Le Métier de Beauté MARCHESA My Palette by Keren Craig - Swatched

Joanna Austin, president of Le Métier de Beauté, said that working with world-famous MARCHESA designers Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig was a collaboration that would, hopefully, lead to a long-lasting creative partnership. Wanting to be at the doorway to that glamorous world, I pre-ordered items from the collection from Bergdorf Goodman. Then I waited for gift card week!

After consultation with my friends in New York, I ordered the eponymous Keren Craig palette, shown at left. Georgina Chapman's shades didn't appear to suit me.

MARCHESA My Palette by Keren Craig ($65) arrived last Friday. This collection of warm hues was designed to create a beautiful bronzed look not to be ignored - one with everything you need to make a sun-kissed look your own.

What's in the palette?

• Bronzer
• Concealer
• Lip Gloss in Le Caramel
• Creme Blush in La Rougeur
  
• Eye Shadow in Le Fauve

I swatched the shades for you. At right, top to bottom, are the eye shadow, concealer, creme blush, and lip gloss. The concealer is definitely a yellow tone - the one that looks scary on my arm. It works on my face better than I expected when I first saw it. The rest of the shades are very pretty.

I applied the bronzer at left twice with a dense brush. At top is a light application; there's a darker one below. Applied with a fluffy brush for a less concentrated application, the bronzer is a nice shade for me. It has no trace of orange.

Le Métier de Beauté calls this a "petite palette." It certainly is. It's wafer-thin and about 3 1/4 inches wide. Like the Double Entendre Lip Gloss from the MARCHESA Collection, it's tiny - too tiny. I'm not sure why the MARCHESA items are all so small. I assume they were intended to be slipped into an evening bag, consistent with MARCHESA's eveningwear. The price is dear, given their size.

If you want to own one of the the latest darlings of the beauty world, you can purchase the MARCHESA Collection now at Bergdorf Goodman and very soon at Neiman Marcus. I'd recommend that you take a look at the seasonal Le Métier de Beauté makeup and find similar shades that suit you. You will get much more makeup for your money.

Update 9/27, late afternoon: I should have mentioned that the palette isn't slimmer than the regular Le Métier de Beauté palettes at the Neiman Marcus counter. In that sense, the palette is a "better buy" than Double Entendre - in my opinion.

Photo at top courtesy of Neiman Marcus