Givenchy Limited Edition Le Prisme Blush Bucolique in 'Bucolic Poppy' (#2)

This is a beautiful powder blush from Givenchy's Instant Bucolique Spring / Summer 2012 Collection.  This is what the official Givenchy website says about this gorgeous product:

Inspired by the fields full of poppies, seen from the side. Poppies seem to be more concentrated at the top than at the bottom of the field, giving an impression of dense and generous colour!

This powder was created using a new compaction process that allows to obtain a gradation in the harmony, reinforced by a higher concentration of sparkling nuggets in the bottom of the pan.

(Also available in another colour: Rose no 1.)

The Colour

I just adore this shade, which is not very common in my opinion.  A gorgeous peach with splashes of red that have very subtle bits of gold foil.  Together, the shade is a coral red pop of colour.  So beautiful, especially when applied mostly just on the apples of the cheeks and blending well a little outwards and upwards.  Beware of its intense pigmentation and apply light-handedly using a stippling brush, a soft blush brush, or the Nars Yachiyo brush which is excellent for applying richly pigmented powders with ease.  This shade would suit many skin tones, from the palest to deep - adjusting the amount with the depth of skin colour.  Also, beware that the shade may vary depending on your skin tone and may be different when swatched than when applied onto the cheeks.  So, I would advise you to try this on your cheeks in store first.  On my olive tan skin, it appeared to have more of a red hue when applied on my cheeks.  However, when swatched on the inner side of my arm (the palest part which is paler than my face), it appeared to be a coral pink (as will be evident from the swatch comparison photo below).

Here's much beautiful way to describe the blush and application result ^_^ -

Two harmonies of red nuggets recalling poppies in a golden wheat field for breezy cheeks like after a walk the meadows...

A luminous make up result thanks to micronized pigments.

Texture and Longevity
The powder texture is quite silky smooth and finely milled making it a breeze to blend.  I found the blush to be very long lasting on my combination skin - all day actually, so I'm very pleased with this indeed. :)

Packaging
I love the packaging, too.  The top of the blush compact has the Givenchy logo and through the transparency reveals a mixture of beautiful, bright, spring-like shades - such a beautiful piece of art work - somewhat reminiscent of a post-impressionist's painting even?  Or...a sweet, delicious gobstopper! ^_^

Product label at the bottom of the blush compact.

This is a fairly small, square (black lacquer) compact that's lightweight and easy to carry around.  It has three parts...

Underneath the lid of the compact is a mirror - which is a must-have for me, and it opens to also reveal the blush itself.

The bottom last part of the compact slides outwards and this compartment houses the blush brush provided.  I really like this practical, sleek and compact design.  The compact uses a magnetic closures - very modern and simple to use.

 

The blush brush provided in the compact is a thin, flat brush with soft, very good quality, natural hair bristles. It has a rounded edge and the bristles tapered towards the tip in order to blend the blush well without any harsh lines. The brush is stiff enough to keep the hairs straight, but has a bit of movement without being flimsy.  The handle is a black lacquer.

The brush is very much similar in shape to the Edward Bess brush provided with the Quad Royale compact. However, the Givenchy brush is smaller to fit inside the compact and also a reasonable size for cheeks, and the quality of the bristles feel softer, finer and I feel is better quality.  I find that most of the brushes for such high-end brands like Chanel usually are made to suit the type of product (including even to the specific type of powders - e.g. coarser/thicker bristles for baked powders) they will be used for, but I feel like in this case, Givenchy's is a lot better in quality and performance than the Edward Bess for their type of powders. So, I could use the Givenchy one to apply the EB Quad Royale as well and it would apply very well and also feel soft on the skin.

Just a thought. ;)  I think it's still worth considering the brushes that are provided especially if you travel a lot or want to use makeup on the go and need to rely on these brushes to do their job well.  Also, these products are not cheap, so if they're going to supply tools then they better be good otherwise what's the point?

Swatches

Against olive tan skin tone (about a MAC NC30 for reference).

Comparison Swatches

(L - R): Chantecaille Cheek Shade in 'Ecstasy', Nars 'Dolce Vita', Chanel Joues Contraste in 'Rouge' (from the Byzance de Chanel collection), YSL Blush Radiance in #05, Givenchy 'Bucolic Poppy' (#2) as a heavy swatch, followed by a little of the same blush blended out.

In the swatches, the closest shade to Givenchy's 'Bucolic Poppy' appears to be Chantecaille's 'Ecstasy', which is a raspberry pink and is deeper in comparison.  Both are the type of shades that give those lovely rosy cheeks when applied or intensified more just on the apples of the cheeks.

Other Swatches, FOTDs and Reviews

Planet Martha posted her FOTD where she wore Bucolic Poppy on her pale cheeks - on her it has a very pretty pinky coral result.  She also did a review with comparison swatches HERE.  The Best Things In Beauty also did a review and swatch of this on her very fair, cool skin tone and it appears much more of a deeper, coral rose on her in comparison.  Here's another post (in Russian) from Time4Beauty where the blush is worn - on her it looks an amazing poppy red with just the slightest hint of coral.  This is how the shade looks on me even though I have a very different skin tone!  Though the differences in the shade may also be due to the lighting in which the photos were taken as well - who knows.  (Mine was taken indoors in artificial lighting and flash photography and it appears true to colour).

Scent

The blush in the compact has a sort of sweet, artificial, slightly fruity(?) scent (hard to describe), but to me there's no noticeable scent when applied onto the cheeks, which is good for those with sensitivity to fragrances in makeup like me.

Availability

Limited edition.  Available online, or in Givenchy counters in David Jones and Myer, as well as selected pharmacies such as National Pharmacy and Terry White.

RRP and Size

AU$72 / US$49 for 7 g / 0.24 oz. of product.

Made in Italy

Where I've observed a lot of exceptional powder cosmetics come from such as those of Burberry and some Guerlain powder products.

Final Verdict

A must-have from the Givenchy spring/summer 2012 collection.  A fairly uncommon and beautiful shade of coral red that will flatter and beautify many skin tones.

Thanks for reading. ^_^ xo