Lancome Rouge in Love

Other than the occasional freebie, I haven't bought any Lancome lippy for a long time, so that was my excuse to give the Rouge in Love line a try.
I guess what got me interested was that the lip colors are divided into 3 "moods": - Those marked with "M": Jolis Matins, "fresh" colors for daytime wear (wait, does that mean for any other time the colors aren't fresh?!?). - Those marked with "B": Boudoir Time, "pop" colors, I guess here means bright, for cocktail time. - Those marked with "N": Tonight is My Night, "intense" colors for nighttime wear.
As you can probably guess, I bought 3 M's and 1 B's, because I don't like intense lip colors: 106M Jolis Matins (that's the name of the color!), 128M Ever So Sweet, 322M Corail in Love, and 340B Rose Boudoir. I actually didn't intend to get any B's, but I was curious to see how bright is "pop" ^.^
All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

I both like and hate the packaging. I like the simple design with a cute vertical line of lacy red stitching in the back, making it look like the back of racy pair of stockings ^.^ I also like that it feels heavy and solid and closes with a satisfying click. But I hate that it's a short and thick round tube, and every time I pick it up it feels more like a metal club I beat someone with (I don't!!!!) rather than a lipstick.

Unfortunately, I dislike the lipstick more so than I like it. I would even say that I really only like the colors, and even then I don't love the colors enough to put up with the formula. And actually, despite having 3 "moods," honest to god I can't tell any damn difference between the 3 M's and the 1 B colors I bought. I looked at the color chart again at Lancome's, and many of the M's are just as "pop" as the B's, and vice versa. So right away, the different "moods" became moot to me. I'm not going to even bother with the N's, which might as well stands for NO.

So I'm left to guess at perhaps the different colors may differ in texture, coverage, or finish. Nope, nope, and nope. They are all similarly opaque, give moderate to full coverage depends on how you layer, and leave a satiny finish with just a slight sheen. Some gals prefer opaque lip colors but I dislike opacity in my lippies, because it magnifies even the tiniest hint of dryness and it settles into lines. I even tried to sheer it out, applying these on top of lip balms or even clear gloss, but then they just shift around in patches. To be fair, this is not a gel or even a hybrid formula, and despite Lancome's "feather light" claim it does feel somewhat substantial on the lips. But why must they all be opaque? And they're not even moisturizing, which makes me totally regret not getting the Baume in Love instead, which are a bit cheaper as well! Not in love, I'm afraid :(

- 106M Jolis Matins: nowhere as brown as it looks in the tube, see swatches below. More like a pumpkin with some peach and very extremely fine microscopic shimmers that lends to a satiny finish. The color is actually nice on my lips, just wish these lipsticks were less opaque.

- 128M Ever So Sweet: umm, if "pop" means what I think it means this is a pretty orange that's just as "poppy" as the 340B Rose Boudoir below. This has fine golden shimmers which add to its warmth but the shimmers don't really show on my lips.

- 322M Corail in Love: looks brighter in the tube than 128M Ever So Sweet but turns out to be a muted pinky coral. Very pretty. And no shimmers, yay!

- 340B Rose Boudoir: a bright popping coral pink that I wish wasn't so opaque because I like it very much :( No shimmers in this color either!

From left to right: 106M Jolis Matins, 128M Ever So Sweet, 322M Corail in Love, 340B Rose Boudoir.

Since 106M Jolis Matins and 322M Corail in Love looked similar I also swatched them side by side for a better comparison. 106M Jolis Matins is more pumpkin and 322M Corail in Love is more pinky coral.