Paradis from the Spring 2013 Color Collection - Live and in Person

Guerlain's Spring 2013 Collection Météorites, Perles du Paradis ($70) looked so scrumptious, I had to have them. I had ordered them, but my fave Guerlain retailer had not received them - and I was more than ready. So, I "sprang" over to Nordstrom and purchased them there.

To illuminate skin with an angelic halo, Guerlain’s legendary pearls got a boost, introduced in an extra-large (spheres), limited-edition size. This devilishly beautifying spheres feature six skin-toned and pastel shades. The traditional correcting colors - blue and green - have been replaced by pink to brighten dull areas and silver to reflect ambient light and ensure one-of-a-kind radiance.

As expected dark zones disappear, grayness is erased, and fatigue vanished. When you apply Météorites, the face lights up and shimmers subtly - revitalized and instantly awakened, as if by magic. This sheer, refreshing effect embellishes absolutely every type of complexion. It's somewhat miraculous. The soft, caressing, pale pink powder is topped with a large powder puff. I really wish Guerlain had left out the decorative puff because it takes up half the container.

The photo directly above shows what I saw when I removed the puff: a container only half-full with the magical little balls of pastel powder. I tried to get photos to show you how empty of product the container really looks without the puff, so I held it and tilted (see below), being extremely careful not to spill any of the contents. You do not receive a container filled with Météorites as shown in the promotional photo at the top of this feature. That's disappointing because the shades are so luscious.

I compared the per-ounce contents to other Météorites. Perles du Paradis is labeled as having 1.86 ounces. I checked the Pucci Collection Perles d'Azur, and the weight was 1.05 ounces. The new one has a big puff; the summer set contains a nice, thin sponge that took up much less space, so the void was less noticeable.

It's always very difficult to show the shade of finishing powders in swatch photos, but I gave it a try in full sun. I applied Météorites Perles du Paradis with a kabuki brush.

You can see the beautiful icy pink powder on my arm, but you may not be able to see the randomly dispersed micro-sparkles. I know some of you don't like to see sparkles in your face powder, but I think these are brightening and glorious.

I absolutely adore Perles du Paradis. I just wish there were more perles. I can't afford to purchase a second one right now, and I fear I'll run out of these. What to do?

Guerlain’s Spring 2013 Color Collection is available at select locations of Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Sephora, Bloomingdale's, and Bergdorf Goodman - and, of course, the free-standing Guerlain boutiques.

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