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Cream Eyeshadow

Eye Makeup Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Cream Color for Eyes – Spring 2016

February 9, 2016

 

This spring Tom Ford has launched eight shades of Cream Color for Eyes ($45 each for 0.17 fl oz/ 5 ml, made in Italy). Two of the eight shades have been launched before as individual cream colors in Platinum and Spice. One of the shades Caviar has a very close resemblance to Black Oyster Cream Powder Duo from a year ago (swatched here). The new ones launched this spring are smaller in size compared to previous launches, but the quality is still extremely good, easy to blend with pretty good lasting power for a cream shadow. All the colors have some degree of shimmer. According to Tom Ford PR, all the shades in this launch are limited-edition.

 

 

I have seven of the new ones swatched and reviewed. I didn’t repurchase Spice as I already own the full size and it was also part of the Naked Bronze Cream Powder Eye Duo which is the same for the cream color, but I have re-swatched it for reference. The colors in this launch are quite stunning. Descriptions of each color:
  • Opale is a pale champagne ivory shimmer, the shimmer is smooth and non-glittery, although the shimmer is definitely noticeable
  • Sphinx is an iridescent pink gold peachy duo chrome color, the shimmer flecks are slightly more visible and larger in this one compared to other shades, it’s not a full on glittery shade, but the sparkle factor is definitely there, even though there are chunks of sparkle, it’s smooth and I didn’t experience any fallout
  • Platinum is the perfect lids-but-better kind of subtle contour light beige tan color for me, it has a smooth shimmer that works so good alone or as a blending shade
  • Siren Blue is the only color that I can’t see myself wearing alone on a regular basis, I did try this alone and it gives the lids the prettiest wash of aqua colored shimmer. It’s not for me alone, but I did try this one layered softly over Midnight Violet and Caviar for two separate looks. Add this one on top and it gives the other shades a soft iridescent sheen.
  • Burnished Copper is a shimmering khaki olive color, it has a very smooth texture similar to that of Platinum
  • Midnight Violet is a deep violet shade, it sheers out when you blend it on the lids, but is easy to layer and build
  • Caviar is a deep metallic grey-black shimmer with tiny flecks of silver shimmer, it’s not as sparkly as Sphinx but the shimmer particles are visible for a smokey shimmer look

 

Close ups of each shade:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To apply the shadows, I like to use fingers or any one of these brushes.

 

 

My favorite cream shadow brush to use is actually a concealer brush. The Chanel Brush #10 is my go-to for cream shadows. It has a smooth tip and it’s just the right size to blend colors nicely on my lid (not too small and not too wide). I also really like the Laura Mercier Corner Eye Brush for powders and creams. To layer and blend creams as a detail color I like Tom Ford’s Eye Definer Brush #15.

 

Swatches left to right are Platinum, Opale, Sphinx, Spice (original), Siren Blue, Burnished Copper, Midnight Violet and Caviar

 

 

I did three different eye looks to share for some ideas, in each one I used only the cream shadows listed, nothing else for eye bases or liners:

 

 

 

 

For comparisons, I pulled a few other Tom Ford Cream Shadows (most of which have been discontinued or limited-edition colors) and some Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerize Cream Shadows. In my testing experience the cream ones from Charlotte Tilbury have the most similar texture in terms of how emollient they are, pigment and color payoff, shimmer and overall quality. I find all of these last extremely well throughout the day without fading, creasing or budging – but do note I think I may be the only person I know who doesn’t have oily lids. Most eye bases are too drying for my skin.
Below for size and packaging comparisons:
Swatch Comparisons 1: Note the original and new Platinum colors are identical, but if you’ve played with it you know that depending on the angle the light hits it sometimes you see more of the shimmer, other times you will see more of the tan base. All the shades in Set 1 are from Tom Ford. Escapade, Pink Haze, Spring 2015 have been d/c.

 

 

Swatch Comparisons 2: Shown below are some of the Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerize Eyeshadows and NARS Dual Intensity Eye Shadows.

 

 

Based on my comparisons, Tom Ford Opale is a lighter version of Charlotte Tilbury Norma Jean. On my skin once blended, they are similar. I have a slight preference for Norma Jean, but both shades are such pretty neutral shimmers.

 

NARS Himalia is more metallic and frosted than Tom Ford Platinum. Charlotte Tilbury is a few shades darker and warmer compared to Tom Ford Platinum. I’m a sucker for a good taupe shimmer, but I think Platinum is a must no matter how many other taupes you own.

 

Between Charlotte Tilbury Bette and Tom Ford Spice, I vote for the Charlotte Tilbury in terms of color choice. It’s warmer in color, but I think they are close enough that you don’t need both.

 

Tom Ford Midnight Violet almost seems like a muted violet plum shimmer, but when swatched next to Charlotte Mona Lisa, the Tom Ford almost looks bright.

 

I don’t own many aqua colored shadows, NARS Lysithea is a cool-toned sage, on my skin it pulls almost blue.

 

 

Bottom line all winners. With the exception of Siren Blue, I can see myself wearing each color on a regular basis for everyday. They have enough shimmer to dress up the look for an easy evening look. You can always layer powder shadows on top of these colors. They have an emollient texture that makes them super easy to blend. It takes a little bit of time for them to set which I like because then I don’t have to rush the blending and layering process. I think the only color some might have issue with is Sphinx – it’s the most unique peachy gold shade that flashes pink, but there are tiny micro sparkles I think some might find too sparkly. I really like it, alone or layered over another shade, but if you’re super conservative on the shimmer you may want to see if you can test before buying. What I like the most about these is that they brighten the eyes with the prettiest wash of shimmer. They are indeed on the pricey side, but a little goes a long way. All the ones I’ve purchased in the past have lasted a long time and none of them have gone bad yet.

 

According to Tom Ford PR, these are all limited-edition. If there’s one shade you track down, definitely pick up Platinum if you don’t already own it.

 

You can find the Tom Ford Cream Color for Eyes now. Online at Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue and Tom Ford Beauty.

 

Five of the shades featured sent courtesy of Tom Ford Beauty for review consideration, two of the colors purchased by me.
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Loving Right Now

Sunday Details and Loves

February 7, 2016

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you’ve been having a great weekend. The sun finally came back here in Southern California and we have weather in the 70s – I can’t tell you how much of a mood lifter this warm weekend has been. I’ve been on a fragrance kick lately, I’ll have a roundup of what I have in rotation soon on the blog. I just picked up my first Maison Martin Margiela in Replica Beach Walk (the rollerball mini) which is the most amazing beachy mix. It has bergamot, coconut milk, lemon, pink pepper, and musk … I think it’s only a matter of time before I pick up the full size spray. Right now I’ve been loving the Chloé Eau de Parfum for a soft femine scent (shown above). I have Love Story on my wishlist but it seems to have a very similar feel to the regular Chloé – if you’ve tried any of the Chloe perfumes please let me know what your favorite is!

Other details today include the Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara Waterproof in Noir (a go-to these days), NARS Blush Duo in Hot Sand + Orgasm (reviewed here) and NARS Babydoll Lip Gloss (such a pretty pink shimmer, lip swatch here). I just started playing with the new Tom Ford Cream Color for Eyes last week and am beyond thrilled they’ve re-launched Platinum. It’s one of the best all over lid shades that makes a great easy wash for lazy days. It also makes for a great base for powder shadows. Today I’m testing three layered together. Shown above from top to bottom is Platinum, Opale and Caviar. I have taken photographs of all the shades + swatches, I just need to edit them for a post very soon.

Last but not least, I wanted to do a comparison between two makeup bags. I splurged on the Louis Vuitton Epi Cosmetic Case in Dune last month. The nude pink color is just so pretty and it had been on my wishlist for a long time. I really like the durability and classic look of the Epi line and after thinking about this one for months decided to go for it. A few weeks ago I featured the Tory Burch York Cosmetic Case in my Valentine’s Day Gift Guide round up post as a less expensive alternative (it’s still on the pricey side, but more affordable). I purchased one in Light Oak which is a nude pink color. It’s made of Saffiano textured leather and very sturdy. (More colors here.) If you’re looking to treat yourself, a friend or a loved one on a pretty cosmetic case, I think either of these are great.

Here’s a side by side comparison. The one from Tory Burch is slightly smaller in size compared to the one from Louis Vuitton, but the overall shape and function is the same.

Tory Burch Small York Case measures 6″W x 4″H x 2 ½”D
Louis Vuitton Epi Cosmetic Case measures 6.7″ x 4.7″ x 2.4″ inches

I hope you are enjoying the last bits of your weekend! If you have any new beauty discoveries, or found some items in your stash that you have rediscovered, I’ve love to hear about what you are loving right now! P.S. if you’re a fan of the Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipsticks note they are being discontinued so if you have any favorite shades you might want to stock up. On February 12th they will be launching a new lipstick formula (30+ shades) – I can’t to share more details with you.

Some press samples featured above include NARS Babydoll Lip Gloss, Tom Ford Platinum and Opale Cream Shadows.
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Chanel

Chanel Les Sautoirs de Coco Collection for Spring 2016

February 5, 2016

There’s a new pearly-themed beauty collection that just launched for Chanel this spring. The collection is called Les Sautoirs de Coco which features a mix of pale pearly shades and bright pinks. In past years these white pearl-themed collections seem to have been Asia exclusive colors, sometimes launching later in the US in late summer as Nordstrom Anniversary exclusives. Last year Chanel launched the Collection La Perle de Chanel in the US. This year they have the Les Sautoirs de Coco and it’s nice to see them launching these kinds of mini collections in the US (although it’s hard to believe a year has already flown by!). The inspiration and theme according to Chanel:

“Inspired by Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel’s love of pearls, a new makeup collection glimmers with iridescent and luminous shades of white, pink and soft grey, while classic black elements bring an unexpected contrast to the soft colour range.”

I ordered items sight unseen. Based on the online stock photos I knew this collection would either be hit or miss as some of the pink lip colors look very cool-toned, but I decided to go outside of my comfort zone and see if I could try a few new brighter shades. A few weeks ago this was exclusive to Chanel.com, but now appears to be at counters and online at Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. What I purchased:
Glossimers in Babiole, Pinctada and Clarté ($30 each)

Swatches of the items and then some thoughts below on each item:

I’ll start with my favorite item in the collection which is the Perles Et Fantaisies Highlighter. This appears to be somewhere in between a cream and powder. It’s neither creamy nor powdery but it is very smooth with a very subtle glow. I swatched it above with a very heavy hand so you can see the color differences between each shade. On my medium olive skin the highlighter shades both look the same and give a very delicate luminous glow. On the cheeks it gives a soft hint of shimmer. This is one of the most natural-looking highlighters I’ve ever tried. If you find most highlighters too shimmery, too glowy or too frosty, you might want to look into this one because the shimmer is very finely milled. Color payoff is very natural on my cheeks when applied with a blush brush. If you want a more visible glow but want something natural I’d recommend you check out the Hourglass Ambient Strobe Lighting Powders or Hourglass Luminous Light instead. If you’re ok with some serious glow, check out the Natasha Denona Glowing Skin System. The overall effect of the Perles Et Fantaisies Highlighter is very natural but still noticeable.

Given the number of highlighters and glowy products that are out on the market right now, I can’t personally deem it a must-have. I think there are a lot of other options that are more affordable. Still the quality is there with this one. It adds a nice subtle glow without emphasizing pores or making the skin look overly shiny. I do think because of the semi-sheer finish that some will find this simply too natural or sheer to justify splurging. I have no regrets buying it and I do really like it though.

Swatched with a very heavy hand:

Next are two items for eyes. There’s a new Les 4 Ombres in Tissé de Lune. This one reminds me of an older Chanel quad that I cannot recall the name of. This is a pearly quad with the baked formula. I’m not a fan of the baked formula and wish Chanel would skip that kind of formula entirely. The pigment is decent with this one though. The colors apply with visible pigment and they aren’t chalky. However the 3 lighter shades when applied on the eyes end up all looking the same on my skin. They are distinct if you swatch side by side, but once you layer they all kind of disappear into the same light colored shimmer. It will give the eyes a very bright glow kind of highlight that I find pretty. They are pale shades but not too pale or garish (sometimes light shades have a sharp contrast to my olive skintone).

The quad layered on the lids – as you can see below the colors are pretty sheer and all the shades look similar on the eyes. The flash washed out the color a little bit but it leaves a subtle gleam of shimmer on the lids:

There’s a new Illusion D’Ombre in Iridescent. This one is really pretty and gives the lids a wash of opal shimmer that flashes tiny bits of pink. You can layer for more intensity but this is one of those nice brightening kinds of eyeshadows that you can wear all over the lids. It has a very slight duo chrome quality without being too shimmery or frosty. I really like this one.

Swatched below, left is blended and right is layered:

Last but not least are three Glossimers in Clarté which is a sheer opal pink shimmer, Babiole a cool-toned bright raspberry fuschia cream and Pinctada which is a cool-toned bright pink shimmer. I absolutely love Clarté which gives the lips a really pretty wash of color. It has a similar effect to Songe (which I couldn’t find in my stash to compare) in the sense it gives the lips a gorgeous glow with a hint of iridescent shine.

Although I am a neutral lip lover at heart, I do find Pinctada a wearable color even though it’s on the bright side. It’s cool-toned but not too cool that I find it turns blue on my skin.

Babiole is something that doesn’t work for me. The pigment and color payoff is very good, but because it’s so blue-based it contrasts with my skintone and looks garish. I think it looks ok in the detail swatch below, but when you see it against the whole face it just clashes with my olive skintone. I think it looks absolutely gorgeous on Christine from Temptalia – so if you haven’t seen her post, be sure to check out her swatches.

If you’re a Chanel fan and have been curious about this collection, I hope you found this review helpful. I think there are definitely some items worth checking out – my top three picks are the highlighter, Illusion D’Ombre and Clarté Glossimer. I do think if you’re trying to narrow down your purchases for highlighter this season, skip the Chanel highlighter and opt for something from Hourglass, Natasha Denona or Tom Ford instead. That being said if you’re always in search of something with a subtle glow and find most highlighters too glowy, this one might be one you have been searching for – it has the most finely milled glow that I’ve ever seen in any highlighter. I’m personally not crazy about the Tissé Ombre de Lune eyeshadow quad or the pink glossimers, but that’s mainly because of my color preferences. For lips Chanel just launched the Rouge Coco Stylo lipsticks and the colors look very promising so I would say save your $$$ for those instead. I just received 3 colors today and will have a post next week with swatches – but here’s a quick peek at #218 Script which is a perfectly creamy pigmented neutral beige pink with a bit of brown.

You can find the Chanel Les Sautoirs de Coco Collection now online at Chanel.com, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. All the items are limited-edition.
Did you check out anything from this launch yet? What did you think?
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Chanel Eye Makeup

Chanel Les 4 Ombres Signe Particulier, Illusion D’Ombre Rouge Noir and Le Volume de Chanel – Holiday 2015 Vamp Attitude Collection

November 12, 2015

I picked up four eye makeup items from the Chanel Vamp Attitude Collection. All are listed as limited-edition with the exception of the Illusion D’Ombre. I’ve been such a huge fan of Chanel for years and the holiday collections usually are absolutely stunning so I had high hopes for this release.

What I picked up, below from left to right:
Illusion D’Ombre ($36) in Rouge Noir
Les 4 Ombres ($65) in Signe Particulier
Le Volume de Chanel ($32) in Rouge Noir
Le Volume Ultra-Noir de Chanel ($32) in Noir Khôl

I am a lover of the Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadows. I own almost all of the colors and wear them on a regular basis. They offer the prettiest amount of sparkle to the eyes without being over the top and they layer nicely together. I know they aren’t everyone’s cup of tea (some feel they are too sheer or too sparkly). I’m a huge huge fan. When I found out there would be a Rouge Noir color launched I knew I would either love or hate it since I rarely like reddish colors for the eyes. I absolutely love this color. It’s dark enough that it doesn’t look red, but at the same time it’s red and plum enough that the color shows up on the eyes. This one does take some layering, it’s not a one-swipe wonder, but I think it’s gorgeous. That being said, after pulling some other deep wine eyeshadows, I do think it’s very similar to Armani Eyes to Kill #2 and NARS Dual Intensity Eyeshadow in Subra reviewed here. Both the Armani and NARS have deeper richer pigment with one to two swipes while the Chanel requires some building. The nice thing about the Chanel is you can swipe it over the lids for a softer wash.

I had very high hopes for the Les 4 Ombres in Signe Particulier. The eyeshadow quad releases from past seasons have been phenomenal with beautiful designs, excellent pigment and stunning unique colors. This year’s was one of the first disappointments from Chanel for me. I did swatch in store and saw that the pigment was very sheer and patchy. I thought it was just an over-handled tester that caused such poor application. I tested the brand new one I bought at home multiple times with several different brushes and applicators. The texture is very smooth and silky to touch but application is so sheer I could barely see any color payoff on the skin. I regret buying this. The colors are a soft sheer pale pink, a medium taupe shimmer, a deep plum-red, and a yellow gold shimmer. The packaging and embossed design is so so gorgeous. I wish the color payoff and pigment was better. If you love this – let me know what brushes you use, would love to figure out how to make this work.

Swatched below with a heavy hand, and the colors still are very sheer:

Finally there are two new mascaras in the holiday collection. I’m a fan of the Le Volume de Chanel Mascaras so I knew I had to try the Rouge Noir version. I’m thrilled with it – it thickens, volumizes, defines and doesn’t smudge or flake. I might need a back up of this. In addition to the Rouge Noir, there is a new deep dark black called Le Volume Ultra-Noir de Chanel in Noir Khôl (also limited-edition). I had high hopes for this and a few swipes applied an ultra dark color. It looks amazing and it’s super dark. The formula thickens the lashes evenly for a volumized look. The downside is it smudged terribly on my eyes. I tested it on several occasions (5 different days to be exact) before deciding it was a flop for me. I thought on the first occasion that I might have not powdered my concealer properly, so the next few times I tried the Noir Khôl on one eye and a regular Black Le Volume on the other eye. Each time, I had one side that smudged (the new one) and the other side did not (one with the classic formula/color).

I’m desperate to make the Ultra-Noir mascara work, if you tried it and love it, can you please share what makeup or skincare you use under the eyes?

I did consider purchasing the eyeliners in Rouge Noir and Or Safran, but decided against buying since I tend to wear black, brown or bronze colors. If you picked those up or tested them let me know what you think! Overall the eye makeup products were either hit or miss for me. The Le Volume de Chanel in Rouge Noir was an absolute hit for me. I love the Rouge Noir Illusion D’Ombre but it’s not an absolute must since it’s so close in color to other shades I own. Misses were the Les 4 Ombres and Noir Khôl Mascara.

You can find the Chanel Vamp Attitude Collection items at all Chanel counters now. Also online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale’s and Chanel.com along with all other Chanel retailers.

Did you pick up anything or try the colors from this collection? What did you think?
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Charlotte Tilbury Eye Makeup

Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise Cream Eyeshadows

August 21, 2015
Charlotte Tilbury launched her new Eyes to Mesmerise Cream Eyeshadows several months ago ($32 each for 0.24 fl oz/7 ml). I bought five of the six shades as soon as I saw them at my local Nordstrom counter but then went on vacation, took photos, but never got around to reviewing them. I’ve been playing with these for quite some time now and think they are really amazing. I think they are little pots of magic for the eyes. If you’re a fan of the Tom Ford Cream Eyeshadows, you will love the ones from Charlotte Tilbury. The concept and texture of the Charlotte Tilbury’s are similar to those of Tom Ford’s. They both have a super creamy feel, they are easy to blend, they layer quite beautifully and you can control the pigment. On my lids they last all day without budging as long as I don’t rub my eyes. They feel weightless and have the most beautiful shimmer. A quick note on cream shadows – I don’t have oily lids and I rarely wear a primer because I find most drying on my skin. I like creamier eye bases such as the one from Edward Bess or cream shadows in general because they help powder shadows adhere to my lids better.

 

The Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise wear well alone or layered together. I am thoroughly impressed with how easy it is to layer and control pigment. Some cream shadows disappear or sheer out a lot once you blend. The ones from Charlotte Tilbury can be sheered out, but they still have extremely good pigment. Some close ups, descriptions and swatches of the 5 shades I picked out below.

 

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Norma Jean is a pale golden champagne color. It has the most beautiful shimmer in it. I love this all over the lids or as a base color. There is a bit of champagne pink mixed in a tiny bit of peach in the shimmer. It’s really quite stunning.
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Marie Antoinette is a sparkling golden brown taupe color. This one looks neutral-warm in the pot but goes on my skin more neutral-cool because of the silvery shimmer particles. This one will probably look very different on your skin if you have cool tones or fair skin. On my medium/olive skin it’s a gorgeous my lids but better kind of color.
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Bette is a warm coppery gold. On my skin this pulls very warm and very gold. I like it layered on top of either Norma Jean or Marie Antoinette to create depth or a soft gradient.
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Mona Lisa is a shimmering soft brown with plum undertones. It’s pure genius with the complex mix of cool and warm sparkles. It’s like a chocolate color, bronze shade and plum all mixed in one.

 

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Veruschka is one of the most interesting khaki shimmers I’ve seen. This one is a bit sheerer in finish compared to the others with one swipe but it is easy to layer. I have a hard time wearing olive colors. The olive + olive skin combo sometimes makes my face look very tired and sallow. This one has a beautiful mix of gold, green, olive and silver shimmers to make it more complex. It’s not a color I can wear on its own. I’m still experimenting with color combinations on this one.

 

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The colors I picked all lined up side by side. The teal shade Cleopatra is beyond gorgeous. I was very tempted to purchase but it’s not a color I suspect I would wear frequently. I might go back for it because it’s so striking, but for now I’m really happy with the five that I have. They are among the best in cream shadows that I’ve tried (tied with Tom Ford).

 

 

Swatches heavy:

 

 

Swatches heavy but blended:

 

 

Comparisons to some other shades, both sets are the same, one is just a close up:

 

Armani Eye Tints 12, 9, 11 and 5 (reviewed here)
Tom Ford Escapade (discontinued, reviewed here)
Tom Ford Spring 2015 (reviewed here)
Chanel Caroube (review + swatched here)
Tom Ford Platinum and Spice (reviewed here)

 

 

 

One last shot lined up:

 

I can’t rave enough about these. I think all five are outstanding. Veruschka is the only one I’m a bit iffy about mainly because I don’t really love olive colors, but there is a lovely complexity to the color that makes it really unique. I couldn’t find exact dupes with Tom Ford, Chanel or Armani. There are similarities in a lot of the colors so you may want to shop your stash before splurging. I give each one a huge thumbs up. For those curious, I’ve been applying them with my fingers but brushes work too. If you’re looking for pretty cream shadows with really good pigment and sophisticated shimmer these are really fun. The colors are gorgeous. You can use them as a traditional cream shadow for the lids or as a highlighter for the inner corners.

 

You can find the Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise Eyeshadows at all Charlotte Tilbury counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Beautylish, Net-A-Porter, Bergdorf Goodman and Charlotte Tilbury.
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Uncategorized

Chanel Collection Méditerannée Summer 2015 Fresh Effect Eyeshadows in Caroube and Laurier Rose

May 15, 2015

Chanel has brought back the Fresh Effect Eyeshadows this summer in five limited-edition shades ($34 each). These are twist up cream shadow sticks with high amounts of shimmer. They have a cooling effect when you apply on the lids. This year’s shadows all seemed to be very rich in pigment. The two I picked up were the only neutrals in the collection. Both blended easily on the lids but seemed to dry relatively quick. If you are one who likes to take time blending, I recommend adding a creamier base underneath to help slow down the drying time of the Chanel Stylo Eyeshadows. 

I picked up Laurier Rose 127 and Caroube 147. Both are high in shimmer and rich in pigment. Laurier Rose is a warm golden peachy rose. If you’re one who can’t pull off rose-toned eyeshadows you may want to skip this one. It’s very rosy and warm. I suspect it will look much better on medium to tan or darker skin tones. On me it’s very very warm. I have to tone it down a lot with a lighter champagne shadow (cream or powder) to make it wearable.

Caroube 147 is a really pretty plummy bronze shimmer. This one is my personal favorite. It has a good mix of cool-tones with bronze to make it a nice easy-to-wear color. For me it’s a no-brainer. I can wear it alone or on top of a champagne eyeshadow like Chanel Emerville Illusion D’Ombre, add mascara and be done with a simple eye look.

For both colors I found lasting power to be really good. On the days I tested these, they lasted from early morning until late afternoon without budging, creasing or fading. I like that there is no fall out with these – the texture is creamy but cooling and adheres really well to the lids.

Close ups and more swatches of both colors:

Quick swatches below of Laurier Rose Stylo Eyeshadow toned down with Emerville Illusion D’Ombre layered on top, Tom Ford Defining Eye Liner Pen, I’m not a fan of this look, it’s too pink for my skin tone

Caroube Stylo Eyeshadow swatched on bare lids, it dried pretty quickly, I recommend a creamy base first to help with the blending and layering. I like Edward Bess Sunlight All Over Seduction (but it’s not shown on the lids below).

Some comparison swatches below to show how deep/shimmery the Chanel Summer Stylo Eyeshadows are:

Tom Ford Cream and Powder Eyeshadow Duo Golden Peach (review)
YSL Full Metal Eyeshadow #5 (review here)
NARS Dual Intensity Eyeshadow (swatched here)
YSL Full Metal Eyeshadow #7 (reviewed here)
By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Brown Perfection and Bronze Moon (review of Bronze Moon here)
Chanel Abstraction Illusion D’Ombre

Every season I always look forward to Chanel’s new releases, especially the colors they launch for summer. For me the highlight of the summer beauty for Chanel is the bronzer and lipsticks (review soon). I wanted to love these eyeshadows, Laurier Rose falls short for me mainly because the color doesn’t work with my skin tone although I do really like the formula. It blends well, the shimmer is ultra fine and just enough glitz to show up on the lids. Lasting power is also phenomenal which I think is key for warm weather. Caroube is a winner in my book but not really mind-blowing. It’s a good staple bronzy shade that is easy to wear and something I can see myself wearing all summer long. I’m one who can never have enough bronzy shimmer eyeshadows so I do love this color but I can’t call it a must-have.

There are three other colors of Stylo Eyeshadow in the summer collection in a teal, purple and green. None of which are colors I wear so I passed on those shades. You can find all the colors now at Chanel counters. I bought mine from Nordstrom but you can also find these now at Chanel.com, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. All five shades are listed as limited-edition.

Have you checked out the summer Stylo Eyeshadows yet? What did you think?
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Eye Makeup Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Summer 2015 Cream & Powder Eye Color Swatch Comparisons

April 28, 2015

As promised I pulled some other cream shadows to compare to the Tom Ford Beauty Summer shadow duos. Many thanks to my savvy readers who already knew some of the creams were duplicates (or repeats) of prior limited-edition shades. There are a couple colors that keep selling out online but are available for back order. If you want all shades, you may have to shop around. My local counter had all of their Naked Bronze and Golden Peach reserved via pre-sales. I’ve compiled a list to help save you time from clicking around (note this is subject to change as items sell out):

Above shown Top Row, left to right:
Bottom Row, left to right:
Swatches:
My conclusion is that the new summer duos do indeed include repeats of previously released cream shadows from Tom Ford. If you already own Spice, Pink Haze and the Golden Mink Quad (I don’t own this but I swatched in store to compare), you can skip Golden Peach and Naked Bronze if you want to avoid dupes. The Spring 2015 Cream Shadow is really close to Midnight Sea but not an exact dupe when you look at it in person. The summer duo is slightly lighter in color while the spring shade is a bit deeper. I really like the concept of the new summer Cream & Powder pots because of the packaging and having two shades in one compact for convenience (plus the mirror to apply if you’re on the go or need to touch up before going out).

Hope this helps! Did you buy or test out any of the Tom Ford summer duos yet? If yes, which ones and what are your thoughts so far?

The Tom Ford Summer Duos were provided as press samples for review consideration. All other items purchased by me.

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