Chanel and Dior are pricey powerhouses, but don’t ignore small brand Le Métier de Beauté, a luxury brand that’s well worth its cost.
By Roxana Hadadi
Investment cosmetics pieces are tricky. Brands like Chanel and Dior can charge $20 for nail polish, $40 for lipsticks, and even $80 for blush, but are those prices really worth the companies’ pedigree? Wouldn’t drugstore cosmetics—with their ever-increasing options—do just as well?
Well, sometimes. Since you’re supposed to change your mascara every three to six months, plunking down a lot of money for each new designer purchase may not be the best idea. But we know that drugstore lipsticks can sometimes have that chemical smell and taste, and cheaper nail polishes can separate extremely rapidly. So on what pieces should you spend some extra money, and what brands should you choose from?
Enter Le Métier de Beauté, a small luxury brand created in 2006 in New York; its name means “craft of beauty.” Steadily expanding over the years, the brand now offers skin cleansers, tonics, and creams, and a variety of cosmetics products including the usual suspects like foundation, concealer, eyeshadow, mascara, and lip liner. The brand is really well known for their “kaleidoscope” kits, which house together four different face, eye, and lip products in one swivel compact, complete with a mirror.
They’re all pretty, but they’re also pricey. Le Métier de Beauté describes itself as a luxury brand, and that’s accurate: Products are sold at high-end stores like Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom, and prices can reach as high as $285 (for skincare items) and $95 (for those kaleidoscopes).
Is it all worth it? If you choose based on your needs, I’d say yes.
(From left to right) Creme Fresh Tints, in shades such as the pictured Poppy (others are Coral Nymph, Ginger Lily, Mystique, and Tenne) work well both as blush or a lip stain, and the multi-purpose nature of the item makes the price more palatable ($28, Le Métier de Beauté). A deep pink lipstick, like Moisture Stain Lipstick in Paris, can be blotted down for a more work-appropriate look or layered for a night out ($32, Le Métier de Beauté); similarly adaptable is berry shade Wine on the Vine ($49 as part of a set with matching nail polish, Bergdorf Goodman).
An eyeliner that can stay all day, with no bleeding or fading, is hard to find—but Le Métier de Beauté’s felt-tip Liquid Eyeliner does the trick. A very precise tip means you can draw super-thin lines or go back for a clean second pass, but the opaque color means you won’t be lacking in pigment. If you make sure the eyeliner’s tip doesn’t dry out, it will last you a serious while ($42, in shades Noir, Bleu, and Aqua, Le Métier de Beauté).
And don’t disregard lipgloss as just for teens or tweens. Le Métier de Beauté offers up two formulas: Sheer Brilliance, with 11 shades ranging from nude to violet, and Lip Creme, more like a liquid lipstick in 12 thicker shades like Cocoa, Papaya, Chocolate, and Apricot. In a partnership with Neiman Marcus fashion director Ken Downing, Le Métier de Beauté last year released Lip Creme shades In the Know Bordeaux, a shimmery scarlet, and Purple Haze, a glowing light berry ($36, Neiman Marcus). If either of those shades is one you normally turn to for a special occasion, put the gloss on your cosmetics counter and keep it there.
If you buy something from Le Métier de Beauté that stretches your budget, rest assured that the quality is undeniable—these cosmetics have great pigmentation and wear time. Like I’m sure you’ve heard a million times, quality is always better than quantity. Grab a few investment pieces, skip products you don’t really need, and your wallet will end up thanking you—and of course, so will your face.
EDITORIAL NOTE: The product/s reviewed in this post were provided to Chesapeake Family’s About Face blog by the manufacturer or their public relations company for review. Chesapeake Family’s reviews are inspired by personal experience and opinion, and are not paid for or influenced by the manufacturer, PR company or any other organization unless mentioned.
Photo by Adam Fried.
In middle school, Roxana Hadadi was a cosmetics-scorning tomboy; in high school, a glitter eye shadow- and black nail polish-loving trend kid; in college, obsessively committed to dying her hair unruly colors that upset her mom. Now a bit older and a bit more mature, she’s trying to figure out what hair, body and cosmetics products will work for her, you and your family in About Face, Chesapeake Family’s new beauty blog — and she’ll leave the sparkle makeup and neon highlights in the past. Roxana also writes movie reviews for Chesapeake Family’s Popcorn Parents blog.
