…you might want that thing to be one of the new Dior 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow palettes. These eyeshadow quintets have been around since 1987 and I’ve been a fan of these for years because of their luxurious packaging, amazing texture and great colour selections. This Fall, Dior renewed the entire range and this is the result: 13 eyeshadow palettes in a gorgeous new sleek packaging.
The palettes used to have a rounded surface with a semi-transparent blue top where you would see the CD initials. Now it’s a little thinner and completely dark blue – close to black – packaging and comes with 2 double-sided applicators. I liked the packaging as it was, but I guess after so many years Dior felt like they needed a revamp. Either way, the result is pretty amazing: still luxurious like the Dior we all know and love.
But the real magic begins when you open the packaging. It’s almost like opening a treasure chest when you catch the first glimpse of the colours within. So radiant and almost too precious to ruin with the first swipe of your brush. The idea behind the 5 Couleurs palettes is simple: there’s 1 base colour (the one in the middle) that serves as the eye-catcher. The other matching 4 colours are meant to create versatile looks around the base colour. The palette gives you the possibility to be as creative as you want. If you’re not THAT make-up savvy, you can stick to the 2 options Dior came up with: either use the top 3 colours for a subtle daily look or the bottom 3 for a more intense and seductive evening look.
The eyeshadows come in 4 different finishes: matte (intense pigmentation), wet-look (very shimmery, little pigmentation, to be used by itself or as a veil on top of the other colours), satin (pure colour with a little shimmer) and intense sparkling colours (colours with a lot of pigmentation and shimmer). The combination of these varies per palette. Dior gave me 2 palettes to experiment with and it didn’t take me long to add a third one to the party. The more the merrier, amIrite?
First up is the only limited edition palette out of the three, 876 Trafalgar, so If you like yourself some of this you might want to pick it up fast. The Holiday collections are due to hit the stores by the end of October and I was told this particular one is selling like hot cakes. It had me under its spell from the minute I laid eyes upon it. The unique colour combination and that gorgeous pop of red just had me at ‘hello’. Trafalgar is one sensual palette, perfect for an evening out and about. The red evokes pure energy, but is slightly subdued by the sparkling gold, chocolate brown, white gold and soft pink accents. You can make it as bold and crazy as you like. This is definitely a palette for make-up savvy people as the colours are not the easiest to work with. I tried to copy the campaign look once (love that look to death) and failed miserably. It looked like I was going for a Halloween look instead lol! Still this palette offers a lot of possibilities for a successful Autumn look.
Next up is 566 Versailles, the most shimmery of the bunch. This could pass as a holiday palette for sure. The top shades are more subtle shimmers while the middle yellow gold and bottom silver shimmer just scream ‘look at me shine’! I found the cool silver and warm gold in 1 palette a rather unusual combination, but one that works surprisingly well. The taupe brown colour completes the palette and gives the eye a little more definition. I’ve worn this palette a couple of times already and found that this one has a way of putting your eyes in the spotlight. Luckily this will be available at the Dior counter all year round so you’ll be able to get this whenever you have a special occasion coming up.
Lastly there’s 796 Cuir Cannage, a ton-sur-ton palette that’s perfect for everyday wear. I caved when I saw this at Isabelle’s blog and I just happened to receive a discount coupon from Ici Paris XL (coincidence?). I love the warm toned neutrals in this palette. After all these years, neutrals are still my weak spot. But in all fairness, these kind of deep brown shades were not part of my stash until now. And mattes! I need more mattes! My inner magpie always went straight for the shimmery shades, which as a result, brought me a collection that is almost entirely shimmery/sparkly/glittery, which is not ideal for everyday wear, especially at work. I’m glad this palette is a well balanced mix of both.
Dior has been releasing the most amazing stuff lately, but the release that has wowed me the most is definitely the range of new eyeshadow palettes and that is why I’d recommend anyone to check them out. With 13 colour variations to choose from there’s not a chance you won’t find anything in there you like. The pigmentation is great (except for the wet-look colours, but they have their own purpose), the shadows feel smooth and are easy to build. So if you’re feeling spendy and you’re looking for a new eyeshadow palette, Dior’s got what you need.
I’m still not sure which one is my favourite out of the 3, since I pretty much gave them their own purpose. I think Cuir Cannage is the best palette if you’re looking for something you can wear every day. Versailles is a great option for a party or evening look. You can of course also wear this one during the day if you need some extra sparkle. Trafalgar is the one if you dare to try and experiment with make-up.
The Dior 5 Couleur Eyeshadow Palettes are now available at the perfumery/Dior counter for € 55
Do you have any Dior eyeshadows? Which one would you like to try?
Disclaimer: This post contains PR samples*
