Of all the gorgeous new beauty releases this festive season, there was only one that I was really, really excited about getting my hands on. Enter the Chantecaille Holiday 2019 collection.
I am, at any time of the year, a Chantecaille super-fan. You can see from my recent posts that I haven’t a bad word to say about the gorgeous Luminescent Eye Shades, that their Lip Veils make up some of my current favourite lipsticks, and that Future Skin foundation is just a dream. Then there’s the skincare; rose scented gorgeousness that hydrates and plumps. With one friend’s favourite being the Flower Harmonizing Cream, and another a longtime devotee to the Bio Lifting Serum, we’re one big Chantecaille-loving fan club.
But, you don’t have do be a Chantecaille shopper to fall in love with this holiday collection. It takes just one look at the beautiful marketing images to have you checking your bank balance and chasing down online stockists. There’s gold speckled powder compacts, stored like precious jewels in satin pouches, and a trio of lipsticks so glittery they remind me of Dorothy’s ruby slippers, beautifully housed in gold cases.
There’s no denying these products look beautiful, and they’re priced as high as you might expect from a luxury brand like Chantecaille. But how do they actually perform? I have happily worked my way through the collection, for the greater good.
Firstly, there’s the clutch bag – the one item I’m slightly devastated to say I couldn’t get my hands on. Perhaps a strange offering from a beauty brand, this acrylic clutch is covered with gold flakes and would make a beautiful Christmas gift to the beauty loving woman in your life.
First, the powder products; the kind of makeup that is so beautiful you’re reluctant to dip your brush in. But, it’s worth it.
I first tried the Éclat Doux, which is touted as a powder-balm that had me curious from the get-go. Just what is a powder-balm? This finishing powder has an incredibly soft, almost balm-like texture when swatched. Now, it’s not in any way a cream, but there is a balminess to the touch. It’s a brightening, slightly whitening finishing powder that mattes down any shine but does so in a really luminous way. Think Hourglass Ambient Lighting powders but with perhaps even more luminosity, and in a cooler tone.
On my fair complexion, this powder is a gorgeous final step in my makeup routine, and a wonderful afternoon touch-up product on excess shine. If your complexion is any deeper than medium, I would be wary that this will be too light on your skin. The powder comes packaged in an utterly gorgeous rose gold covered compact, inlaid with gold flakes and safe in a dusty rose pouch. This isn’t your average setting powder. The Éclat Doux is really unique and unlike anything else in my makeup bag, so I’m excited to keep using it.
The Éclat Brillant is a stunning golden highlighting powder that anyone would be happy to find underneath the Christmas tree. This powder’s compact is yellow gold, but is again covered with the gorgeous gold flakes and comes in it’s own golden satin pouch. Together, these two compacts make the most instagram worthy beauty products I’ve seen in a long time and it’s so exciting to watch what Chantecaille keep coming up with next. Embossed with a fabric-like woven texture, the Éclat Brillant is a true yellow-gold highlighter that can be applied lightly for a subtle golden glow or built up to a strong strobe light. I also applied some to my eyelids as a shimmering shadow – an effortless holiday look and a great multi-tasking product to travel with on Christmas holidays.
If there’s one makeup product anyone would be able to purchase for a loved one, and be delighted to receive – no complexion-matching necessary or skin type considering – it’s a lipstick. Everybody loves a lipstick. Chantecaille’s Lip Cristal, a return from last year, is a dazzling, glittery, colour bomb of a lipstick. In keeping with their conservation mission and fight against climate change, Chantecaille will plant a tree in Kenya through the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust for each Lip Cristal sold. There are three shade options; Rose Quartz, Carnelian, and Rubellite, the latter being the one I chose to leave behind.
These lipstick bullets are beautiful to look at. Intensely sparkly, I was curious how they would feel on the lips. The word gritty was coming to mind. Rest assured, there is nothing gritty about them. These lipsticks feel creamy and luscious on the lips, and wear down beautifully. The colour begins as strong but is also somehow subdued in a wearable, non-intimidating way, and can be built to a deep wash of glistening gorgeousness. After a day of wear, the colour remained on my lips really well and as it faded just a wash of glittering gold flecks remained. There’s one thing that is undeniable; these are sparkley.
Rose Quartz surprised me the most as I had initially thought I’d be turning it down. This nudey-rose-mauve colour is radiant with gold flecks and is just stunning on the lips. The first application was quite a shock. I was hesitant whether it was too frosty for my liking, but I found the speckles of glitter were actually enhancing the size of my (slightly thin) lips – it almost blurs the lip line. I applied a layer of Clarins Comfort Lip Oil over the top and was left with the most beautiful glistening pout. Sparkly, luscious-feeling, fun. This is what makeup is all about.
I had thought Rubellite would be my instant fave, but when swatched in store I found the bright, pink-berry-fuchsia to be a little too much for my day-to-day.
Surprisingly, Carnelian was an instant love affair. From my previous post you might know that I don’t call myself a red lip person, but this is one red lipstick I couldn’t say no to. Truly resembling Dorothy’s ruby slippers, this shade somehow leans orange-red in warm light, and pink-red in bluer, cloudier daylight. The sparkling glitters allow for a little less precision than your traditional red lipstick. If this red is still out of your comfort zone, try it pressed over a balm or gloss, for just a hint of colour. If you want to amp up the festive glamour, layer a clear gloss on top of this lipstick for the most beautiful glistening red pout.
I have no doubt the Chantecaille fan club will be welcoming a lot of new members following this holiday collection.
Find Chantecaille at Mecca, Space NK, Look Fantastic or Chantecaille.