Bourjois Paris is a brand that I first stumbled upon in Paris, France, while on my honeymoon back in 1990, but I hadn’t paid much attention to the brand at the time; this line caught my eye again when I stumbled upon a display at my local Pharmaprix store a couple of years back, and where I was pleasantly surprised to note how well thought out the products appeared. For Summer 2012, Bourjois has released a limited edition ‘Paris Flowers’ collection, with shades as hot & vibrant as the season itself – a riotous, yet sensual feast of “hothouse” colours!

How cute is this Bourjois case & the fab Jackie O. glasses?

Bleu Canard

Bleu Canard (back label)

Bleu Canard

Bleu Canard (inner leaflet & sponge-tip brush)

 

Bourjois ‘Little Round Pot Eyeshadow’ #02 Bleu Canard  (CDN $17.00 for 1.5 g/0.05 oz) is a stunning teal coloured mineral eye shadow, that can be worn either dry for a light wash of colour, or applied with a wet brush for maximum impact. Buttery soft and with no powdery kick-back upon application, there’s a gentle glimmer to this shade that adds a nice depth of tone without any over-the-top sparkle. Staying power was quite good as well, easily lasting a full 8 hours (over primer) before any wear, creasing or fading began to show. Made in France.
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look created using Bleu Canard shadow and Bleu Néon eye liner

Orange Apprêté

Orange Apprêté (label)

Orange Apprêté (view of click-open mechanism)

Orange Apprêté with click mechanism deployed

Orange Apprêté

Orange Apprêté – macro 

 

Bourjois ‘Sweet Kiss Lipstick’ #45 Orange Apprêté (CDN $18.00 for 3g/0.1 oz) is a luscious coral-hued lipstick in a smoothly gliding formula, that also includes argan oil for an added 8 hours of moisture, ensuring your lips stay hydrated long after the colour has faded, while adding a slight lip-plumping effect due to its glistening appearance. I thought the click-open mechanism looked somewhat gimmicky at first, but soon realized that it added a touch of security to the closure – always handy to have for anyone who has ever experienced a lipstick cap fall off in their makeup bag/purse (can you say disgusting mess?!).
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The lipstick itself bears a very light scent that fades rather quickly, and I was completely amazed by how effortlessly it glided across my lips, with just the barest hint of a shimmer to add some depth. A fairly translucent shade, I like how it takes the “it” colour of the season (Tangerine Tango) and makes it so perfectly wearable. Made in Italy.

PS: This shade looks phenomenal with lightly tanned skin as well – just perfect for summer!

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

Glossy Grenadine Tonic

 

Bourjois ‘1 Seconde Nail Enamel’ in #15 Glossy Grenadine Tonic (CDN $8.99) is one of the most unique formulas in nail polish that has come my way in quite some time; this coral-red (blood orange? Fiesta-ware orange?) shade comes in an über-glossy and translucent formula, yet still manages to look incredibly vibrant despite its sheer nature. With silicon in the base (which adds flexibility, strength and a super shine), dry time was also quite impressive and it’s the perfect product to apply for a vivid splash of colour without expending much effort at all. The following swatches are over base coat – no top coat, and I decided to show the effect at both 2 and 3 coats. It’s a little hard to tell from the photos, but my impressions were that while 2 coats looked good, 3 coats gave a more cushiony appearance. My findings:

• the wide fan brush shape may be ideal for a quick application, but could be an issue for anyone with narrow nail beds
• the texture was gel-like and on the thick side, although showed incredibly high gloss even with the first coat
• the translucent finish gives a beautiful “beach glass” or “stained glass” effect – do not expect it to become opaque
• you definitely need more than one coat, as the first rather pink-hued layer, can appear somewhat patchy
• a 2nd coat smooths & perfects the finish; avoid loading too much polish on the brush as the silicon gives the formula plenty of slip and it could flood into your cuticles/sides of nails, as a result
• 3 coats gave the most pillowy effect – almost synthetic looking!
• made in France

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in sunlight, 2 coats

in sunlight, 3 coats

indoors, 2 coats

indoors, 3 coats

with flash, 2 coats

with flash, 3 coats

Along with the lip and eye shades for summer 2012, Bourjois has also launched ‘Paris Showtime’, a collection of 5 new Limited Edition nail varnishes (CDN $9.99 each), in the ‘So Laque Ultra Shine Nail Enamel’ formula – enriched with vinyl for an impossibly brilliant shine, along with a fixing agent which helps to keep the nails supple and highly chip-resistant for up to 7 days – in the vibrant colour-blocked shades of the season. The following two shades, Jaune Trendy & Lime Catwalk are reviewed in detail below. Please note that no top coat was added to any of the following swatches … none needed! Made in France.

Jaune Trendy

 

Bourjois ‘So Laque’ #39 Jaune Trendy is a true mustard yellow hue, which manages to be paradoxically both vivid and bearing an aged/dusty look. The medium thick formula was so highly pigmented that it can almost be a 1-coater, although the slight streakiness of the first coat, become 100% opaque by the second. Exceptionally self-levelling upon application, the superior gloss at the finish made adding a top coat basically redundant – a step I rarely skip … this lacquer is THAT glossy! Coats applied: 2

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

Lime Catwalk

 

Bourjois ‘So Laque’ #38 Lime Catwalk is more of a pistachio/chartreuse shade of green, bearing a medium-thick viscosity, and a slightly sheer formula that nonetheless gave good & solid coverage. The first layer displayed the yellowish undertones in the base, while any evident translucency (more apparent on longer nails) became much more opaque by the second coat. Like ‘Jaune Trendy’, the smooth application and ultra-glossy finish required no extra boosting whatsoever. Coats applied: 2

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

Bleu Néon

 

Bourjois ‘Contour Clubbing Waterproof Eyeliner’ #46 Bleu Néon (CDN $17.00) an intense cobalt shade bearing a complex shimmer, is part of the permanent range and not part of this limited edition collection, but nonetheless a great counterpoint to these breezier sorbet hues. This eyeliner glides on incredibly smoothly without any pulling of the skin at all, and the highly pigmented colour along with its waterproof formula, makes this a good candidate for use on the waterline. In the look above, I used this pencil to line both the upper lash line (for added depth) and the waterline as well (for more drama), where I noted that it had decent staying power. No issues with removal, considering its waterproof nature. Made in Germany.

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

 

Final thoughts: Prior to this, the only other items I had tried from Bourjois were a couple of ‘So Laque’ nail lacquers that I found quite amazing, although the selection of products from this ‘Paris Flowers’ collection that I tested here, impressed me even more. The available colours and the excellent pigmentation/application, elevates the quality of these products to that more in line with several department store brands; the lightweight plastic packaging definitely places the range firmly among drugstore brands – although the price point falls somewhere between the two. A fresh and lovely collection just in time to compliment summer’s heat … and well worth discovering its multi-hued bouquet!

The Bourjois ‘Paris Flowers’ collection can be found at Pharmaprix/Shopper’s DrugMart stores across Canada, or feel free to visit the company’s website for more information on their full range of products and/or follow them on twitter/facebook for all their latest news.

 

 

 

*Disclaimer: Product samples provided by the company/PR for my unbiased consideration