GUERLAIN Les Tendres Spring 2015: Clair (02) Meteorites Compact & Les Nuees Eyeshadow Palette

There have been quite a few Spring releases of finishing powders this year, I finally got round to testing them in store and found the Yves Saint Laurent Palette Collector Lumiere De Jour was very sheer and subtle and contained glitter (which I am not a fan of) and the Givenchy Le Prisme Visage Colour Confetti, whilst it had a pretty, albeit subtle glow, the actual base colour of the product was too dark for my pale skin (being a noticeable peach). I settled on the lightest shade of the Guerlain Météorites Compact, Clair #02 (£40).

The powder is said to blur imperfections and provide illumination and radiance. Clair #02 is meant to even the skin with the champagne colour, illuminate with the white and hide any redness with the green.

I don't feel that the powder evens out or reduces any discolouration on my skin, what it does succeed in doing is adding a subtle brightening to the skin, making the complexion look a tad smoother. The difference it makes to my overall complexion is rather subtle so I do question the necessity of this.
Whilst the powder has a smooth texture, it feels rather dry, however it applies quite nicely on the skin but I could see it accentuating very dry patches. 
Swatched below: Diorblush in Starlight, Guerlain Météorites Compact, Clair #02 and Burberry Nude Radiance Fresh Glow Powder.


Ingredients below (this is heavily scented).

The limited edition Ecrin 4 Couleurs in 18 Les Nuees (£41) contains a deep navy blue with fine sparkle, white with frosty finish, a pale baby blue with slight lavender iridescence and a white with a hint of pink with frosty finish.


What became apparent when I first used this is the formula is not the same as in the other Ombre Eclat 4 Shade Eyeshadow palettes I've had. There is a noticeable decrease in performance, the three lighter shades have quite a smooth texture but are not as soft and do not apply as evenly and the deeper blue has an even dryer texture and is crumbly and overall colour payoff of all shades is not as good as the regular palettes. As long as I wear a primer I do not get colour fade or creasing and do find the shades blend ok.

In terms of the array of shades a mid toned shade would have allowed for more contrast and therefore variety of looks, and its a shame the pink shadow does not actually go on as pink as it looks in the pan. The saving grace is that I like the finished look of this but I would not recommend due to the dip in quality and work required to get the shadows to work.


I bought these from John Lewis.

Burberry Complete Eye Palette in Nude Blush

Nude Blush Complete Eye Palette (£40) was originally released as part of the Fall 2014 collection and is now part of the regular line up. I was hesitant to get this initially as these sort of colours can often look a bit bruised/tired on cool toned pale skin like mine.

 
The palette contains 4 shades in medium to dark intensities with a good balance of finishes. You get a beige/sand satin, a shimmery warm copper pink (too much and this takes on a orange tone on me), a matte dusty mauve and a satin finish deep eggplant.

The texture is comparable to the buttery smooth, non powdery feel of the singles, apart from the deepest shade which is dryer and does not blend as well.
Initially I didn't like this, it was too warm and looked messy, and I could have done with a lighter toned shade to give some balance.

After playing around with it so more I've decided the key for me is not using too much of the copper pink and using the lightest shade more heavily (shame this one is in a smaller pan).

I think if you are usually iffy about these sort of shades on you skin then proceed with caution but otherwise the overall quality and performance is there and it does work to create a warm, earthy plum look.

I bought this from http://uk.burberry.com/beauty/

Dior Kingdom of Colours Spring 2015: Mono Shadow in Fairy Grey, Rouge Dior Baume Belle de Printemps and Cotillon

For 2015 I'd made the decision to cut down on the makeup spending, I thought I was safe when I first saw the images for the Dior Spring Kingdom of colours, which whilst pretty weren't screaming unique at me, but of course I relented.
I would like to point out that again we have a collection whereby not all items are released in every country (brands like Dior, YSL and Chanel seem to do this quite a bit). From what I can tell so far (as the collection is only out at Selfridges as I write this), in the UK we have not received the DiorBlush in Peach Splendor nor Khôl Eyeliner in #349 pearly mint but do have two new Fusion Mono Eyeshadows, the Mono shadow in Fairy Grey and an extra three Rouge Dior Baumes which certain other countries won't be receiving.


Mono shadow in Fairy Grey (£22.50), is a medium grey/silver infused with differing colour micro glitter. The glitter is what sells this shade as they provides a lovely twinkliness when they catch the light.

Pigment is a bit lacking initially but can be built up sufficiently. Glitter shades usually mean some fall out and I did get some when using a UD primer but don't if I use my By Terry one, so you may need to play around with what base you use. The shadow is lightweight and feels smooth and there are no problems with blending.

Swatched below and then a built up swatch.


Fairy Grey is a pretty shade, albeit a more flashy/shiny shade than I would normally go for, but I can't say I am a fan of the mono shadow formula, whilst it does perform sufficiently, I prefer something more creamy with a better coverage.


Of the five limited edition Rouge Dior Baume I bought #448 Belle de Printemps and #668 Cotillon (£26 each).
Belle de Printemps is the soft apricot/peachy shade used for the Ready-to-Wear S/S 2015 collection look.

Cotillon looks red in the tube but  goes on as more of a fuchsia.

Both shades go on less bright than they look in the tube. These colours are just so pretty for that pop of fresh colour.

However, though I'm a fan of the Rouge Baume formula as they provide hydration and have a lightweight, comfortable feel, I unfortunately found that Belle de Printemps does not apply as smoothly as my other Rouge Baume's and instead tends to clump and settle into lip lines.

Out of what I bought, Cotillon is the only must have for me, though I am still feeling the temptation to get the eyeshadow quints, so my plan to spend less in 2015 is going exceedingly well....

Ironically, from most of the reviews I have read so far,  it seems that the Dior Kingdom of Colors Palette which is the centrepiece of the collection has not gone down well and is one to skip.

I bought these from http://www.selfridges.com

Tom Ford Lips & Boys Collection: Julian, Olivier, James and Flynn

I missed out on the initial launch of the Lips & Boys Collection so made sure to quickly place an order when the collection was relaunched recently (in the UK its exclusive to Selfridges).

Though I'd read and seen pictures on the difference in size, it was still a surprise to see in the flesh just how mini these are (shown below with the regular size).
What is good though is that the quality of the packaging is still the same as the full size, just smaller, and the lipstick itself is a good size rather than being really thin and fiddly to apply.

Money wise they only work out slighter cheaper compared to the full size, these are 2 grams at £26 each whereas the standard lipsticks is 3 grams for £37 each. I'd rather have a cheaper price and smaller amount of product personally (good to have hope of using up a product....).

I bought the following shades:
Julian: cool toned, medium mauve pink with satin finish.

Olivier: cool toned, very pale lavender pink with shimmer finish. I bought this to use as a topper for other lipsticks to give a bit of interest as these types of shades are too pale to use on their own with my complexion.

James: warm toned, medium coral with satin finish (this is meant to be the same shade as Twist of Fate, which was a limited edition shade for the 2014 Fall collection).

Flynn: neutral nude pink with satin finish.

Both Julian and James have the same texture/application of the full size, they are creamy, with very good pigment and a long wear time. Oliver and Flynn are of a slightly thinner consistency and are not as pigmented.
I'm really not getting on with Flynn, no matter how well I prep my lips it shows up lines and dryness like a beast, it also applies a lot lighter that it looks in the tube and swatch so washes me out.

Swatched L-R:Flynn, Olivier, James and Julian.

Its good that on the whole the quality remains the same compared to the full size, I just wish I'd skipped Flynn and opted for a more colour intense shade.
There are still quite a few shades left on the Selfridges site, though I presume that once they are gone they are gone so bear in mind if you are eyeing the collection up.

I bought these from http://www.selfridges.com/