You Have to Try it to Love it: Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites

Guerlain Météorites celebrated its 25th birthday this year (grand achievement in an industry where new formulas keep coming out). This cult favorite is designed to illuminate the skin with perfect purity, and it has many different versions in the permanent line-up as well as limited edition ones. Today we’re taking a peek at Perles du Dragon of the Guerlain Liu holiday collection.

Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites comes in a black tin with a ring of dots in the middle. The golden rosette on the lid is very luxurious, and you can find Guerlain engraved below the rosette. I like how easy it is to pop the lid open instead of having to pry with my nails.

Once the lid is off, you see a piece of black sponge. I personally wouldn’t throw it away, because the balls have a better chance of staying intact with some protection.

After the sponge is lifted up, you get Perles du Dragon in all its glory!

Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites is composed of six different shades (though you will see in the next picture that I only found four… fail!): pale pink and beige even out the complexion, white and gold illuminate, and plum and rosewood brighten areas of shadow and erase fatigue as the night goes on.

I didn’t “swatch” Perles du Dragon, as the effect you really get on your face is very different from the stripes of color I get from rubbing the balls on my arm. The tricky thing about Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites, or any Guerlain Météorites, is that you have to apply it to your face with a proper brush to really appreciate the effect. I purchased the Guerlain Teint Beige Météorites Pressed Powder a while ago, but it took me a while to make up my mind and take the plunge. The reason is simple: when “swatched,” most variations of Météorites most definitely seem too “shimmery.” On the face however, it is a different story.

(These are the… four colors that I found out of six)

I apply Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites with my Bobbi Brown Bronzer Brush. It might pick up a little too much, but it works fine. Perles du Dragon does a great job diffusing light and giving me this airbrushed radiance. You can use it as a highlighter, but I’ve been using it as an overall setting powder and I’m happy with what it does. Compared with my go-to setting powder (Tarte Smooth Operator Finishing Powder), it has less tendency to sink into pores. In fact, I’ve been using it for two weeks and it hasn’t done that at all. Another added benefit is that my blush and contouring powder stay on better with Perles du Dragon. While many blushes would look faded by the end of the day, with Perles du Dragon the vibrancy and lasting power would visibly improve. The same goes to contouring powder. Don’t worry about the “shimmer” either. It is very fine, doesn’t stress pores, and unless you stare from two centimeters away, you are not going to see it.

(You get 30 grams/1.05oz in the tin, which is a lot of product)

When mixed together and used as a setting powder, Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites does seem a bit cooler than my skin tone. It doesn’t look ashy on me, but it does somehow change my undertone. For this reason, I would say it probably works better for those who are fair-to-medium or fairer, and those whose skin tone is cooler than mine (mine is really warm). Also, since it doesn’t aim at controling oil, I have to choose what I pair with it. If I want to wear Guerlain Parure de Lumière, I need an oil-free primer underneath. If I pair with Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion Makeup however (it is not hydrating enough on its own for the season), I need a light moisturizer underneath. Both combinations don’t make me look oily by the end of the day. I would say there is a way for those with combination or even oily skin to work around it (by adding an oil-free primer or using a foundation that is mattifying), but this would work particularly well for those with normal and drier skin types.

I’ve been wearing Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites in all of my face shots for the Liu holiday collection:

(Click here to see Guerlain Liu Eye and Lip Calligraphy Palette)

(Click here to see Guerlain Altoum Shine Automatique and Nail Lacquer)

(Click here to see Guerlain Lou-Ling Shine Automatique and Nail Lacquer)

Bottom line: I personally enjoy the airbrushed radiance Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites offers, as well as the better lasting power it gives to blush/contouring powder. This is a product that you have to try on your face (with the right kind of brush) to tell if you really like it or not, and I think Guerlain Perles du Dragon Météorites would work particularly well for those who are fair to fair-to-medium, whose undertone is not extremely warm, and whose skin type is dry to normal.

Have you tried any of the Guerlain Météorites? Do you like it? What is your go-to setting powder?

Sunny, your beauty culture translator xx