Today I’m sharing Part 2 of my Dolce & Gabbana Beauty favorites. There is a lot to explore with the Dolce & Gabbana beauty line and over the past few years I’ve done some extensive testing. Today’s post will be an introduction to some of the items I have enjoyed the most. What I think is the most appealing about the line is the diverse color range in all of the products. There are good nudes and soft pinks to appeal to neutral makeup lovers, but there are also a lot of more dramatic and bright shades for those who crave color.
Up first are the Smooth Eye Color Quads ($60 each for 4.8 g/ 0.16 oz) in Smoky 105 and Contrasts 140. Smoky is hands down the best smokey eyeshadow quad I’ve tried. The pigment is very good and smooth. It has a pigmented matte black, deep chocolate bronze, shimmering sand and a pale ivory pink frost. If you find most traditional grey, silver and black smokey eyeshadow palettes too cool-toned for you, the Dolce & Gabbana Smoky is a great alternative. The sand and bronze colors add depth and definition with a warm touch. Contrasts is a softer palette of rosy colors. It has a soft petal pink shimmer, a pale pink-tinged cream satin, a soft plum shimmer and a warm reddish bronze shimmer. This will give you a soft defined eye that isn’t too nude or too pink. If you’re new to eye makeup and want to ease into wearing color, this is a great introductory quad that is impossible to mess up or overdo.
Next is the Perfect Mono Cream Eye Color ($36 for 4 g / 0.14 oz) in Desert 40. This one is listed as a matte shade but it has a slight shimmery sheen to it. Desert is a cool-toned tan nude shade. On my skin tone it’s the perfect contouring nude shade to add depth and a hint of color. I like this one alone or combined with the Smoky Quad. It has a soft velvety texture. It is creamy to the touch but dries quickly. I found it went on smoothly when my lids were primed with a tiny bit of eye cream. It is described as a long-wear cream shadow that is supposed to last up to 12 hours. I found it lasted from morning to night for me, I’ve tested it for around 9-10 hours and each time it stayed put and did not budge.
To define the eyes, the original pencil released was the Crayon Intense Eyeliner ($30 each). These are highly pigmented pencils that come with an angled applicator at one end for blending. Lasting power depends on the shades. I find the metallics last long on my eyes while the mattes don’t. Shades like Stromboli and Coffee have a matte base with flecks of sparkle – I find these work best if you layer a powder shadow on top of them to intensify color and get a smokey eye look. They don’t smudge but they on me they fade by early-afternoon. I’ve had better experience with the shimmery metallics though like Bronzo, Shimmer and Agave – all of which last quite long on my eyes from morning until night.
For lips, Dolce & Gabbana offers a wide range of textures and finishes. There are sheer shine lipsticks, glossy lipsticks, pigmented cream lipsticks and glosses with different levels of pigment and shimmer. Do note these are heavily scented with a soft rose fragrance so if you are super sensitive to scents your mileage may vary on tolerance. I find I can wear them without any issue and the scent does fade after 5 minutes or so. Out of all the formulas, I would say the Classic Cream ($33 for 3.5 g) and Voluptuous Monica Lipstick ($34 each) formulas perform the best. They are creamy, smooth and moisturizing with pigmented coverage. The Classic Cream Lipstick in Petal 135 is my newest acquisition and I find it is the perfect pink nude cream, it leans neutral but has the perfect balance of warm and cool in it to not wash out the face or pull blue on my pigmented lips.
For glosses, the packaging was re-designed although it still comes in a clear tube and sponge tip applicator. I have several colors in the Sheer Shine ($31 for 5 ml) formula. Two I’ve used up include Seduction 100 and Nude 60. I’ve found the old and new formulas to be identical. These are sheer glosses with high shine that work best when layered over a lipstick.
For many years I would do a lipliner + lipstick + gloss look on a daily basis. These days I find I usually skip lipliner altogether but Dolce & Gabbana does have a wide range of perfect nudes. I prefer to find a lipliner that matches my natural lip tone or something slightly lighter to go with nude lip colors. The Precision Lip Liner ($30) comes in a wide range of nude shades with pink, brown and rose undertones. They blend in well with the lip naturally and help extend the wear of lipstick. These come with a brush at one end which is handy for blending. Cashmere 8 is a good versatile nude. I’ve swatched a couple others below.
For the nails, Dolce & Gabbana has over 30 shades to choose from. The polishes are called Intense Nail Lacquer ($25 each for 11 ml). I’ve accumulated quite a few to date and like these for the glossy finish and smooth texture. Even the sheer shades have really good coverage and smooth application. Three I’m obsessed with include Perfection (a sheer but smooth nude with a jelly finish), Chocolate (a deep glossy chocolate cream with a jelly finish) and Cosmopolitan (a sheer coral peach, also with a jelly finish). The colors can be easily duped but the formulas have this perfect jelly texture that has an ultra glossy finish. Lasting power is really good and I usually get 5 days of wear without any chipping or tip wear. If you try these I think you will be impressed with the smooth coverage these offer.
I hope you found this a helpful introduction to the Dolce & Gabbana Beauty line. The brand offers high quality luxurious products that I find perform really well. It’s definitely one I recommend exploring the next time you are at a counter. Out of all that Dolce & Gabbana has to offer, if I had to pick three things to look at for starters, it would be the Powder Foundation (reviewed here), Smoky Quad and any one of the Luminous Cheek Colors.
This post was sponsored by Nordstrom. All opinions are my own. For more information you can refer to my Disclosures page.
Desert and Bronzo are stunning!
Thanks again for such a thorough and thoughtful review. I love these brand run-downs. The eyeliners really wow'ed me, which is surprising. I love the eyeshadow quads as well.
xoxo
Kelly
http://www.dreaminlace.com
Thanks for another great review! I was wondering which HE quad is your favorite at the moment. I've had my eye on the TF Cocoa Mirage palette, but I'm also interested in the DG line and Chanel Tisse Rivoli. Any feedback would be great 🙂
I think TF Cocoa Mirage is a great quad if you like mattes. I prefer more shimmer and the Chanel Tisse Rivoli is to die for gorgeous. It's definitely one of my favorites. That being said the Dolce & Gabbana Smoky is my favorite smokey eye palette. If you want something warmer and more neutral go for the Chanel. If you want a classic smokey look, I would recommend the Dolce & Gabbana.
HTH!
Thank you, Sabrina! All 3 are on my list now, and Cocoa Mirage will be first! Have a great day. 🙂
The Contrasts palette is so beautiful!
Connie | Sponsored by Coffee
Those pencils look amazing… but that blue! That blue is perfection!!
Sabrina,
I just love Petal 135! I wanted to buy it right away but it is listed as a Classic Creme Not a Monica lipstick and is described as a "lavender-rose" with a picture that resembles that description both on the Sephora and Norstrom Websites. The color is not the gorgeous one you pictured nor one you would likely choose for our warm complexion based on those sites. Sooooo I am confused that I am looking at the wong shade!
PS I also will be needing Contrasts, Agave, and that fab chocolate liner! Thanks for any help with the lipstick! Lisa
Hi Lisa, I just posted a new post with a swatch on Petal. Sorry about the confusion, it is definitely a Classic Cream Formula. I don't know that I would describe it as a lavendar rose, on me it's definitely a nude pink. I suppose next to some of the warmer nudes Dolce & Gabbana has to offer you might say it has a slight hint of lavender to balance out the warmth.
The lipstick was photographed in full sun so it might look a bit warmer on your screen. I took a couple more shots in different lighting in the new post and also have a lip swatch. In my experience, both Nordstrom and Sephora have really good return policies. If you order sight unseen and it doesn't work, it should be relatively easy to return or exchange.
HTH!
Sabrina!
You are so amazing! You answered so fast! Thanks so much. I actually think your photos are the best online and just wanted to make sure I was ordering the correct color! Really appreciate the extra effort with the new post! You are the best!
Happy to help – someone else sent me an email yesterday so I figured I would do a follow up.
Oh, wow! I want everything! Thank you for a beautiful post. I'll have to explore the world of D&G. Have a wonderful weekend.
I might try the smoky set as I really want to experiment with smoky eyes.
Thanks for sharing.