The L’Oreal x Love Marie Lipstick Collection: An interview with Heart + complete swatches
Love Marie Ongpauco Escudero is a woman of many hats. She is the actress Heart Evangelista. Beloved wife to Sorsogon Governor Chiz Escudero. Creative Director of local fashion brand Kamiseta. And now, the first Filipino artist collaborator of international brand, L’Oreal Paris. From “exhibiting” her colorful paintings on Hermes bags, Love Marie’s art now graces five limited edition L’Oreal Color Riche Matte lipsticks!
The L’Oreal x Love Marie Lipstick Collection takes five best-selling shades from the Color Riche Mattes line and wraps them up in Love Marie’s artwork. Each tube features a woman from Love Marie’s original painting that depicts five formidable women at different stages of their lives. I have raved about the L’Oreal Color Riche Mattes before so I was quite happy that they chose this particular formula. These bullet lipsticks ride the still trending wave of the matte finish but with the healthier look (and feel) of a moisturized lip. I find them quite comfortable to use and do not feel the need to apply lip balm throughout the day!
I managed to have a quick chat with Love Marie about her lipsticks during the launch, and she gamely shared a few beauty and fashion tips along with some insights on the collab:
Project Vanity: How did your collaboration with L’Oreal start?
Love Marie: I’ve worked with L’Oreal a lot. And whenever I endorse or I work with a brand, I start by using it first. So I’ve always had this big dream to work with L’Oreal; I love their lipsticks! That was how it started. And then, we just developed our relationship, and this happened. So yeah, it’s such a dream come true.
PV: What inspired this L’Oreal x Love Marie collection? Why these five shades?
LM: To represent the five women in my painting. It represents different kinds of women, or for me as the painter, different stages of my life. My character has developed throughout the years – I was very shy, then I became a rebel. Then I became very strong. And so, this represents all kinds of women. It also inspires women to find their voice.
PV: Why just one red? (Pure Rouge)
LM: Because it’s the only red you need! For me it’s this perfect shade, it matches every skin tone, it’s the look of elegance. It ups the game, it’s your power lipstick.
PV: Can you share with us some fashion tips? What outfit will you wear with which lipstick?
LM: First, you can wear white with any of them. With the red, it can be a black and white, polka dots, very graphic. It could also be like a really nice, crisp polo. It depends on the mood and where you’re going.
PV: What’s your best beauty tip in choosing your lipstick when you go out for the day?
LM: It’s okay to let your mood control you at that moment. It’s okay to give in to your mood. So this will definitely light you up if you want to change the way you feel about something. Because with other things in life, with other situations, you don’t let your mood dictate or react to it, but with lipstick it’s okay. And a bonus tip: you can also mix the colors!
Swatches, from left: Brick Planet, Hinted Blush, Rouge a Porter, Spring Rosette, Pure Rouge
The packaging of the lipsticks is what sets it apart from the other L’Oreal Color Riche Mattes. While the original Color Riche features a faux leather finish for the plastic tubes, these 5 lipsticks have stickers wrapped around the tubes with Love Marie’s artwork and signature. If you complete all 5 shades, you can display them side by side and have a semblance of the painting!
I thoroughly enjoyed each lipstick shade in the collection, as I previously only have Hinted Blush from this particular set. Brick Planet comes from the Earth on Fire release while the rest are part of the original 40 shades. Performance wise, these last decently at around 3 to 4 hours but you’ll have to retouch if you’ll eat or drink as this formula transfers, especially the Pure Rouge one. While it is a stunning red shade, I have to be extra careful when applying as any mistake is hard to remove due to the strong pigmentation.
Admittedly, there is a bit of disappointment at having existing shades in updated packaging instead of new ones. It would have been amazing to have Love Marie herself mix up the colors and create new shades, similar to how she does it for herself with different Color Riche Matte shades. I do hope they come up with new shades should they release a second collection!
As for the packaging, while the collection looks visually appealing, you can see the sticker terminations up close and that sort of detracts from the experience. I wish they would have used a technique similar to the L’Oreal Color Riche Red Carpet Lipstick with its red felt cover. A printed canvas with Love Marie’s painting would have given a more tactile effect.
I’m already looking forward to the possibility of their next collaboration as the lipsticks sold out within 90 minutes of their online launch over at Lazada! You can get each lipstick for P399 each. The boxed set is sold out at the moment but I do hope they restock as it is quite a lovely sight to have on your vanity.
Did you get a L’Oreal x Love Marie LE lipstick? Which one is your favorite?
