Made-to-measure “perfect nudes”
For those of you who haven’t heard yet, L’Oreal Paris had the honour this year of releasing the official TIFF Festival Collection, a limited edition colour collection currently available in most drugstores throughout Canada.
The collection contains nudes created to suit four different skintones: that of Doutzen Kroes (Barely Pink), Eva Longoria (Barely Golden), Freida Pinto (Barely Parma), and Jennifer Lopez (Barely Greige). They’re not your normal nudes, either. Rather than flesh tones and too-milky pinks, the Collection Privée by Colour Riche encompasses everything from a cement grey to a dark brown-red — perhaps more “naturals” than nudes, if even that.
Either way, they’re gorgeous.
The Colour Riche Nail Colours ($3.99 CAD)
If you ask me, the real stunners in this collection–er, aside from the incredibly gorgeous spokesmodels–are the four Colour Riche Nail Colours. The wide, thin applicator is fantastic for distributing colour evenly, and the formulas settle into opaque, streak-free finishes in only 2-3 coats.
When it comes to getting the perfect nail, the brush is just as important as the formula and shades, and the Colour Riche polishes nail it in every category (pun intended).
Swatched L-R: L’Oreal Collection Privée by Colour Riche Nail Polishes in Freida, Eva, Doutzen, and J Lo (indirect sunlight)
Freida’s Nude is a light chocolate brown with a cream finish and a very slightly cool undertone; just enough to keep it from looking muddy. Its blue pigments separate out, so be sure to shake well before using.
Eva’s Nude is a heart-stopping rosewood. It’s dark enough that it looks almost like a deliciously rich brown at first glance, bleeding red at the edges or at an angle, and I think I’m in love. Plus, as far as fall is concerned? A mesmerizing darker-even-than-wine shade is so on-trend for the season, and it doesn’t even come with the hassle of nail art.
Swatched L-R: Freida, Eva, Doutzen, and J Lo, in direct sunlight
Doutzen’s Nude is perhaps the most recognizable as a “nude,” a very light, milky pink with fine shimmer. It’s everything I wish Essie’s Ballet Slippers was, to be honest — they’re actually quite similar, but at three coats, only Doutzen’s Nude delivers solid, seamless, streak-less colour.
Finally, J Lo’s Nude is a basic, no-fail greige. It’s less mauve than Orly You’re Blushing, richer in tone than Essie Master Plan, and overall a very neutral, very medium sort of greige. It’s sort of the ideal nude grey, if you ask me, which I think is probably exactly what L’Oreal was going for!
Ethyl Acetate, Butyl Acetate, Nitrocellulose, Propyl Acetate, Acetyl Tributyl Citrate, Tosylamide/Epoxy Resin, Isopropyl Alcohol, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol/Trimellitic Anhydride Copolymer, Acrylates Copolymer, Stearalkonium Bentonite, Benzophenone-1, Silica, Diacetone Alcohol, Phosphoric Acid, Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate, Alumina, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Tin Oxide, Stearalkonium Hectorite
+/- Titanium Dioxide, Mica, Yellow 5 Lake, Red 6, CI 77491, CI 77492, Iron Oxides, Bismuth Oxychloride, Red 7 Lake, Red 34, Barium Sulfate, Ferric Ferrocyanide, Blue 1 Lake, Black 2.
For our international readers:
The Collection Privée includes many of the same shades in other countries, but there are a few points of difference. In the UK, there’s Barely Greige (Cheryl Cole), Barely Peach (Julianne Moore), and Barely Moka (Liya Kebede). In France, there’s Nude Taupe (Leïla Bekhti).
In the US, as far as I can tell, this collection doesn’t exist at all. (Finally! Something great that Canadians & Brits get but the Americans don’t.)
