Tom Ford Winter Soleil 2018 Eye & Cheek Palette

December 28, 2018

Another season heralds a new Tom Ford Soleil collection, and with it, the new Winter Soleil 2018 Eye and Cheek Palette. This palette reminds me of sunshine setting over the horizon, and is perfect for an escapade away from the cold northern winter to a luxurious resort, and it arrived just in time for my Maldives holiday!

The new Tom Ford Winter Soleil 2018 Eye & Cheek Palette is formulated with a gel-powder texture designed to be used wet / dry, which makes it uniquely different from previous iterations of such Soleil palettes. Otherwise, the ivory-and-gold casing is similar, and comprises of a blush, highlight and 4 eyeshadows.

I swatched the shades in corresponding placement relative to their positions on the palette:

I must admit Tom Ford’s wet/dry formula for cheeks is not one of my favourites, and as you can see from the swatches above, the blush shade lacks pigmentation when applied dry. It takes several vigorous swirls of a very dense cheek brush to achieve any sort of colour on my cheeks and I do not have the patience for that. At the same time, I am not a fan of applying my makeup wet so the option is not very practical for my preference. Otherwise, the blush itself is a rather pretty warm-toned peach-pink with a golden undertone.

The highlighter on the right end of the palette is much better pigmented and shows up with an intense champagne metallic flash with a single swipe.

There are 4 eyeshadows arranged in the middle of the palette, in clockwise direction starting from top left:

Light warm-toned metallic gold
Pale warm-toned pink with a metallic finish
Dark purplish-blue in a satin finish sprinkled with golden micro-shimmers
Medium-dark copper with a satin finish and sparse golden micro-shimmers

Generally speaking, the pigmentation is softer than most other Tom Ford eyeshadows that I’ve tested so far, although this allows the intended effect of a light wash of sun-touched skin. The intensity is immediately transformed when applied with a damp brush. At the same time, I did not have any problems getting the dark purple to show up even when applied dry.

Personally, I feel this Winter Soleil 2018 Eye & Cheek Palette is better suited for a nude-makeup look, quite a departure from the heavier party palettes available this season.

Alternatively, it is entirely possible to create a smokier makeup look with Tom Ford Winter Soleil 2018 Eye & Cheek Palette by using the dark purple on the outer corner for greater definition.