Chanel Première Eclosion 302 Eye Shadow Quad & Ombre Première 824 Verderame

This season has brought several Chanel eye shadow items that I've found irresistible. It doesn't always happen with their spring and summer collections, but these combinations of neutrals and rich greens are among the things they do best, and I'm all about the green lately.  First there's the Spring/Summer quad (not to be confused with Cruise Collection quad which we'll talk about in a few days and also look at alternatives), Première Eclosion 302.  It's a limited edition item (Chanel.com has sold out weeks ago but most department stores have it in stock right now). It's a classic Chanel combination of colors where you can almost see the tweed jacket with golden buttons emerging from the compact.

swatches done with a flat brush, one sheer coat over Lorac eye primer

Première Eclosion is the baked formula and offers the usual mid-level pigment saturation. The colors are semi sheer and can only be built u to a certain point. It's not Instagram makeup and isn't meant to be. I'm fine with that, since it works beautifully for a daytime real people look. The texture is pliable and blendable, and all the colors in the quad can be layered over a cream eye shadow base, either from Chane (see below) or from other brands, upscale or drugstore.

The colors in Première Eclosion are a pale mint green (applies best with a dense flat brush over a creamy base, needs little to no blending, a peach with a light sheen and more robust pigmentation, a light taupe with a silky sheen, and an almost matte dark chocolate brown. The texture of all four is smoother than I remember from other baked quads, and they can all be applied with fingers in a hurry. I've done the 30 seconds per eye with two colors in several combinations and they look just as sophisticated as a more elaborate placement, though the latter is of course more fun to create.

Bottom Line: mostly for Chanel fans, but not a bad place to start a habit. It's like a summertime version of Tisse Venitien.

Chanel Première Eclosion 302 Eye Shadow Quad ($61, limited edition, made in Italy) is in stock right now at Saks, Macy's, Bloomingdale's and probably other stores as well.

one swipe with the included brush, no primer.

Chanel Ombre Première 824 Verderame came out at the same time as Première Eclosion, the gorgeous Premiers Fleurs face palette, and a couple of lip colors. It's a permanent shade, though, which joins the improved cream shadow range, Ombre Première. Verderame is a stunning black-based cypress green right out of a Van Gogh painting. The soft texture is tempting to get one's fingers right in there and start painting. Brushes are optional and the one that comes in the box is quite adequate in laying down the color before diffusing the edges with your finger or with an old 217.

This cream shadow can also become a base for the mint green or the taupe from the Première Eclosion quad, or any trendy liquid glitter or sheer duochrome product you feel like layering on top. I've tried stuff from J Cat to Pat McGrath Astral White. It's all good.

Bottom Line: I can't keep my hands off this eye shadow.

Ombre Première 824 Verderame ($36, made in Italy) is available from Chanel.com and most department stores.