Chanel Nuit Infinie Ombres Matelassées Charming palette

Oh Chanel, the doyen of the fashion and beauty world, it has been too long since I picked up an eyeshadow palette bearing the emblematic double-Cs.  I feel almost like a wayward child… after investing in a Chanel quad for my very first “proper” eyeshadow palette many moons ago, I’ve only picked up a random lipstick, nail polish or other lone item here and there.  But from the moment I laid eyes on the early press images months ago, the Ombres Matelassées Charming Eyeshadow Palette has been plaguing my dreams!

This Ombres Matelassées is part of the Nuit Infinie de Chanel Holiday 2013 collection, and is limited edition.  It is, beguilingly for a holiday collection, a neutral palette.  However, it packs a little sparkle to bring it from charming in the day to glamorous in the night!

The colors (from left to right) are:

• Soft cool-toned ivory with a pearlescent finish.  This pretty much disappears on my skin, and when I tried to layer it heavily with more pressure it had a tendency to kick up on the skin.  This is probably more suitable as a priming base, and under the brow-bone as a highlighter.
• Light warm-toned brown with a matte finish.  This shows up much better on my skin, and can be used for laying the first coat of color, or as a crease shade.
• Medium-dark, warm shimmery bronze.  This surprised me the most as it turned out darker than I had imagined from the press images, and shows up amazingly on me.  It is perfect for all over, used in the inner corners for highlighting, or patted in the middle for a pop.  The possibilities are endless!
• Dark warm-toned pearlescent brown.  This is the driest of the lot and had a tendency not to apply smoothly.  But with a good flat brush, it was still easy to pick up and blend.
• Dark matte cool-toned purple-gray.  For a dark shade, it is surprisingly soft to the touch.  When I first saw photos of this, I had imagined it would be more purple, but actually appears more gray in reality.

When I first posted my initial swatches on Instagram, there was quite a bit of reaction to the seeming dryness.  I chanced upon the display freshly put up at the Ion boutique, complete with the plastic cover and all, so I didn’t have the heart to ruin it by swatching heavily.  That photo was just a single swipe on each of the shades, to give me a sense of the textures.  Having had my fill of my own palette back in the privacy of my home, I can swatch to my heart’s content to bring you the photo above.

My honest opinion is that this Ombres Matelassées Charming Eyeshadow Palette is consistent with what I’ve come to expect from Chanel.  It is by no means a flawless palette in terms of texture, but it is certainly not tres terrible.  The dark brown shade is drier than I’d like, but the pigmentation and blendability is ok.  I also wished the light ivory shows up better and applies smoother.  It wore well throughout the day with minimal fading, and no smudging or falling into my eye-folds.

For the EOTD above, I first used the lightest ivory shade as an all-over base, followed by the light brown.  Then I applied the dark purple-gray shade alone my lash line, winged it up and blended it in.  Thereafter I added shimmery bronze all over the lid and blended.  I used the dark brown as a liner shade for my lower lash line.

This season’s Chanel Nuit Infinie Ombres Matelassées is a charming eyeshadow palette that is neutral with a subtle twist.  I love the elegant quilted motif, and with 9gm of product, packs quite a bit of value (for a Chanel!).  Charming is available at all Chanel counters nation-wide, and retails for SGD100.  Do check it out if you’re interested as I understand these Matelassées tend to sell out quite quickly!

xoxo