Chanel launched another Holiday Beauty Set for this year called the Active Beauty Set ($221). It seems to be exclusive to Chanel.com and and Chanel beauty boutiques. The set has three full-sized permanent items in a large pouch. I love that Chanel released two sizes of pouches this year, the fluffy bag with the snowflake charm is so cute.
I ordered the Active Beauty Set online at Chanel.com and my order came with a cute little charm. I am not sure if all online orders come with one but I do know a lot of stores and counters have them with holiday purchases. The snowflake charm is one I got from my SA in store.
This set has the La Creme Main hand cream (my favorite for a non-sticky formula), UV Essentiel (love this formula) and a Hydra Beauty Essence Mist (scented but I love it).
Quick side by side look at the Active Beauty Set (large pouch) and Maximum Brilliance Set (small/regular pouch, swatches in this post here, still in stock!). You can buy all the items individually and they do not give you a price break for buying a set, but for a holiday gift I think the pouch sets have such a beautiful presentation and definitely have that wow factor.
Long time no see here! What a month it has been! I have been meaning to write a little life update here to check in and say hello, but things have been chaotic these past few weeks. As most of you know, I am located in St. Pete (the Tampa Bay area) and we just went through two back to back hurricanes. I have been more active on social to share updates on life but haven’t had a chance to share much here on the blog. If you want to see what I’ve been up to everything has been saved to my Instagram @beautylookbook October Life and NYC Highlights!
I’m back with a quick Chanel Beauty review! They launched their Holiday 2024 Collection and Part 1 of their Holiday Gift Sets. There are 6 sets online now with the beautiful soft fluffy zippered bags and this year they have 2 sizes of bags, the standard one we’ve seen for years and then a larger one (so fun!).
I picked up one set Maximum Brilliance Lipgloss Trio ($128) as the others I have my eye on aren’t launching until November 4th (I will pick those up on launch day).
This year the boxes are gold and white and the bags have the cutest snowflake detailing on the zipper. I am not sure about the packaging for online orders but if you purchase in store they also have two options for gift wrapping charms, I opted for the snowflake which is super cute.
These gift sets have full-sized items and usually don’t have a price break for buying the set, but they are beautifully packaged and while you can buy the products individually I really love that you know you’re getting full-sized high quality items.
Maximum Brilliance has three Rouge Coco Glosses in Icing (sheer milky white pink), Bourgeioise (classic mauve with shimmer) and Melted Honey (sheer gold shimmer). All three are super glossy with a thicker texture. They’re hydrating and have a beautiful shine.
Here’s a quick look at what’s online now, there are lots of other fragrance sets and bundles but these are the sets that come with the beautiful gift bags:
Two other sets I know are coming out include one with the UV essential and another one comes with the baume essential in the set. If you have your eye on any I recommend ordering soon or calling your local boutique as they tend to sell out very quickly!
Life update: Lots of things have happened the last month! We had two back-to-back hurricanes. I also took a weekend trip to NYC right before Hurricane Milton and came back just in time to help prepare our home for the hurricane and pack as much as we could to evacuate. In our eight years of living in Florida this is the first time we had mandatory evacuation orders for our neighborhood. Andrew booked us an Airbnb to Miami for a couple weeks since he knew even if the hurricane didn’t end up hitting Tampa directly, the size and strength was going to be destructive enough that it meant power would most likely be off for a couple weeks if not an entire month. With the grounds being so saturated with storms, a lot of the counties would also most likely shut off the water for a few days.
We packed what we could in our car along with the fur babies and drove to Miami Beach. With all the traffic it took us 8 hours to drive from Tampa to South Beach (it normally takes us 4 max). We made the best of our two week evacuation, did lots of exploring, ate to our heart’s content all the way through all our favorite spots, tried some new places and also celebrated 23 years together (we dated 7 years and have been married for 16). We checked the news daily for updates on our neighborhood and home. Our neighbors had also evacuated so they weren’t home either to report on our house. With the power out we couldn’t check on our home cameras to see if our house survived.
We drove home as soon as we received notice the power and water was back. So grateful our home is 100% ok inside and that we didn’t have any flooding or damage to the actual house. So many trees had broken branches or were blown over completely from the roots. Lots of homes had damage on the outside and inside – we were very lucky! Our backyard and fence needs a lot of work and repair but any damage is minimal and all things are fixable.
I hope to resume regular posting this week! I’ve had lots in the works for reviews and swatches. Also have a couple Sephora sale guides and holiday gift guides coming your way. I’ve been working behind the scenes while I’ve been away! Just haven’t had a chance to edit and put everything together to share with you.
Hope you are all well and that you had an ok October. Ours was chaotic for sure but we survived it and I am happy to be back!
Chanel launched a new blush formula called the Joues Contraste Intense Cream-To-Powder Blush ($52, available at Chanel.com). It’s available in five shades and the formula is phenomenal. I picked these up my local beauty boutique and fell in love with the soft cushiony texture. These are soft creams that have a nice dry down in powder form. In a world of dewy blush trends it’s challenging to find a cream formula with a good dry down and satiny finish and the new ones from Chanel are exactly what I’ve been looking for. They almost have a subtle blurring effect on me and I love the classic shades.
The name has the word “intense” in it but these really aren’t that intense. They are buildable on color but 3 are more natural and 2 are intense with the bold bright shades, but they are very easy to blend out.
Lasting power is pretty good, but I don’t think I’d be able to get the full 12-hour wear time and for me that is 100% ok. The lightest beige shade did seem to fade the fastest on me but it’s close to my skin tone. I haven’t given each shade a full day wear test, but the other two I did test for an extended period of time held up well for around 4-5 hours for that fresh look.
These are more on the soft matte side, but they do have a luminous glow quality to them without the shimmer.
Beige Eclatant is a soft beige on me, it’s barely visible in photos but in real life it gives a really pretty soft glow
Rose Radiant is a soft warm rose
Rose Ardent is a cooler toned pink rose
Rouge Franc is a bold hot warm red
Grenat Profond is a berry
Below wearing each shade with a different lip color, also wearing:
I tried these with Chanel brushes and I normally don’t have a preference for which brush I use as they’re usually really versatile and multi-tasking. I did really like the small domed one though the Precision Powder Brush N 107 best for these. The size and shape is perfect. They all work well, I just love the shape for this formula.
Chanel launched two limited-edition makeup sets called the Chanel Makeup Takeaways. These sets have been put together by two different makeup artists Cécile Paravina and Valentina Li in collaboration with the Chanel Makeup Creation Studio. They’re fun and edgy each packaged in a collector’s box and both come with a pouch.
I picked up The Nature Getaway ($195) which features pink and coral tones. There is also another set called The City Break ($190). I have a look at the peachy set today.
The Nature Getaway includes:
Rouge Coco Flash in Bisous
Le Liner de Chanel in Heart Beat
Ombre Essentielle in Rose in Hand
Baume Essentiel in Morning Dew
Coral Pouch
My favorite item in the set is the Rouge Coco Flash in Bisous. It’s a sheer but bright coral with a bit of pink to it. I love the color and finish. The pigment is pretty good for this formula which tends to be on the sheer side. I wish they made this one part of the permanent line. It’s fresh and bright but not too bright.
There are two eye products in the set. I am not one who wears colorful eye liners so I didn’t really expect to like the Le Liner de Chanelin Heart Beat. I did try it alone and immediately felt the need to add my usual brown/black shadow liner on top. I’ve added a swatch but am not wearing it in the photos below. It’s fun and different, just not something I can pull off. I would have LOVED this shade in a gloss format or nail color.
Ombre Essentiellein Rose in Hand is a peachy coral base with multi-colored sparkle glitter flecks. If you apply with a fluffy brush you’ll get a softer peach. I applied with a dense brush over a primer and the primers pick up a lot more pigment for a darker peachy orange finish. You can see the glitter once on the lids but it’s not glaring. I think this would also make a pretty blush shade.
There’s a new Baume Essentiel in the set called Morning Dew. It looks coral peachy pink in the tube but on my skin it’s nearly clear with a light pink sheen. Not a must-have in my opinion since it’s so sheer and has a similar effect to the other baume essentiel sticks, but still very pretty on the lips.
Chanel Beauty added some new fun colorful items in their Summer 2024 Collection. I checked out everything at my local Chanel Beauty Boutique a couple weeks ago and had fun swatching everything. I picked up a few items and love every single thing.
The overall collection is very different from what we’ve seen lately from Chanel and I love it. They created some really beautiful multi-dimensional colors for the eyes and cheeks. I wish they had launched coordinating new lip colors but it looks like for this launch it’s newness for eyes, cheeks and nails.
Jardin Imaginaire Blush and Highlighter Duos
The stars of this launch are the Blush and Highlighter Duos ($75 each). They’re stunning and are SO much prettier on the skin compared to what you see in the compacts. These are have the same texture as the duo from 2021. There is a soft satiny matte side and a silky highlighter.
Light and Berry was another surprised. At first glance I thought they would 100% be shades I would never wear. The mauve fuschia blush swatches very bright with a dense brush but it’s sheer-medium in pigment and blends out much better on the face. The opal pink highlighter almost flashes lavender and adds the prettiest glow. I love this on the cheeks or the eyes. Below wearing Light and Berry on the cheeks, Stylo Ombre et Contour Celestial Pink, Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Eyeliner in Black, Baume Essentiel Scintillement on the Lips.
Summer 2024 has Moonlight Kiss which is a soft champagne gold with a bit of peach and Solar Glow a bronzed copper shimmer. These perform true to the Chanel Baume Essentiel standards: glowy, balmy, lovely shine. I really can’t pull these off on the cheeks in Florida heat and humidity but I know lots of you are HUGE fans of the dewy glow. I do really like these in the cooler climates or on the lips.
Chanel added a new shade Scintillement which looks really similar to the Mermaid Glow from Spring 2024. I received tons of feedback from many of you that you heard Scintillement is really just Mermaid Glow renamed and in permanent form. In store the Sas swatched them side by side and I wish I captured a photo because I saw distinct differences in store but it could have been the lighting. I pulled both at home and I really cannot tell the difference when swatched. They have slight differences in the base but the sparkle and effect looks the same.
I think both are stunning. I am amazed that Chanel was able to create something sparkly without any texture or gritty feel. I kinda wish the sparkle was more visible on the skin, but I think it’s beautiful.
There are lots of new fun shades of the Stylo Ombre Et Contour ($38). I own quite a few of these and love the darker ones for liner or matte ones for an all over lid shade. I never ended up using many of the lighter colors since they pull on the sheer side. I picked up Celestial Pink which is a glittery pink that flashes violet and pink. On my bare lids it matches my skin tone so closely it doesn’t show up, but when layered with any powder shadow it transforms into a brighter iridescent glow. 100% love. I do wish it was in powder form though as I really love the new Chanel powder shadow singles.
I also loved Attaya and Ecorce in store but decided to think about them for a while.
Summer Le Vernis
There are three new Le Vernis ($32) shades. All three are absolutely stunning. I picked up two in Songe D’Ete (opal pink shimmer) and Faun (pretty cream brown). I passed on the green Reveuse since I’m not really into greens, but the SA swatched it in store and the shimmer is breathtaking. Wearing the shades I hauled, both with 2 coats.
Overall very different from what we usually see from Chanel but I love what they created. The Summer 2024 collection is fresh, unique and fun. I’m 100% happy with all my splurges even though I won’t be using the baumes on the cheeks (they’re lovely on the lips).
I stopped by my local Chanel Beauty boutique over the weekend to restock some of my favorites. A lot of you asked to see a more detailed look the haul and I also received a few things in PR that I wanted to share a look at.
If you have a free-standing Chanel Beauty boutique in your area I highly recommend visiting one! They stock many items you can’t find easily at other retailers. Beauty boutiques have the entire fragrance lineup from the Les Eaux de Chanel, Les Exclusifs, body oils and they also have a very good selection of Eyewear. Occasionally they have stock small leather goods and pouches but they sell out very quickly.
I love shopping at these boutiques since the staff has always been very friendly and very knowledgeable about the entire line. There are a few beauty boutiques in Miami that I always love visiting and one recently opened up in Tampa near me.
I really love the Chanel cleansing line and I am obsessed with the L’Huile Anti-Pollution Cleansing Oil ($55). No matter what else I try, I keep going back to this one. The texture is silky smooth, it emulsifies really well with warm water and doesn’t strip the skin once rinsed.
I also love their Gel-to-Oil cleansers. They are similar to a cleansing oil or balm, but in gel form so it’s not as messy/runny when you apply. Once you massage it turns into an oil and dissolves your face makeup. They keep discontinuing my favorites from the Le Blanc line but still make it in the Sublimage formula called the L’Huile-en-Gel De Demaquillage Ultimate Comfort and Radiance-Revealing Gel-to-Oil Cleanser. This is also phenomenal.
Makeup Restocks – Rouge Coco Baume
I restocked a few lip balms. You girls know I love the Rouge Coco Baume formula ($45) – I restocked two shades in Chilling Pink (review and on the lips here) and My Rose (on the lips here). I think every single shade in this particular formula is beautiful.
Les Beiges Healthy Glow Foundation
I restocked my favorite foundation in two shades: Les Beiges Healthy Glow Foundation ($65) in BD41 and BD51. These have a golden undertone which is best for me although the new BO olive range works well too. Formula-wise this is my favorite foundation from Chanel. It has medium coverage, lightly hydrating but not too much, color range is extensive and they have multiple undertone options. I swatched the shades I have below in B40, BD41, B50 (the No 1 de Chanel formula), BD51 and BO53.
Chanel launched new single eyeshadows in the Ombre Essentielle Long-wearing Eyeshadow ($40) and also in a Multi-Use Top Coat ($40). I’m usually more of a fan of palettes than singles but I swatched them in store and was REALLY impressed with the pigment and textures. The shimmers are almost creamy to the touch with how velvety smooth they are and the pigment is stunning! Mattes are exceptionally smooth but some have a very tiny bit of shimmer for a little depth.
I bought one in the Top Coat Blanc Perle which is an opalescent kind of smooth shimmer. It’s like a pink opal color with a soft almost creamy feel. It transforms other shadows to make them look more dimensional.
Yesterday a PR package arrived with a few more shades that I have swatched below and lucky me they are actually the ones I had my eye on from my swatch session in store. Rose Charnel is a matte soft warm coral rose, Brun Fauve is a matte warm brown, Quartz Fume is a shimmery bronze almost khaki taupe. I swatched the mattes with the top coat on top too.
The Les Eaux de Chanel Paris-Biarritz ($113 for the travel size) is one of my all time favorites. It’s been a favorite for years as I’m a lover of anything with a fresh citrus vibe. It has a beautiful mix of Sicilian mandarin and lily of the valley. To me the citrus notes are dominant and the floral notes are really subtle but strong enough to round out the mandarin and soften the overall feel. I love that it comes in a travel size so I can bring it with me in my tote on-the-go or for travel. I also love Paris-Riviera which is another citrus, but a little brighter and sharper.
I smelled all four of the new Exclusifs Body Oils and they are pure luxury in a bottle. I think Beige is the best followed by Gardenia, 1957 and then Coromandel. I tried the 1957 oil in store and the scent lasted for hours on my skin well into the evening. The formula of these oils is very good. It has the perfect texture and they aren’t thick or sticky feeling. If I didn’t already have Gardenia I would have purchased Beige but these bottles are so big it will take me forever to use one up.
I have a preview of the No 5 L’Eau Eau de Toilette Drop ($155) which officially launches on the 13th. The PR team sent over their latest fragrance launch which is their classic No 5 L’Eau packaged in a special limited-edition round case similar to the hand creams, but in a clear bottle. It’s a crisp clean scent I think is well suited for the summertime heat. It’s a fresh crisp clean scent that is a floral citrus + aldehydes. It has a beautiful blend of lemon, mandarin, orange, rose, jasmin, ylang-ylang, vetiver, cedar, musk. I think it is beautiful! (on the nails above is Bois des Iles which I think might be discontinued, but Rouge Noir is similar).
Last but not least is a look at the new Exclusifs in Comete ($325 – $500). This is a beautiful soft powdery floral with cherry blossom, iris and heliotrope. It has a powdery feel but the cherry blossom adds sweetness to it. It’s airy and light. On me the lasting power is very long and strong. It’s very different from what I usually gravitate towards but it’s fresh and soft with a feminine vibe.
For those asking, here is the beauty breakdown of what I am wearing in my Chanel Beauty haul reel:
For this year’s Summer Les Beiges collection Chanel Beauty launched new oversized bronzer palettes called the Healthy Glow Sun-Kissed Powders ($95 each, 5 shades). They also added a few shade extensions in their Les Beiges Healthy Glow Foundation ($65, 42 shades available) and the Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powders ($60 each, refillable). I’m late to the party with these but I have a closer look at 4 of the bronzers and one of the new foundation shades.
I’ve also included a peek at a few launches from Spring-Summer for lips and nails since there weren’t any new colors for the Les Beiges launch.
Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sun-Kissed Powder
I’ve been collecting the Chanel bronzers every year for as long as I can remember. This year they brought 5 shades and I love how soft and naturally glowy they look on the skin. Each compact has 3 shades you can use individually or swirl together. The compacts are oversized like the ones from 2022. Each color has enough product you can definitely dip your brush into each shade without overlapping colors if you prefer.
Light Coral is a mix of light gold, medium bronze and soft peach
Medium Coral is very similar to Light Coral, each shade is just more intense and more saturated
Medium Rose Gold has a soft tan shimmer, medium warm bronze and luminous rose gold pink shimmer
Deep Rose Gold has a warm gold shimmer, deep brown tan and a deep rose pink
I can see myself wearing every single palette this summer although my favorites are Medium Coral and Medium Rose Gold. I like that Light Coral is lighter but still shows up my skin. If you have ultra fair skin tone I think Light Coral will be the best option for you. Deep Rose Gold is so beautiful but pulls very dark on my skin. Even with a light hand it’s too dark but that means this will most likely show up on deeper skin tones.
They didn’t launch a new brush to go with the bronzers but I really love the Chanel Brush 106. It’s the perfect size, shape and density for any kind of powder product.
Each shade of Les Beiges bronzer below, also wearing:
The Les Beiges Healthy Glow Foundation has been one of my favorite foundations Chanel has ever launched. I think it rivals Armani Luminous Silk Foundation but the Chanel has a tiny bit more coverage, a little better lasting power and more hydration without being too hydrating. It wears well in the summer months for me, even in hot humid weather.
I usually wear the Shades B40, BD41, B50 or BD51. The BD range has typically been the best for me as it has a golden undertone. They added BO which is for olive skin tones. I usually cannot wear a lot of foundation with olive undertones even though I do think I have them in my skin because most olive shades pull very green. The Chanel BO53 is a perfect match for me, I literally could not believe my eyes that I’ve found a match this exact! They also have BO33 and BO73. Other shade extensions now include B00, BO33, BO53, BO73, B90,B130, B160.
Spring-Summer Lip Colors
I didn’t end up reviewing the Spring-Summer launch but I did pick up a few things which I really love. Chanel added two new shades of Rouge Coco Baume ($45) in Anemone 932 (muted peach brown) and Coralline 934 (a coral). I’m a huge fan of these tinted balms and I think they’re under-rated. They swatch very sheer on the arm or hand, but for most of these (except the Dreamy White) pull more pigmented on the lips than a hand swatch. They’re still very natural looking for that effortless polished wash of color.
I wear Flirty Coral and My Rose the most. I swatched all the shades I have except for Dreamy White because it doesn’t show up in an arm swatch. I am missing one of the red colors. But all the other shades are swatched below.
Le Vernis – Sun Drop 177
Last but not least is a look at the Le Vernis in Sun Drop. It’s such a unique dusty muted peach with a hint of brown undertone. I have to admit it didn’t look really exciting in the bottle but on the fingers I love it. It adds a nice pop of color without being too bright.
That wraps up my Chanel Les Beiges review! I think the shades are beautiful.
