My birthday isn’t until September but I could not contain my excitement to share with you the Sephora Birthday Gift for 2015!
Every year Sephora gives out a free little makeup gift to everyone who is a Beauty Insider, VIB, or VIB Rouge. For 2015, the gift is a duo of mini NARS lip pencils that include (1) Rikugien Satin Lip Pencil and (2) Cruella Velvet Matte Lip Pencil.
Rikugien is described as a “rose pink” but on my pigmented lips, it appears to be more of a brown pink. The color payoff is quite sheer so it is great as an MLBB shade. It has a creamy, soft, and smooth consistency and leaves a gorgeous shine on the lips without emphasizing any lip imperfections. The longevity is rather short at 2-3 hours but at least it doesn’t leave my lips feeling dry during or after wear.
For a detailed review on Cruella, please visit this page.
NARS Rikugien Satin Lip Pencil (L) and Cruella Velvet Matte Lip Pencil (R)
NARS Rikugien Satin Lip Pencil (fill-in) and Cruella Velvet Matte Lip Pencil (outline)
For VIB Rouge, you will get a bonus mini Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Via Veneto in the set, too! I can’t wait until my birthday to score my own gift! The products shown in this review were given to me by a friend who is a Beauty Insider and has a birthday in January! ^_^
If you are not a Beauty Insider yet, it’s free to sign up! You don’t have to buy anything to receive this gift, just present your Beauty Insider card at the register during your birthday month and they will give you one for free or you can also redeem it online with your order at checkout!
Learn more about Sephora membership levels
You know it’s funny, I’ve been a BI for over 10 years and I’ve never gotten a birthday gift.
They usually aren’t that great, but this makes it look like it’s worth it!
(They usually have a certain code for them with a minimum purchase of $25 or $35.)
Huh? How come?!
Haha, I meant Sephora’s birthday gifts, not the pencils.
Hey Jaa, thanks for the post! I was wondering which shades they are. Now I know I won’t need to try to lay my hands on it because I already own Cruella and I don’t like Rikugien much!
I wish they included something else besides Rikugien! It doesn’t do much for me. A little too sheer and a little too brown. :/
Yeah it’s puzzling. This particular shade doesn’t seem to represent the formula well at all!
I’m so excited to see this! It’s so much better than the MUFE set they had before.
Agreed! :)
I have a Beauty Insider account and generally the birthday gifts are crap. They did good this time!
Also, just to clarify, they only give the gift if you make a purchase, right?
You don’t have to buy anything in store to get this gift. But online, yes, you have to buy something. :)
i already cruella :)
but the other one looks nice too ;)
I love Cruella! :D
Now that’s a nice gift!
One of the better ones I have seen!
Now that’s a nice gift! Birthday gifts are always special! Time doesn’t really matter
Lol true that! ;D
I love both colors, too bad my birthday is not till December.
Ouch! But then again, it will be Christmas again before you know it! ;D
I don’t have either of this! And our local Sephora doesn’t have such awesome stuff. They need to step up!
I wish they would make these deals available in Sephora stores across the globe!
Yay! Lovely gift:) I am gonna claim it if I can thank you Jaa for sharing
No problem! I hope you can get your hands on one!
I like the look of Rikugien! It looks like my kind of ‘everyday’ lipstick…I wonder what it would look like on my zombie lips? I can actually go and swatch it, technically, but it requires an actual journey to Newmarket…
I wish we got these kind of things here. But then I could go on for days about how extremely tight-fisted brands are here with samples, despite the (sometimes outrageous) prices they charge, LOL! *laughcry*
I envy you! You’re blessed with pale lips and so you can wear any lip color regardless of how sheer it is and know that it will show up on you! I bet Rikugien would look pretty neat on your pout, Syl! The matter of getting it, though…. I feel ya!
I love Rikugien and have the full sized pencil, so having a mini is a thrilling prospect! LOL that you and Sunny both don’t care much for it! It’s a MLBB shade for me, but my lips are pretty pigmented. Cruella is one I’ve always wanted but know I could never finish a red lipstick! So happy NARS is the birthday gift this year, definitely one of the best gifts Sephora has had thus far! Thanks for making me look forward to my birthday month even more!
I have pigmented lips, too, Kristen! But Rikugien just… doesn’t do much at all. LOL. I wish it had just a tad bit more color payoff and is slightly more opaque!
I’d lean towards Rikugien just by looking at the pencil. But then again, my lips are also pigmented. I’d want a bolder impact for sure. :p
Oh it barely shows up on my lips. The color sure looks nice in the pencil, though! :)
I just picked this gift up today for my birthday and I’m a little disappointed. It seems these “pencils” are actually a plastic barrel that can not be sharpened? so you actually only get the use of product that is protruding? Here I was thinking how many times could I use this short pencil by sharpening it to a nub in its final days. Cant complain when its a freebie I suppose.
Hi Jessica! The pencil is actually sharpen-able! You just have to find a sharpener that fits! :) NARS makes a sharpener that has 2 barrels; one that fits regular-size pencils and the other jumbo pencils. Hope this helps! :)
How cute are they! I don’t think I’d want the Rikugien since the color wouldn’t show up on my natural lips, although I wouldn’t mind checking out Cruella. That’s matte – is it too drying on the lips?
You’ll LOVE Cruella! Such a beautiful matte red that screams sexy, sultry. Not too bright, not too dark, not too mature. I just love it! :) It does feel slightly drying towards the end of wear. :)
Thanks for the reply! Using the mac prep+prime lip might save it from being too dry towards the end. Anyway I don’t mind retouching my lips after about 5 hours of wear :)
First of all thank you so much for such a beautiful collaboration with Saphora. I got mine Nars birthday set! I love Rikugien and Cruella and definitely buy in full size over and over again!
Yay, congrats! I love Cruella and use it often. Rikugien is a little too sheer on me but glad it works well on you! :D
can you sharpen these? :)
Hi Nikki! Yes, you can! Just find a sharpener that fits! NARS actually sells one that is duo-blade for US$6. It has one side that fits regular pencils and the other that fits jumpo pencils. Hope this helps! :)