Cherry Blossom
Cherry Blossom was a kaleidoscope that was released in a very small quantity and exclusive to one boutique. A friend of mine procured it and I was (and am) so glad she did! Its an amaaazing palette. The three top tiers are incredibly smooth and pigmented, without any powdery kick that is associated with soft eyeshadows. The brown liner shade is a little harder in texture, and a little sheerer than the rest. The result on the eyes is a springy, brightening effect with softly smudged lashlines :) Its a little hard to capture the layered effect since my skin is very dark but I assure you that it performs incredibly well under your preferred eyeshadow base.
Chinoiserie Azure
Mmmm Chinoiserie Azure. Mmm mmm mmm. This palette is so deliciously textured I could just eat it up. I love the vivid blues, though my favourite shade is that second tier. Its a greeny blue gold shimmery shade that is so pigmented that a light touch is required unless you want to overwhelm the other shades. When you wear this shade, you get a nice three dimensional blue that has amazing gold pearl shot through.
Violaceous Splendour
Violaceous Splendor is my favourite LMdB palette of all time. No joke. Its not one I wear most often, but the quality and colour combination is just stellar. What I do is usually layer the top two tiers (the red a little lower and closer to the lashline), then dab the orange in the middle of the lid. The black to finish off on the lashline and a little dab on the outer V for depth. Violaceous Splendor is a shining example of bright matte eyeshadows done well. Urban Decay, please take notes. Creamy, smooth, pigmented with no fallout and no powdery mess. The pigments melt into the skin instead of sitting on top of it. SO many things to rave about really. This one is worth hunting down, peeps.
Modernist Merlot
I have to admit, this pallete is a miss for me. I just don't get it. It will probably look OK on my lid since I am tan, but this palette layered is a muddy mess. I can't imagine what it would look like on someone with fair skin. If you have a different (positive) experience, please do let me know. Overall, this is too dupable to be worth the big bucks. Huge miss.
Devotion
I feel amazingly lucky to have Devotion. The eyeshadow formulation/standard is on par with the superb Violaceous Splendor and Chinoiserie Azure. I cannot help but be amazed at how it swatches, and the fact that its soft without being powdery. How did they achieve this?? Devotion is a relatively old palette, and I LOVE that it has stayed in the fattier stage till now.
Northern Lights
Chauvet Pont d'Arc
This was the palette that restored my love for LMdB. I just find this palette so wearable and can easily create a soft smokey eye in 5 minutes flat. The teal liner shade is such a surprise! And, it is very soft to the touch and very pigmented. I need to be careful not to use too much pressure or it just crumbles. This shade is a little powdery (another surprise!) but its not unworkable.
Pallid Incandescents
As much as I LOVE the idea of Pallid Incandescents for a colourful eye look, its much too light for me. It looks great layered together, but it shows up on my lid as a pale ashy blah colour unless I wear a strong base like UDPP. On pale ladies, however, its magical. See it in action here.
Out of the 8 palettes I have reviewed and swatched here for you today, I would definitely recommend Violaceous Splendour, Chinoiserie Azure and Devotion as the best palettes. All of these palettes are very very colourful though. For a more neutral palette, Chauvet Pont d'Arc is a nice choice that isn't super boring.
From Part 1, I like Splendid Frost, Oscar de La Renta and Antiquite Poupee. Le Cirque would be a close fourth! :D
I would really love to have the full complete set of LMdB kaleidoscopes ever released but its a very far fetched dream. What I might do is ask my friends for their swatches and post it for you :) Let me know if this is something of interest.
Have a good day!
xx Cindy
