YSL – La Lacque Couture #18 Bleu Majorelle

February 21, 2013

When YSL Beauté re-vamped their nail lacquer line with the now larger and permanent colour line up, one of the shades that literally stood head & shoulders above them all, was the vibrant #18 Bleu Majorelle; the problem lay in that it was constantly sold out at every counter I visited, else I would have snagged this beauty long ago. Never mind … it’s mine now!

There’s an interesting connection/history behind this particular blue shade, and the house of YSL; M. Saint Laurent who often visited Marrakech, Morocco for design inspiration, fell in love with a botanical garden there created by French artist Jacques Majorelle. Along with his partner Pierre Pergé, M. Saint Laurent then bought the garden 1980 and not only lovingly restored it all, but added a new design to it with each visit, preserved it as a museum of Islamic art, and eventually had his ashes scattered there when he passed away in 2008.

The original garden was created in 1924 by French artist Jacques Majorelle, who drew inspiration from the blue colour found in local Moroccan tiles, and he used this colour throughout the garden, painting the walls, fountains, and features of the villa in this intensely blue shade, finally trademarking the name “Majorelle Blue”.

Majorelle Garden – Marrakech, Morocco (source)

YSL – #18 Bleu Majorelle

YSL – #18 Bleu Majorelle – (CAD $27.00 10 ml/0.34 fl.oz) an intensely vivid ultra blue shade, in a STELLAR jelly-esque formula that applies streak-free and in a buttery smooth self-levelling way. Highly colour saturated and perfectly opaque at 2 coats, the finish is insanely brilliant. Bonus: absolutely non-staining upon removal. Coats applied: 2, plus top coat

YSL – #18 Bleu Majorelle

YSL – #18 Bleu Majorelle, matte

While I own several bright blue shades in my personal collection, I was surprised to find that only one was close enough to Bleu Majorelle to warrant a comparison – Essie’s ‘Butler Please’ (reviewed here), and even further stunned at how close the two are colour-wise; with the naked eye, you can just make out a hint of variance between them, but the biggest difference lies in the price tag with the Essie being easily 1/3 the cost of the YSL.

index & pinkie fingers: Essie ‘Butler Please’ – 1st coat not as smooth laying, thicker formula, colour almost identical but perhaps a couple of degrees less intense, not as naturally brilliant, non-staining as well
middle & ring fingers: YSL #18 Bleu Majorelle

YSL – #18 Bleu Majorelle vs Essie ‘Butler Please’

Final thoughts: There is everything to love about this varnish, starting from the eye-catching colour, the amazing application, long-lasting & glossy formula, to the fact that it’s completely non-staining … all well worth the rather steep price tag, in my opinion. The fact that ‘#18 Bleu Majorelle’ is part of YSL’s permanent range is also a bonus – no need to run out and stockpile. A truly spectacular blue that manages to look sophisticated, modern, classy & edgy at the same time – also perfect for when you want to make a unique fashion statement.

I picked mine up at Holt Renfrew (Canada).