This past year Hermès expanded their beauty line and released blushes and a single highlighter, Poudre D’Orfèvre Permabrass, that is a neutral toned gold with a stunning Hermès logo embossing and a jaw dropping 98€ price tag. 98 euros for a powder that’s not white and sniffable? The audacity. I had to give it a whirl.
First thing on a long way to justify the price of these items is the packaging, and in that regard, Hermès delivers. The outside box has that trademark Hermès orange colour, it’s made of sturdy cardboard and it opens up like matchboxes. You feel richer just by looking at it. Inside, the compacts are the same: a white lid on a metallic gold compact with a Hermès logo gold disk on top. Designed by Pierre Hardy, if that means something to you. It’s not a heavy compact but it doesn’t feel flimsy or cheap. There is a mirror inside, and the highlighter pan size is bigger than the blush, although in grams the difference is very small (7g for the highlighter vs 6g for the blush).
Both pans are easily extractable, due to a little pin hole on the back of the compact, and I know the blushes are refillable. Let’s start with the blush first.
I chose the shade 23 Rose Blush, which is actually a light, warm coral shade with a demi-matte finish. The texture is soft and silky, so the line is aptly named. This is not a dense, creamy formula. It’s a hard pressed blush, but it picks up easily with a brush. It’s not powdery, it won’t leave you with powder kick up in the pan, but it is a thin formula. I think it’s what you should typically expect from a luxury brand: it is subtle, easy to blend and hard to overdue. I had no issues with longevity with it. For it being the most expensive blush I’ve ever owned (68€), it’s nice, but it’s nothing unique. I can rely on it but I won’t turn to it when I want that something special.
Now, for the highlighter. The formula is completely different: it’s a powder gelée, so I automatically like it more. It applies like one would expect: I have to use a denser brush to pick up a nice amount of product, and I can blend it into the skin until it looks like it’s part of it. The shine is not extreme or metallic, but it’s quite noticeable. It looks so natural, both because of the formula and the colour, and does not emphasise skin texture, yet it is still very much intense. I had, again, no issues with longevity. It lasts the whole day.
Is this highlighter the only one like it on the market? No. In fact, the effect on my skin is very similar to one of my all time favourite highlighters, NARS Fort de France. But, and probably because of that, it’s one of my favourites as well. I like to have it. You get the full luxury experience with it: the packaging, the embossing, the performance. I wouldn’t repurchase it if I ran out (that will never happen, I have too many highlighters) because I wouldn’t need to, I can get the same effect with other brands, but I don’t regret getting it. It’s a good one. Clearly, since I have included it in my yearly favourites.
So there you have it. If you were looking for reasons to justify getting these items, this post won’t help you. But if you were wanting to get them anyway and were just looking to confirm this is good stuff, then I’m happy to put you at ease.
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