Let's Discuss The Rouge Dior Lip Coffret Gift Set: Less Is Not More Dior

Frankly, I've been keen on but never purchased Dior's annual holiday Coffret Lipstick Sets -- in 2022 it's called Rouge Dior Lip Coffret Gift Set (see above image👆) -- but I enjoy Christmas browsing and always look for the limited edition gift bag, um set after Thanksgiving.

 

2018 edition - photo pulled from the internet, it is my favorite design - a constellation

Over the last few years, it sold for $175 and included 6 lipsticks, a lipstick holder, and a popular cosmetic bag that customers enjoy using as a clutch purse, as well as, finding clever ways to add hardware, converting it into a small shoulder or crossover bag. It's become a convention among handy Dior beauty buyers.

2019 edition

This holiday season after a tough couple of years for many consumers, how are the luxury brands treating their loyal customers? By hiking up their already steep prices and giving clients even less value for their money. One retailer is Chanel whose, classic double-flap bag rose in price to just under $10,000 without improving its craftmanship.

2020 edition of the gift bag.

Dior is now charging $240 (a $75 price increase) for this year's Rouge Dior Lip Coffret Gift Set but has reduced the lipsticks to only 5. Adding insult to injury, the gift bag no longer has a faux leather outer surface, but is hard plastic! Dior added a gold metal clip-on chain to the plastic box, so consumers no longer have to be clever to turn it into a crossover bag, and yet it's plastic! Really Dior?

Here's a clever YouTuber showing us how to convert a 2021 Dior makeup case into a bag.

Why are multi-million dollar companies treating their customers this way? In fact, skimping them! Charging customers more and giving them less. And ... how will loyal customers respond?

As a longtime admirer of Dior and Chanel, I'm disappointed! I suppose I should thank the exclusive duo for removing all potential temptation, but I'd much rather appreciate top-of-the-line quality and fair pricing.

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Peripera Velvet Lip Tint Is An Amazon Favorite

Peripera Velvet Lip Tint is exactly what we want, a high-pigmented natural lip stain that is soft, smooth, weightless, and lasts all day. Apply the liquid tint as a velvety lip color in the morning and by the end of the day, there's still a rosy natural hue, which doesn't smudge if you dab lip balm over it to moisturize your lips. It's also paraben-free.

The 31 shades go on your lips wet and after they dry, they are waterproof, kissproof, and foodproof. The colors are buildable. Apply a thin coat of tint with a spongy applicator and wait for it to dry before applying a 2nd thin layer if you wish. If you apply it too thick to start with, you'll need to blot it off, thereby wasting product.

There's a color to flatter every skin tone. Reviewers like the feel of the velvety formula.

The search for lip tint in natural colors with real staying power is over! Cost: Under $10.

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Island Vibes Makeup

Summer is my favorite season of the year. What's not to love? The mild climate, the long daylight, and the great outdoors of shimmering bluegrass, blooming flowers, and sandy beaches. 

The makeup is fun too ... summer shades that brighten the lips and give your cheeks a sunkissed look! The following are a few limited edition sets created just for Macy's to consider:

1. The Island Vibes Full-Face Pressed Pigment Palette (top image👆) - It has everything you need from high fashion eyeshadows, blushes, bronzers, and highlighters in bold shades and everyday neutrals. If you wait for a sale, the pallette is a $19 splurge.

2. A 5-Piece Island Punch Matte Lipstick Set - Two of the summer shades include terracotta and berry housed in pink-tinted see-through lipstick tubes.

3. A 3-Piece Island Punch Double-Ended Lip Gloss Set -  They are 2-in-1 sheer lip glosses with satin finish lipsticks ranging from soft coral to dusty rose.

4. The 5-Piece Let's Flamingle Brush Set - Consists of soft pink bristles with gold-tone handles. This 5-piece set includes a large powder brush, angled contour brush, and small fan brush. There's another 7-brush makeup set here and uploaded below that also puts customers in the pink ... but the flamingo and pineapple set is so darn island adorable!

5. A 3-Piece Island Punch Makeup Sponge Set - Has 3 cheerful hued sponge sizes for applying foundation, blush, and concealer.

I've been waiting all year for the beautiful summer pastel colors to arrive! The 5 makeup or tool sets are a great value if you wait for one of Macy's sales to come around. Are you in need of island vibes this season? It's just another reason to love Macy's!💋

Everly Brother's Pretty Flamingo

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Lawless Beauty

My friend, Angie Smith, says, " I have loved every single product I've tried and it's clean. The One and Done Mascara is the best I've ever used. The Conseal The Deal Concealer is fabulous, and so are the lipglosses." 

She's talking about Lawless Beauty, a makeup brand created by Annie Lawless Jacobs, whose mission is to produce "highly pigmented, full coverage, and long-lasting" cosmetics with only safe ingredients, therefore face and lip paints, stains, and some treatments that are 100% free of carcinogens and hormone or endocrine-disrupting toxins. Every product in the line is free of all potential toxins, including parabens, talc, lead, PEGS, sulfates, mineral oil, carbon black, and siloxanes, in addition to, animal cruelty and synthetic fragrance.

Moreover, the brand is serious about formulating high-end cosmetics to make customers not only healthy but look and feel beautiful. The foundation, lip color, concealer, and mascara will not wimp out by midday but last all day long.

Lawless Beauty is sold at Sephora, as well as, on its own website, where loyal customers can earn reward points to save on future purchases.

Another fabulous discovery of yet another stellar brand with good clean ingredients! Thank you once again, Angie!

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Drew Barrymore's Valentine To Customers: Lip Kit Duo

Flower lipstick by Drew Barrymore has become one of my favorites. The reason? Because of its stellar quality in addition to its array of natural, gorgeous colors rivals the luxe brands at a fraction of the cost. If you wish to try it, now may be a perfect time because ...

For Valentine's Day, the beauty company is offering a limited-edition bundle lip kit duo pairing a full-sized lipstick with a full-sized lip liner to create cupid-approved lips at the special sale price of only $16 per kit. When I went to the website a promotional coupon also popped up to reduce the final price further, and free shipping was offered, making a purchase that arrives in your mailbox a steal!

Although you can mix and match the hues yourself, Drew has the following guide of complementary colors for those who seek help:

There's absolutely no reason to pay more when you get the quality and beautiful hues, bar none of Flower to create lusciously rich pigmented and moist lips. I have several Flower lipstick shades ... all of them super wearable, not to mention, relatively cheap! Plus the packaging looks as good as the luxury brands.

Now is your chance to splurge, save and discover a great makeup brand simultaneously!♥💋

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POP Beauty

Nowadays you never have to venture beyond a drugstore to find quality beauty products. The aisles of many drugstores are starting to look like one big, expansive cosmetic counter because so much is there. At CVS recently I discovered a "new" to me fantastic UK beauty brand for less.

POP Beauty has the highest standards in skincare with rich pigmented makeup that is 100% vegan and cruelty-free made from responsibly sourced ingredients. The beauty brand offers the highest quality natural ingredients in uncomplicated products with simple packaging for less ~~~ a lot less, so why would you pay more?

Although the packaging is simple, it's fun and colorful, so practical items can liven up your bathroom, as well as, make attractive gifts! I think the best part of gifting beauty is the eye-opening introduction of a winning affordable brand to somebody else who can then start buying a new love for themselves. Over time, it saves them tons of money without compromise ... a great gift in and of itself!

Golly! Does this look like a CVS pharmacy to you?

POP Beauty is conveniently sold at drugstores, Walmart, some Targets, and Amazon.

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All Eyes On L'Orèal's Best Mascaras

All photos: Courtesy of Target

Before our pandemic, I never left home without a dab of makeup. Nowadays with having to wear a face mask indoors, no makeup is the norm for the simple reason, I don't want to soil the inside of my mask. Yuck! But we could get away with wearing mascara, and L'Orèal makes several excellent offerings, each with a different type of brush designed to create a unique look. They are from left to right:

1) L'Orèal Paris Volume Mega Lightweight Air Mascara - As its name suggests, it gives your lashes a mega volume that's light as air. The formula is whipped, washable, and lasts for up to 24 hours. Suitable for sensitive eyes, it comes with a large cushion bristle brush to coat each lash.

2) L'Orèal Paris Voluminous Lash Paradise Mascara - Creates voluptuous volume and intense lash length. You get full eyelash fringe, feathery soft eyelashes with no flaking or clumping. The brush is a soft wavy bristle for dramatic volumizing.

3) L'Orèal Paris Voluminous Original Mascara - Volume building, the brush separates and builds every lash up to 5 times fuller and thicker. Claimed to be America's #1 mascara, it has a double bristle cushion brush.

4) L'Orèal Paris Telescopic Original Mascara - For intense length, incomparable lash definition, the carbon black mascara gives you a dramatic look that is also waterproof. It's a patented small bristle brush. How cute is the pink color?!

Top-notch mascara every bit as luxe as the expensive behind-the-counter brands, yet available at Walmart, Target, drugstores, Ultra, and Amazon so you know the cost won't break the bank!👀💋

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Powder Play Lip Color By Flower

Weeks ago Flower by Drew Barrymore lunched a new powder to cream lip color. Once applied to the lips with a wand, Powder Play -- the lightweight powder, transfers into a soft moisturizing cream. The new product softens and soothes lips while leaving them with a pop of natural color, as well as, a soft, powdery look that overwhelmingly customers like.

Customers approve of the smooth texture; and report it does, indeed, moisturize lips while the flattering pigments have real staying power. The Powder Play Lip Colors endure like matte lipstick without drying out lips as matte lipstick tends to do.

The retailer calls each powdery shade a perfectly imperfect soft focus of color.

I'm only now featuring Flower's new item launch because who is wearing lip color under their face masks nowadays? Before COVID I wore lipstick every single day, but haven't touched it much over the past year. Now that the COVID vaccines are rolling out under a new administration, perhaps we can get excited about makeup launches again! 

This newest formula from Flower -- an awesome and affordable beauty brand -- is highly rated with tons of 5 star reviews! (Watch out expensive luxe makeup, there's a new beauty sharif in town for less!!!) The cost is $10, and Ultra is now offering a $3.50 coupon here for spending $15.

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All Max Factor photos property of Max Factor 

Unfortunately Max Factor is hard to find at your local drugstore nowadays. The company was sold in 2015 to Coty of P & G, the makeup is still being manufactured, and the quality is still amazing. 

Previously featured on THE SAVVY SHOPPER, Max Factor, the cosmetologist was the makeup artist to the stars during Hollywood's heyday while his brand became the cosmetics of makeup artists the world over. Max Factor's Pan Stik is the best cover stick ever made, and I'm never without one for under eye coverage of my dark circles. If applied in the morning, it stays put all day.

If you've never tried the Max Factor Masterpiece Palette in Cappuccino Nudes, you'll love it for its top-notch ingredients, beautiful hues and exceptional lasting power.

Moreover the Max Factor Facefinity Compact Foundation glides on smooth with completely natural, light and full coverage.

Marketed as "Glossfinity," the 26 signature nail colors are vibrant and fun, too, if you polish your nails.

Max Factor, the man, is the founder of modern makeup. Max Factor, the brand, has a century of prominence in the makeup world. More than over-the-counter quality, it's professional quality makeup at drugstore prices. Well-worth hunting down in the aisles of your local drugstore ... if only it's there to find!

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Dior 7-Piece Refillable Lipstick Set

For a makeup maven, Christian Dior is one of the Holy Grails of a luxury lipstick. And for the holidays you sometimes splurge on a gift when the rest of the year you try to save. 

Christian Dior is offering an awesome holiday 7-piece lipstick set selling for $180 but if you search retailers, you'll find deals to bring the price down to about $150. No, it's not cheap by any stretch of the imagination, but a single Christian Dior lipstick costs $40, so it is a "bargain" for Dior makeup. 

    

The colors in the set are gorgeous and very wearable. It includes:

Modified case by owner

• Rouge Dior 999 satin finish
• Rouge Dior 999 matte finish
• Rouge Dior 988 satin finish
• Rouge Dior 481 matte finish
• Rouge Dior 458 satin finish
  
• Rouge Dior 772 matte finish

The 7th item in the set is what everyone is raving about: A glittering star midnight blue limited edition couture case that customers say is reuseable as a Dior evening clutch bag. This Dior keepsake case seals the deal, making the 7-piece set a fabulous splurge .... for yourself or someone special on your list. Six Dior lipsticks will last for quite a while, then you are left with a glamorous bag for special occasions! 

Dior goes the extra mile by wrapping the set in ritzy, festive packaging that is fun to give or receive. So you get lots of jazz-and-pizzaz for the buck.

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