Guerlain Météorites Pearls from the Guerlain Météorites Blossom Collection for Spring 2014

Last year, a Guerlain PR representative told me that the Météorites were being reformulated. The new Météorites were planned to be an improvement over those that have been created before. At the time, I thought, "How does one improve something that's perfect?" It will be up to us - Guerlain's customers - to determine whether the new Météorites Pearls ($60) are an improvement over those we already know and love. They have been added to the permanent color line.

According to Sephora, the new formula supposedly has "enhanced softness that makes it easier to pick up the powder with a brush...and also incorporates "stardust technology" to give the skin a subtle brightening glow." There are three new shades, Clair (#2), Medium (#3), and Doré (#4). They are shown below with Clair at the left, Medium in the middle, and Doré on the right.

I purchased all three from the Guerlain Boutique in Las Vegas - sight unseen. My love for the Météorites Pearls is unbounded, so I had to have all of them. What surprised me was that there is only a subtle difference in the shades on my skin - despite the huge difference in the colors in each pot.

Here is what Guerlain has to say about the new Météorites (more or less, with my comments added). Each shade of Météorites Pearls begins with the same legendary combination of three colors that adapt to every skin tone and work harmoniously to beautify the skin. Mauve catches the light, pink refreshes, and yellow counters dullness and corrects redness. These delicate round pearls continue to be shaped by hand, with craftsmanship mastered by only four people in the world [imagine that!]. Softer than ever, the new pearls allow for an easier application [how could application be easier, when it was already a piece of cake?] and a more visible effect with every brushstroke [I think I need to differ there]. These precious pearls are contained in a metal tin, now marked with a new emblem of a reinterpreted rosette that was created with a light gradation of pinks.

• Clair offers a harmony of green pearls for extra redness correction, white pearls to reflect the light, and champagne pearls to adapt to the skin and gently illuminate it.
• Medium offers a nude harmony containing beige and champagne pearls to naturally reflect light and even the complexion, along with peach pearls to add a unique glow to the skin.
• Doré offers the most smoldering harmony. This shade incorporates chocolate pearls with satin shimmers and vivid fuchsia pearls that revive radiance. Unifying beige pearls were added for deliciously beautiful skin.

I love Guerlain's Météorites - always have. I can't count the variations I own. They are all little treasures. I think the Météorites Pearls are among the best finishing powders in the world - definitely in the top three. However, I'm not convinced (yet) that this new formulation is so unique, so divergent from the original, that it merits any term like "revolutionary." How could they offer "a more visible effect with every brushstroke" when they are barely distinguishable on my skin? Take a look at the swatch photos below, remembering that only a wackadoodle blogger would try to make them show up on fair skin in full sun.

I applied them heavily with a kabuki-like brush, with #1 at the top of my arm, followed on the way down by #2 and #3. What do you see? I see a glow from the micro-sparkles and barely perceptible differences in color. Clair glows at the top of my arm because that's where the sun is usually the brightest. I can barely see Medium. Doré provides a bit of warmth to my skin and is great for contouring.

Like Guerlain's previous Météorites Pearls, they are beautiful when used over the face, with or without foundation. For anyone who cares, the packaging is similar to the old, with the sponge atop the pearls, holding them in place and offering something you could use as an applicator in a pinch by blotting the powder into the skin.

I will be very curious to know what you think. It's always fun to purchase new Guerlain colors, and I'm happy to have these three new treasures. Am I becoming blind to subtleties?

For now, look for the arrival of Guerlain's Météorites Blossom Collection for Spring 2014 at your favorite counter. The collection has not arrived yet at my Neiman Marcus stores in the DC area. If you would like to order from the Guerlain Boutique, give Jonathan a call at (702) 732-7008.

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