Clarins Joli Rouge is a classic cream lipstick. Before its relaunch this fall it was a pretty average cream lipstick, not too good, not too bad, it was Ok, somewhere in the middle in luxury market hierarchy. Definitely not my favourite.

By the way, have you ever thought about how hard it is to find a good cream lipstick formula? I mean, it’s the most common, the most basic thing and, probably, almost the oldest makeup item out there, period. So, isn’t it ironic, that if you ask me, what luxury brands have best cream lipstick formulae, it will be really hard for me to pull even one?

Anyway, it’s a theme for a separate post, I guess 🙂 Back to Clarins Joli Rouge relaunch.

The packaging is very typically Clarins – red with white lettering. I like that. I like when brands stick to their history, their design, their DNA.

Sleek round golden tube, it’s not quite classic, it has a little bit of a modern twist to it.

I open the cap and feel… a pretty strong berry scent. Ugh. Not a fan of this. It’s not too bad. I can bear it, although I’m scent sensitive. Still, I wish this scent were milder. On the bright side, this scent goes away a little bit after you apply the lipstick. So, we’re all good here.

Let’s see the shade. 749 bubble gum pink

Cute name. Very girly and fun. And very appropriate for this particular shade.

I love this shade. A bright COOL pink, not warm, but cool. For some reason, this shade is not common at all. It’s not easy to find it. Maybe, everyone likes warm pink, I don’t know. It’s not fuchsia either. It doesn’t have purple in it or very little, if any. It’s pink. That’s what it is 🙂 This shade is very exciting.

The coverage of Joli Rouge is what I expect from a creamy lipstick. It’s full coverage, not too much shine, but some.

The texture is interesting though. It’s much lighter than what I imagine, when I think – cream lipstick. It feels so light on the lips. It’s like, you know, it feels like sheer lipstick, but looks like creamy lipstick. Interesting.

I’d say, this new Joli Rouge formula is no worse than the old one, or maybe, it’s even a little bit of an improvement. The texture is what’s special about it, in my opinion. If you like sheer lipstick feel but want to try creamy lipstick look, this is your thing. And, of course, I love this shade. A great one. It’s pretty bold though. So, maybe, it’s not everyone’s kind of thing. Or, maybe, it’s the kind of thing that everyone wants to try at least once. It’s for you to decide.

As for me. I’m quite happy with new Joli Rouge by Clarins, still it’s not my favourite classic lipstick out there.