I got excited when I saw this new Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Natural Eyeshadow Palette as I love Chanel and neutrals. Win win all around. This is part of the summer Chanel Les Beiges collection. I believe it's limited edition as Nordstrom is sold out. However Chanel still has it in stock. Details per Chanel:
A versatile eyeshadow palette for easy, neutral-toned looks. Five smudge-proof, long-lasting colours — from soft to intense, with matte to shimmery finishes — offer base, highlighter and liner effects.
The case cover has the Les Beiges beige instead of the traditional black for most Chanel. Inside is five shades of neutral toned shadow ranging from almost matte to shimmer. Chanel suggests usage beyond just eyes. Using some of the shades on brows or one as a face highlighter.
Tip: Try applying the deeper shade to build intensity on dark-hair brows and the lighter shade as a highlighter on cheekbones, the brow bone, the tip of the nose and the Cupid’s bow.
The top shade that spans the width of the palette is a matte soft cream shade that's perfect for a base shade. The middle left shade is a matte cool driftwood brown. The middle right shade is a matte warm cinnamon brown. When I say matte for these three shades I mean almost matte. They have an ever so slight bit of micro shimmer which is perceptible more in the sunlight than anywhere else. It's a cross between matte and satin leaning towards matte. They look mostly matte on the lids. It does give the shades a touch of dimension.
On the bottom left is an almost matte soft black. I'm usually not into more matte blacks but this one is excellent. Matte blacks are usually either way too pigmented and hard to blend or too soft and light, they hardly show up. This one is perfectly in between. It's pigmented, yet soft. It shows up but not too much. It's the Goldilocks of blacks. Just right. The four almost matte shades are soft and thin in texture. They're not overtly pigmented yet not sheer. They have a bit of a powdery texture.
They look very much like Surratt shadows. That's what I first thought of when I opened this palette. Surratt matte shadows also have a hint of faint shimmer in them. The shimmer in this Chanel palette more prominent than Surratt, it's a touch larger. I do find the Surratt to be a bit more pigmented than these. The Chanel feels a touch softer, drier and more powdery. The bottom right shade is a shimmery beige. It's shimmery in base plus has some micro glitter in it. It feels less dry and soft than the other shades in the palette. It's not powdery at all. The shades are all long lasting and stay put pretty well so bonus in that area.
I like the palette overall. It's a good basic palette for neutrals. It's very soft in the look it gives. Very day appropriate. You won't be overdoing it with these shades. You can smoke it up for sure with the black to go into night. The nudes take a heavier hand to get a deeper application. I'm not a fan of how powdery they feel.
As some of the shades are very similar to my beloved Surratt shades I really don't reach for this palette. I prefer the Surratt which is more pigmented and less powdery. I also find the shimmery shade doesn't really work all that well with the rest of the shades. It's too shimmery and the textures clash a little. It would be better on the face as a highlight versus just the eyes. The shimmery shade is also very pigmented and it can overpower the softer matte shades. I prefer the Chanel Entrelacs Palette to this one for soft nudes. That palette had a more cohesive feel. It was better matched in textures.
Top to Bottom--Base top shade, Clockwise starting top left:
Compared with Top to Bottom--Surratt Brunatre, Surratt Ombre, Surratt Greige, Chanel(same as listed above), Surratt Brun Noir:
