Les Tissages de Chanel in Tweed Brun Rosé 70 ($45) is the newest release for the tweed effect blushes inspired by Chanel’s tweed fabric. These blushes come in a rectangular pan in the classic black Chanel compact woven with two different shades with an overlay of gold shimmers. When applied on the face Tweed Brun Rosé 70 is a warm peachy shade with a hint of brown. I found it very similar to other Chanel Tweed blushes. The undertone is different and appears to be a mix of Corail and Ambre. It’s a more intense version of Tweed Corail – tan ladies who found it a bit too light for their skintone will love the new Brun Rose for holiday.
For me, the color isn’t a must-have simply because of my overload on the peachy colors. It is a beautiful color and the Chanel Tweed blushes are known for giving that subtle but noticeable glow to the cheeks. The finish of Brun Rose is true to the Tweed formula – natural, elegant and refined and easy to apply (practically goof-proof). I think those who are concerned with warmer shades turning orangey need not worry with this color. It didn’t darken on my skin at all, but I definitely recommend trying in person if you have any hesitation.
Guerlain seems to be the earliest with holiday releases this year. I was only planning on the Meteorites Powder, but instead caved on the Parure de Nuit Pressed Powder & Blush and Rouge Automatique in Flirt d’un Jour #169. I am still relatively new to Guerlain products but have discovered quite a bit this past year from the line. I’ve fallen in love with the Lingerie de Peau and new eyeshadow quads that were released for fall. My interest is slowly growing. For those interested, I spotted the collection at Neimans last week. It should be arriving at your Guerlain counters very soon.
After my fall highlighter post, several have asked for my thoughts on the ones for holiday. To date, I’ve only seen Guerlain’s. The Parure de Nuit Pressed Powder & Blush ($67) design was too pretty to pass up on and from a distance I thought the red circles were ladybugs, although they are in fact in the pattern of peacock feathers. This comes in a double tiered compact with a compartment for a turquoise/teal goat-hair brush. The brush feels very nice on the skin but I am not sure it’s the best for this highlighter/blush. The Parure de Nuit is a very soft and sheer pearly shimmer powder. There is a gorgeous overspray of an iridescent opal pink and I was sad to find that it disappeared after the initial application/swipe. What lies beneath is a soft pinkish pearl – even after swirling your brush in all the colors over the red circles, all that you really see is a luminous pearl. It gives a beautiful soft glow but I wish there was more pigment or more visible shimmer. I could not get a decent arm swatch to photograph. On the face it gives the slightest hint of glimmer when applied with a stiffer denser blush brush. I would not use this as an all over the face powder, although some might.
I took my fingers and swiped them back and forth three times all over the powder for this swatch. Below it’s been swatched heavily on fingers so you can see the pearly finish, but on the face it is barely detectable.
Rouge Automatique in Flirt d’un Jour #169 ($35) is a beautiful soft pink. The texture is very smooth and feels moisturizing on the lips. It has a natural sheen but gives decent coverage to cover the entire lip. The finish is the slightest bit transparent so your natural lip shows through a little bit. I’m not the biggest fan of gold packaging but the push nob in the front almost makes this lipstick feel like a toy.
Overall I love the lipstick and semi-like the highlighter/blush. I realize the highlighter was designed to give a subtle glow, but as Messy Wands wrote, I do agree that I think darker skins will find it will not show up. I’m not dark or tan, but with my medium skin, it barely shows up. It does give a nice soft luster to the cheeks but I personally prefer something that is more visibly glowy or pearly (without the frost). If Guerlain had kicked up the pigment/intensity by 1.5 notches this would have been a winner for me. The darker berry lipstick looked divine but I’m still scared of dark berries. Perhaps I will be brave enough to try it the next time I’m at the Guerlain counter.
Here are some comparisons of Chanel’s Brompton Road (exclusive to Harrods) to a few other pinks by Chanel. Featured in this post are Poudre Tissée in Brompton Road, Joues Contraste in Narcisse & Rose Pétale, Les Tissages in Tweed Pink & Ombres Tissées Beiges. (Note that all the blushes are US versions.)
On the skin, Brompton Road goes on a baby soft pink with a slightly iridescent finish. It most closely resembles Narcisse but is paler. I tried this today over a liquid luminizer (one of Armani’s Fluid Sheers) and it still emphasized pores and bumps on my cheeks. I believe this is probably best used as a subtle highlighter rather than a full-on blush, at least for my olive toned skin which is slightly tanned. The texture is soft and finely milled very similar to the US Joues Contraste blushes by Chanel. While the Joues Contraste have a soft rose scent, the Brompton Road has none.
In comparing the finish of Brompton Road (for the face) compared to Beiges (intended for the eyes), I find the Beiges more shimmery while the Brompton Road more satiny.
While the finishes and intended purpose of all these are different, I prefer Beiges for a highlighter and Narcisse/Rose Petale for blushes over the new Brompton Road. I think it will perhaps suit fairer skintones better. For me it’s like but not love right now but as my skin lightens as we transition to fall/winter I think I will be able to get more use out of Brompton Road.
P.S. – USA girls, you can order this on Harrods.com, they ship internationally! Also, they deduct VAT so the shipping isn’t too bad. The checkout process can be a bit feisty, I recommend you create a profile and then go through the entire checkout process. Also, for some reason, I couldn’t process my order via Firefox, but Internet Explorer worked just fine.
*UPDATE Sunday, Sept 18* I applied Brompton Road over a dewy gel blush, NARS Cadaques Multiple Tint which helped provide a good base for the Chanel Highlighter. My skin has since improved after a week of healing (allergic reaction to a new product) and the Chanel no longer emphasizes the imperfections as much. I recommend that you apply to a well moisturized/prepped face before applying Brompton Road to the cheeks. Using a transparent slightly dewy liquid or gel base (something not pale) on top of foundation and under Brompton Road will help the application look much better on the skin. Finding the best application method for this powder will be trial and error for girls with medium-darker skin.
Chanel has released Pink Cloud 66 Joues Contraste in the US with their Aquarelles Collection. It comes in the European baked formula but is not a new color (only new to the US). It’s a pale pink shimmer with tiny microsparkles that makes the skin glow. On my cheeks it has a similar quality to Armani’s Blush #12 – it looks super pale in the compact but blends on the skin to give a lovely light pink glow. The shimmer is visible on the skin but it doesn’t apply quite as pale as appears in the compact. The shimmer is finely milled and not overly frosty like some pale pinks can be, for this shade the shimmer is clearly visible on the cheeks. I would rate the shimmer/frost factor as medium.
As Café Makeup reported, it’s a warmer pink (she has lovely comparisons). NaturalNChicMakeup also has reviews (it pulls a bit paler/lighter on her than it does for me). Also check out The Stash Archives – she has an amazing collection of Euro blushes to compare Pink Cloud to.
Here are my comparisons to: Chanel Winter Shimmer (from 2006 or 2007ish), Chanel Pink Cloud, Chanel Beiges, Chanel Silk Dream (from 2004), Armani Blush #12 (from Fall 2009)
This is the baked Euro formula which means the surface layer has a powdery texture/finish with bits of debris. After the top layer is brushed, the underneath powder is slightly harder in texture. I’m wearing this today alone and it shows up on my skin, but just barely. I wouldn’t call it a must-have although my skin does have a natural angelic pink glow now. It’s simply too sheer on my skin (olive tanned Chanel Vitalumiere B30/Teint Innocence Shell). Even as a highlighter I find it on the sheer side. Had this been the US formula I think the pigment payoff would be better. If you have lighter skin than me then I think you will love this as a soft natural pink blush. For me it’s like but not love. After 2 hours of wear it has faded completely on me. I think this will be a great product to soften other blushes and bronzers without changing the color. By layering this on top of other shades or by blending on the outer edges of the face, I think this will be great to help soften harsh lines or tone down the cheeks if you’ve applied too much blush. Do check out the other reviews and swatches linked above in the middle of this post. I think your mileage may vary.
Aquarelles were initially released to Neiman Marcus stores only but I’ve seen it pop up at various Nordstrom locations. I know Nordstrom Seattle received the collection. I highly recommend you test before you buy.
Laura Mercier Cheek Mélange in Canyon Sunset ($40) is “a cheek colour with sunset inspired hues perfect for adding warm glow to the face.” This is a new product for fall from Laura Mercier. It’s a beautiful embossed cheek powder that gives a beautiful luminous darkened pink. Canyon Sunset has three colors with a lovely overspray. From top to bottom: light powder pink, medium plum-brown-pink with silver sparkles, medium darker peachy pink. On me it goes on very warm-toned, not quite bronzer like, but with a heavy hand, it feels like a pink bronzer. The overspray disappears after a few swipes. The pigment is medium, soft, luminous and natural like Laura Mercier’s regular blushes. The shimmer is very soft and makes the skin glow.
Without flash in natural light, still with overspray on
I used a MAC duo fibre brush to apply for a soft sweep of color. Here’s what it looks like with the overspray removed. The powder underneath is still soft and luminous.
Swatched on arm, separately and then blended, on the arm it looks more pinkish, on my face it darkens slightly for a more browned peachy pink look (probably because of a heavier application on the face)
My Chanel Le Blanc collection is now complete thanks to Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale offerings. I was lucky that Rouge Deluxe custom purchased some of the items from Singapore several months ago for me. (See the prior features linked here for Rose Envolée Quad, Désinvolte and Joyeuse Rouge Allures, Blossom Glossimer.) The remaining items from the Le Blanc collection include Rose Tourbillon Blush, Pearl Glow Highlighting Powder and Liaison Glossimer.
Rose Tourbillon is the Euro/Asia baked formula but it has a surprisingly lovely pigmented non-chalky finish. It’s a baby cool pink. Cooler than Narcisse but not as cool as Turbulent (both the US formulas). There are tiny micro sparkles in it, but the sparkles are sparse and not visible on the skin. The texture is powdery with a bit of excess debris that surfaces after dipping a brush, but I’m not complaining since the blendability is good and finish well pigmented (but natural). This item sold out super fast when it was released in Asia. After applying it, I can see why.
Poudre Lumière Perlée (Pearl Glow) is one of the most beautiful pressed glowy highlighters I’ve seen. It’s a finely milled luminous neutral shimmer. Don’t let the swatches fool you – this is something best applied on the skin with a brush. Swatched on the arm with fingers or a sponge just doesn’t allow you to get the full effect. I’m not a huge fan of sponge applicators (like the one that comes with this compact) so I’m not sure that I will be using it with this. I applied over Rose Tourbillon with a powder brush and my skin is so naturally glowy I can’t stop staring. It is sheer, but what I love about this is that it’s not super pale – the world is saturated with highlighters that are either super pale champagne or dark orangey bronze. This is a great in-between color. It’s definitely back-up worthy.
See other reviews of Pearl Glow on Orange2LA & Joey’space. (On the thumb, Chanel Graphite, also shown here.)
Liaison Glossimer is a milky-clearish color with a gorgeous shimmery sheen. Unfortunately on the lips, it’s entirely clear. You have to be within inches of the skin or lips to see the sparkle. I definitely could have passed on this but was enamored by the way it looked in the tube. If this were an eyeshadow I think I’d go nuts.
Overall: Le Blanc has a softer more feminine appeal to me compared to the other recent Chanel releases. For me, Fall Illusion d’Ombre is edgy and cutting edge, Byzance is rich, dramatic and ornamental, Le Blanc is soft and whimsical. My top Le Blanc must-haves include Joyeuse Rouge Allure, Rose Tourbillon Blush and the Pearl Glow Powder. See the whole collection swatched on Karla Sugar as well.
A few comparisons to show the uniqueness of Chanel Rouge Joues Contraste from the Byzance Collection, although my red and dark pink selection for blushes is somewhat limited.
Shown left to right: Dolce & Gabbana Sole, Chanel Rouge, MAC Merrily & MAC Dollymix. All swatched on bare skin, applied with the fingers. I’m a Chanel Vitalumiere in 30, perhaps just a tad darker from getting a bit of sun over the weekend.
