Chanel Illusion d'Ombre Velvet Fleur de Pierre & Illusion d'Ombre New Moon Fall 2015

About a year ago or so there was a rumor that Chanel was releasing a black matte version of their Illusion d'Ombre. I was very excited, as I never took to their sparkly Mirifique. But nothing came out of it until now. Illusion d'Ombre Velvet has a different texture and finish than the regular ones. It strongly reminds me of Kevyn Aucoin Eye Pigment Primatif (why hasn't it become the hottest product on the market?), though it's less elastic. The texture is smooth, soft, easy to work with and can be intensified if you work with the applicator Chanel put in the box.

Fleur de Pierre is not a real black. The raw asphalt look of the eye shadow in the jar translates into an almost gray off black (my swatch is just one swipe. You can build it up but it'll not become a true black). It's a versatile eye shadow and an incredible asset for a smoky eye, but its main strength is as a base for just about any powder eye shadow, and works extremely well with Chanel quads and singles that have the familiar semi-sheer quality. I'm still playing around with that like a kid who was given a 100 piece crayon set. It's so much fun.

In comparison to Fleur de Pierre the coppery brown New Moon falls short. It's not really a new color, but a rerelease of an item from last year. I didn't buy it then, and I should have skipped it now as Chanel didn't improve the slightly gritty texture and overload of super shiny sparkle. The color itself is lovely. It's very coppery (see below how the warm almost red base stands out next to the cool toned Illusion d'Ombre in Illusoire), and more or less universally flattering. The explosion of shimmer when applied to the lid makes me think of that MUFE Diamond Powder. It has a similar effect, which is nice for a glitzy night out but is a bit much most times. New Moon is also surprisingly sheer, which makes patting a light layer of it over another color the perfect way to take a look from day to said glitzy night. It makes me regret a little not picking the third Illusion d'Ombre color from this Chanel collection, the orange Rouge-Gorge. My reasoning was that it's not a workhorse shade, so with this line's penchant for drying out before you used even half of the product Rouge-Gorge would go to waste. Still...

From top: Fleur de Pierre, New Moon, Illusoire

The gold leaf color from Tissé d'Automne quad applied over Fleur de Pierre

Bottom Line: get Fleur de Pierre, skip New Moon, and if you have blue eyes also consider Rouge -Gorge, since it's a limited edition.

Chanel Illusion d'Ombre Velvet Fleur de Pierre & Illusion d'Ombre New Moon ($36 each, made in France) are available at the counters and from Chanel.com.