Dior 5 Couleurs Couture Colours & Effects in Trafalgar

A casual stroll through my home town had a big impact on my make up collection. I was just browsing my local high end make up counter and found they had already stocked the fall 2014 limited edition collection by Dior. I had already seen a few sneak peeks here and there on the web, and I had spotted a gorgeous burgundy/ red eyeshadow palette. I walked in, swatched and took home the beauty that is Trafalgar.

Dior 5 Couleurs Couture Colours & Effects in 876 Trafalgar

*Cue angels singing*. Isn’t it pretty? The reason why I was drawn to this palette is the absolutely stunning shade selection. They go perfectly together, but aren’t too standard. I own a few more Dior palettes and already love those. For fall 2014, Dior is relaunching it’s eyeshadow palettes including limited editions for the fall collection and additional colors in the new couture colours and effects line. Apparently the formula has been changed a little and the eyeshadow should be even more wonderful right now. This stunning beauty also leaves a stunning impression on your bank account. I paid €52.50 for this palette and that was with a 10% discount. The price of this palette was originally around €58 euros.

Reason number one for purchasing luxury make up items: the most beautiful packaging ever. Dior palettes come in a classy, shiny navy blue compact with the brand name embossed in silver on the lid. Inside you’ll find a good sized mirror. With this new launch, not only the formula has been changed, but the packaging has been renewed as well. The compact is sleeker and not as heavy. The reflective ‘CD’ that used to be seen in the lid if you held it at the right angle is gone. Nevertheless, Dior still has some of the best packaging of all luxury brands in my opinion.

The palette comes in a box and some information inside. The information provides input on how to use the eyeshadows and what the idea is behind the line. The palettes have been created to have a perfect blend of colors with different textures for different effects. The manual indicates to use the top half of the palette for a natural look, and the bottom half for a sophisticated look. Below you can see the look I created with the palette and I decided to use all shades.

Trafalgar is a mix of 5 stunning ‘perfect for fall’ colors. It is the highlight of Dior’s current fall 2014 limited edition collection and I can see why. As you will see on the swatches below, the top two colors are on the sheer side and very shimmery. The top left is a sheer, shimmery pinky rose shade. The top right is a pearlescent champagne. When I first swatched these, I was a bit put off, but the colors are buildable and used over a nude of white base color the shades come to live a bit more. The shimmer was something that worried me as well initially, but when I used them I noticed how perfect these shades are as highlight colors and on the eyes they are not as shimmery as they at first seem to be.

Gold is a fairly standard eyeshadow color, but this gold has a very different undertone to your usual golds. There’s a hint of brown and green, giving it a slightly tarnished look. In the bottom right there is a dark brown shade with a plum undertone. Again, brown, a very standard eyeshadow color, but with a twist. The star of this palette is of course the cranberry red color in the middle. Where some cranberry shades have a hint of purple to them, this cranberry shade is a very bright color which pulls more pink but still has a very warm undertone. It has a hint of raspberry red to it that makes this a perfect color for creating stunning fall looks.

Swatches

1. Top left: rosy pink, sheer shimmer
2. Top right: pearlescent champagne, sheer shimmer
3. Tarnished gold with brown and green undertones, opaque satin
4. Dark brown with plum undertone, opaque satin
5. Cranberry red with pink and raspberry undertones, opaque satin

All 5 shades are shiny and three of them are fully opaque with one swatch. The highlighters are sheer but can be build up and perform very well on the eyes and can always be layered over white or nude colors. The first thing I noticed is how soft these shadows are compared to the older Dior palettes I have. The older formula is a bit chalkier and creates more fall out. The new formula is buttery soft, easy to blend and a dream to work with. I created the look below, using all shades in the palette.

1. Top left in inner corner (layered over white pencil)
2. Top right on brown bone (layered over white eyeshadow)
3. Bottom left all over lid
4. Middle in crease and smudged on lower lashline
5. Bottom right in outer v and lower lashline

The rest of my make up:

1. MAC Face & Body in C1
2. Catrice Retouch Light-Reflecting concealer in 001 Porcelain
3. Too Faced Shadow Insurance
4. Catrice Brow kit
5. Hema eyebrow gel
6. Maybelline the Falsies mascara
7. MAC paintpot in Painterly
8. L’Oreal Glambronze bronzer for blondes
9. Chanel white eyeliner pencil
10. The Body Shop eyeshadow no. 13 (discontinued)
11. Benefit fishnets eyeshadow (discontinued)
12. MAC Prep + Prime transparent finishing powder
13. Too Faced Milk Chocolate Soleil bronzer
14. Dior lipstick in Rialto

All in all, I am very happy with this Dior palette. Despite my doubts about the top row shades, I was happily surprised when I used them on my eyes. In some way they go really well with the other shades in the palette: a promise Dior makes for these palettes which I find to be very true. The bottom row has some stunning shades that apply well and blend easily. The star shade of the palette is a great red to have in your collection. It is a red that is perfect for fall and combined with the colors in this palette it is difficult to make you look like you’ve just cried your eyes out. If you can still find this palette in stores, please check it out, as it is an absolute gem.

Have you spotted the new Dior collection yet?