Laura Mercier Bonne Mine Face Palette

Laura Mercier Bonne Mine - Healthy Glow For Face & Cheeks Crème Colour Palette is a limited edition Sephora exclusive item that was released for Fall 2010 and is still available. Focusing on glow and cheek color, Bonne Mine is not a typical fall item, but a healthy skin is timeless, after all, and who doesn't want to radiate?

The Bonne Mine palette is all about creams textures, so be prepared to deep your fingers in the pans. I always prefer to work with brushes, but Laura Mercier insists that this product is best applied without them. Once I got over myself and my germaphobia I had to agree with her. These creams respond best at skin temperature and are very easy to manipulate, apply and blend with my middle and ring fingers.

Here's what Laura Mercier has packed here:
1 and 2 (Glow Veil) are  basically highlighters, though 1 is quite pigmented and is more like an extra bronzer. I've played with it and used it as a cream eye shadow and on top of the regular bronzer.They have a shimmery almost metallic finish without any actual glitter sparkles.

3 and 4 (Cheek Veil) are cream blushes, with 3 being peachy and 4 a brick red. They can be worn separately, of course, but I find that mixing them together in various proportions works better for me and allows me to customize my blush for different looks. the colors are matte with medium+ pigment intensity that can be built up or sheered. Both are very pretty and are probably my favorite part of this palette.

5 (Bronze Veil) is a non-shimmery bronzer. It looks muddy in the swatch but lightly applied on the cheeks it's actually sheer and perfect for my coloring (NC 30-35ish) in the sense that it really gives me a tanned look. I've been avoiding the sun religiously in recent years, but I actually like the "just back from the Caribbeans" look, and I was happy to see how natural this bronzer looks. I haven't tried it as such, but the bronze veil might also be suitable for contouring on some skin tones.

Last but very important, the palette also holds three cards with step-by-step directions and illustrations on how to use the colors. It really is a fool-proof method and I've found the cards very helpful in getting me started.

My one complaint about the Bonne Mine palette is the staying power. You absolutely must anchor it in place with base and setting products, otherwise you'll find yourself with an almost naked face halfway through the day (and my skin is dry, so it's not an issue of oiliness).  It's a breeze to reapply, but if the whole point here is the "no makeup" look than I'd expect something more stable and weather-proof.

Who would enjoy this palette and who should avoid it? It's great for fans of cream products, especially those who are not too fair and enjoy at least a hint of a tan. Avoid if you're too oily, absolutely hate to use your fingers and can't do brown bronzers.

Laura Mercier Bonne Mine Healthy Glow For Face & Cheeks Crème Colour Palette ($48) is exclusive to Sephora and available online and in stores.

All photos are mine.