Lancome Color Design Eye Shadow: The New Black, Daylight, Click, Makeover

Beauty bloggers do the oddest things to amuse themselves. I'm sure you're familiar with these Lancome GWP eye shadow quads. You probably have severals of them around. I play with them from time to time, custom mix shades or add one  to whatever look I'm creating. It's nice to have options.

The other day I pulled out one of these quads I've had for months but haven't touched since the day I swatched and photographed the eye shadows. I think the almost-raspberry pink has put me off. I decided to do a full look based on this quad. Because it was there, pristine and barely touched...

What we have in this quad (all Lancome Color Design eye shadows are actually available as singles):
The New Black- Satin finish black with tiny silver glittery/shimmer particles.
Daylight- Matte warm off-white. Somewhere between Bobbi Brown's Navajo and Bone, only with better color pay-off but a little more chalky.
Click- Looks taupe in the pan, but more of a bronzed mauve with a metallic finish.
Makeover- Lancome describe it as "metallic electric cotton candy pink". I call it nightmare pink.

What I did:
Daylight makes a good allover base color and even opens up the brow bone area. A primer is non-negotiable here to make it look smooth and even.
Once the entire area was Daylighted out, I used contour and crease brushes to sculpt the lid and crease with Click. It gives a natural deep but not made up look, quite flattering, really. I built up the color by using a pencil brush to add another layer at the outer V.
The new black makes for a beautiful eyeliner. I like to used it with a damp brush, with or without a sealing agent (Paula Dorf Transformer). The end result is a shiny liquid black liner. Very chic.

Most Lancome Color Design shades I've ever tried are quite decent. The texture has improved in recent years, but it's a touch and go when it comes to individual shades- I highly recommend not ordering sight unseen, which shouldn't be a problem as Lancome counters are everywhere. At their best, the colors are smooth, wearable and flattering, even if many lack a certain depth and wow factor.

Now, I still had Makeover unused. This pink monstrosity doesn't belong anywhere around my eyes. I can't even begin to tell you how wrong this color can be for me. But a challenge is a challenge and I decided to be creative and suck it up. I can wear pink blush, after all, the question is can I wear a metallic electric cotton candy pink blush?

Since the pans of the GWP are quite small, I had to find a suitable brush. Hakuhodo small flat top Yachio was an obvious choice, as it's really tiny and I could get the pigment evenly all over the brush without it touching any of the other colors in the compact. Makeover went on smoothly enough and the brush did a great job distributing the color, but the metallic electric finish is very very frosty. I experimented a little and discovered that taming the beast with Smashbox Softlights (most shades would work, as long as they're flattering on you) applied with a good powder brush takes away the metallic edge while allowing the healthy part of the pink to shine through.

Bottom Line: I ended with a very pretty look.

Lancome Color Design Eye Shadow ($17 each) are available from most department stores and lancome.com.

All photos are mine.