Lancôme Color Design Eye Brightening All-In-One 5 Shadow & Liner Palette

Lancôme has introduced 10 new eye shadow/eyeliner palettes, and I found most of them irresistible. Although its name is unwieldy, Color Design Eye Brightening All-In-One 5 Shadow & Liner Palette ($48) offers everything you need to create a snazzy eye look. [Did some marketing person run amok trying to be too descriptive with the title?] One look at these beautiful palettes will sell them.

I received an iPhone photo of the new display from Kathy Shoreman at Neiman Marcus Tysons Galleria. It's shown at right. Immediately, I selected six of them - yes, six! I had hoped to write one big feature about them, but the sun has conspired against me. Today, I will show you one, and I'll follow up with the rest of my new shadows very soon.

The first one I selected was Taupe Craze (#100), shown below left. I'm a neutral lover, and taupe is one of my favorite shades. It was meant to be. Of course, I rattled off the others I wanted with alarming speed.

Each palette has a schematic on the box and on a plastic overlay within the compact to ensure you know how Lancôme intended the colors to be used. At the top, there is an all-over-base. Below, there are three color blocks, from left to right, lid color, crease color, and highlighter. At the bottom of each palette, there's a liner shade that coordinates with the other colors. The compacts include two sponge-tipped applicators, nicely wrapped in plastic to ensure you receive a "clean" product. Each has a mirror too.

Lancôme says its new palettes provide five simple steps to contour, sculpt, and brighten your eyes. "From day to night, or soft to dramatic," you'll have what you need to customize your perfect eye look. These shadows present Lancôme's newest generation of silky luster powders for smooth application and pure, luminous color. They are said to wear for eight hours, without creasing or fading. I found that to be true.

My swatch photo of Taupe Craze, taken in outdoor sunlight, shows how lovely Taupe Craze is. I didn't bother to try to get a photo of the base shade. It's very close to my skin tone and doesn't photograph well. My arm shows, top the bottom, the shimmering lid shade, the matte crease shade, the shimmering highlighter shade, and the liner. The matte crease shade doesn't make my heart race, but the others do! They are definitely worth the price of admission.

Later today, I will show you more of the palettes I purchased. The sun is shining, so I should be able to get photos (something that was impossible for most of the weekend). Stay tuned!

You can purchase these lovely new palettes from Lancôme's Web site, Neiman Marcus (where I purchased mine), Sephora, and, I assume, any other Lancôme counter.

Photo at top courtesy of Lancôme