Rouge Bunny Rouge Masters of Texture: A Cosmetics Collection Befitting an Old World Fairy Tale

Ever encounter a cosmetic brand that’s so fabulous, so excitingly enshrouded in mystery that it almost feels magical to get your hands on a few products? For me, Rouge Bunny Rouge has always been that brand.

Perhaps it’s the whimsical product names, the slight difficulty in procuring their products (I’m not certain there are counters stateside, for instance) and the dreamy colors. I almost always feel like birds should be sweeping the kitchen and braiding my hair while I apply Rouge Bunny Rouge cosmetics.

“Rouge Bunny Rouge is quintessentially British — a vision of intellectual beauty, a uniquely Neo-Victorian style … [the brand is] also renowned for its fantastic world of storytelling. Elements of magic, whimsy and mystery are playfully reflected in the names of [the] products.” — Rouge Bunny Rouge

Very early on in my blogging days at Getting Cheeky (and you can tell just how early on by the photography), I managed to get my hands on the stunning shadow in Abyssinian Catbird, and the love affair began. So it was with the excitement of a love-struck fairy-tale heroine that I started playing with the Rouge Bunny Rouge Masters of Texture Makeup Collection.

Please allow for a brief pause while this makeup and classic literature lover swoons…

I can think of no more exquisitely packaged powders than those offered by Rouge Bunny Rouge. Housed in substantial and sleek black external packaging reminiscent of Victorian hat boxes, removal of the lid reveals a weighty black compact and sweet “RBR” monogrammed powder puff.

*swoon*

Rouge Bunny Rouge’s Loves Lights Highlighting Powder ($48) is not your average trend-driven illuminator. Finely milled to the point of feeling like a cloud, these beauties create a diaphanous, rather than overt, glow.

The brand describes the formulation of the powder as being composed of “spherical powders” which “[produce] an unusual perfecting powder with smoothing properties.” While it pained me to swatch away the ephemeral dandelion pattern on the surface of the powder, the result was well worth the temporary torture. I could verily paint myself from head to toe in 066 Goddess (an opalescent pale pink), and 067 Sweet to Touch (a gold spiked amber) pairs well with blushes of a plum hue on my complexion.

As for the Raw Garden Shadow Palette ($55) in 086 Antigo, it’s a work of art. I’ve tried many matte shadows in my time as a beauty lover, and while I have my favorites, it’s not often that I’m this impressed… To be honest, I don’t even remember the last time I audibly said “oooh!” while swatching, but Antigo accomplished just that.

Comprised of a faintly luminous golden pearl, a pink toned mink, rich deep brown and neutral coffee, this palette is as foolproof in terms of creating looks as it is indispensable. I am fully enamored of the texture and highly recommend this particular piece in the collection. Are you a neutral shadow lover? Then run, don’t walk.

Available in two shades, Rouge Bunny Rouge’s Alchemy Long-Lasting Brow Liners in 088 Antimony and 089 Troma don’t offer an immense variety of shades (blondes, red heads and raven-haired beauties will struggle to find a perfect match), but they do offer the opportunity to choose between warm and cool-toned brown. Pencils of this style with such a fine point of product are ideal for creating natural brow strokes, creating a “my brows but better” effect. I’ve been favoring 088 Antimony to pick up on the deeper hues in my auburn hair (as shown in the FOTD shots in this post).

Another long-time and much-beloved star of the Rouge Bunny Rouge line are their lip products. The Dazzling Sip Tinted Luxe Balms ($31) are another dreamy throwback to my early days as a beauty blogger in 2011 and 2012, when Rouge Bunny Rouge had burst forth on the scene and their lipsticks were wildly buzzed about. Available in three shades, 091 Pinch of Nude, 092 Sip of Pink and 093 Specks of Cerise, these pillowy balms feel somewhat reminiscent of cushioned marshmallows on the lips. A formula like this one is rare, and these balms are incredibly comfortable for a beauty lover with such sensitive lips.

Alas, although it’s a smidge too dark for my incredibly fair complexion, I am incredibly impressed with the consistency of Skin Soul Drops Foundation Essence ($63). Similar both in packaging and consistency to Giorgio Armani’s Maestro foundation, an oil-based formula that largely evaporates on the skin to leave behind pure pigment only, Rouge Bunny Rouge’s take blends like a dream and feels incredibly comfortable and is, dare I say, imperceptible when applied. Available in only three shades, it’s intended to be a bit of a chameleon and suit a wide variety of complexions.

In the swatch below, I placed a thick drop of the foundation to the left of my arm and gradually blended in a gradient fashion moving toward the right. It’s worth noting that I blended with my fingers, and I find that this is the best method for foundations of this style; however, a dense kabuki style or dome foundation brush would also do the trick.

Despite the color mismatch, I wore this foundation for a day (much to my family’s concern) around the house to test longevity. Although I have dry skin and can’t speak to the way Skin Soul Drops Foundation Essence would perform on oily or combination skin, it lasted me a full 10 hours without requiring powder or blotting.

Naturally, given my propensity to fall in love with any and all makeup that is literary and whimsical in nature, I had to take all of these products for a spin. As fabulous in quality as Rouge Bunny Rouge’s reputation would suggest, each and every one feels dreamy and exquisite.

I’ve developed a particular soft spot for the Loves Lights Highlighter in 066 Goddess. As the glow it creates isn’t as overt as other popular highlighters, I find that it stays with me better throughout the day. And who could resist the flirty glow of the Dazzling Sip Tinted Luxe Balm in 092 Sip of Pink? Certainly not this girl.

It’s hard to condense my thoughts on this comprehensive collection into just a few words, and I barely even scratched the surface! Mysterious and high quality, Rouge Bunny Rouge is truly an enigma wrapped in a myth, and I love every minute of it.

Fellow niche beauty lovers, have you tried Rouge Bunny Rouge? What are your favorite products? What else should I try?