Sunday, April 17, 2011

Giorgio Armani Beauty Mediterranean Eye Palette 2011 for Summer

Giorgio Armani Beauty's Mediterranean Eye Palette 2011 ($59), which just arrived at Neiman Marcus, is a stunner. Like neutrals with pizazz? You will love this palette.

Each summer, Armani introduces a lust-worthy collection. I've been waiting for this one - inquiring almost every day for the last few weeks. I was rewarded last week with the news - not only that the eye shadow palette had "landed," but also that it was exquisite.

The palette is signature Armani, with the four shades presented in a pretty compact with the GA insignia on a gold background on the flip-up top. Open the compact and you'll find four shades, defined by barriers. I appreciate the barriers in Armani's "traditional quads" because there's no danger of blending the shades by accident. Naturally, there's a mirror in the top of the compact.

What surprised me was the paint-by-numbers card with instructions for a rose sand day look, an amber look for day, a smoky evening look, and a sophisticated look for evening. I always find these instruction cards amusing because I don't feel limited to the excellent suggestions. Others may appreciate help creating the Armani look.

The four shades, called simply brown, rose sand, amber, and beige, are all knockouts. My swatch photo below was taken in full, morning sunlight. All shades were applied with a sponge-tipped applicator. The photo at left shows the swatches from the top to bottom of the compact. All appear a tad more sparkly than they are on my skin. That's the sunlight.

The gleaming brown should have a snappier name. It's a warm mixture of brown, copper, and gold. Rose sand is like rose gold shade, except that it's more peach than a typical rose gold. The amber shade is a stunning, shimmery warm copper, and the lightest shade, beige, is a true golden beige with a hint of peach. All of these shades coordinate expertly, giving you many options for an attention-grabbing eye, no matter what your skin tone.

If you prefer to avoid the sun, like me, this palette will give you a touch of bronze and gold for summer. If you have darker skin than I do - or if you have a tan (real or not) - you can enhance your bronze goddess look with the Mediterranean Eye Palette.

I think you are going to love this palette. I am a huge Armani fan; I love everything Armani. This palette is amazing - one of the prettiest eye shadow palettes Giorgio Armani Beauty has ever introduced - even better than its peers. It merits the "to die for" description. I'm going to have to hoard it because this limited edition will sell out. There are other new pieces in the summer collection, including new sheer lipsticks, Face Fabric blushers, and a bronzer. I'll show you the new sheer lipsticks tomorrow.

Neiman Marcus at Tysons Galleria has the Mediterranean Eye Palette in stock. I bought mine there from Kathy Shoreman. I am sure that all of the Armani Beauty counters will have it soon. As of today, it is not yet available at Armani's Web site. Will you be looking for it?

Nirvana: a state of perfect happiness; an ideal or idyllic place - or how I felt when I got Giorgio Armani Beauty's Mediterranean Eye Palette 2011.

Photos by BTiB

26 comments:

A said...

WOW. This is so, so gorgeous. The only thing preventing me from adding it to my cart immediately is that it doesn't look very unique. But... it's gorgeous, so I might spring for it anyway!

Adele

Charlestongirl said...

I have very few palettes that are this gorgeous, Adele! You will find similar shades in various lines. I guess it's virtually impossible to create a color we've never seen. :)

I don't know where you can get it online right now, so you have a few days to mull on it - unless you are close to a NM. Call first.

lovethescents said...

Absolutely stunning. I have to be so careful with palettes, I find, as I tend to only use 2 colours on them. My eyes are quite deep set and the darker colours just draw them in deeper...not a look I'm after! Enjoy them!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Lovethescents, all of these shades will be lighter when applied (appropriately) with an eye shadow brush. :)

Mihai Rosu said...

Hi, thanks for this post, very important for me to see this product. I'm gonna ordered it, i needed a lot.

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Mihai Rosu!

Definitely - it's exquisite. I ran out of superlatives to describe it.

Anonymous said...

After I saw your pics, I knew I needed it!

I went to Saks NYC, but they didn't know what I was talking about (a real pet peeve of mine! )

Bloomies didn't have it either but the SA knew they had it at the Armani store on 5th, so I went there... And they did and they had the new summer lipsticks as well!

Thanks for posting!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Anonymous,

I agree - I really hate it when I go to a counter, and I know more about what they are about to receive than they do!

Glad you finally found it. Hope it was worth the hunt!

Bonnie C. said...

I agree with your opinion of the names - simply brown, amber, and beige... you'd think Armani would be a bit more creative than that, especially with such a lovely palette (though maybe they wanted simple names so the colors would speak for themselves? I dunno...) I liked what you called it though, I think "gleaming brown" would be a lovely name. :-) (cute definition for "nirvana" too, that would be another good name for the palette) :-)

Thanks for the review! :-)

Charlestongirl said...

I think the color names Armani selected were meant to be descriptive - nothing more. Otherwise, I'm sure Mr. Armani would have come up with something elegant. I could think of a lot of names for brown eyeshadows - my mind runs toward alliteration.

Bahama Brown
Bold in Brown

I need to stop! :)

Unknown said...

I'm lusting after these palettes now. They are truly TRULY wearable shades :)

Charlestongirl said...

Definitely, Rainy Days and Lattes!

These are as perfect as it gets for wearable. Not a misbehaving shade in the palette. :)

DivaDebbi said...

I literally gasped when I saw them!Quiet, elegant perfection...typical Armani! This, I cannot resist. Thanks for sharing them with us C.!

Charlestongirl said...

Hey gal!

Thanks! I sure love this palette.

Enjoy the weekend, Debbi!

Dlori said...

I absolutely love this eye palette as well as the lipsticks. The lipsticks appear incredibly hydrating. I've never really been into Armani make up before but I think I might have to make a few purchases from this collection. Thanks for another great review.

Dlori
kleimanlaw at aol dot com

Charlestongirl said...

Thanks, Dlori - and hi! If I were to invent a palette, it would be much like this one! The lipsticks ARE incredibly hydrating. Just a lovely set for summer!

Ladymorri said...

I've been searching for this everywhere online and cannot find it. Can you tell me where I can purchase one? I positively love it! One the Armani site there is Maestro Eye Shadow Quator in 6 different shades that they say are based on the Mediterranean. Are these them? If so, which or the 6 is this one. I'm very confused!! *smile* Thanks so much!!!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Ladymorri!

This palette will definitely show up on the Armani Web site, probably soon. That site gets behind the stores - often. If you want it NOW, you can always call Kathy Shoreman at NM and have it sent. 703-761-1600, ask for her at Armani Cosmetics.

Unknown said...

Thank you for the beautiful pics. This palette looks lovely and just what I need for my collection! Do you happen to know if the palette has a #? I'm trying to find it on Neiman Marcus online and they only show #'s and there is a mysterious #8 palette showing.

Charlestongirl said...

I don't think that's it, PerilouslyPale! I looked and saw the mysterious #8. The box says #1, but #1 is Oceans (blues). So go figure!

Let me see if I can find out when it will go up on Armani's Web site.

Charlestongirl said...

Have an answer from Armani. It will be on their Web site in the next few weeks - probably mid-May.

Armani photos were not ready at the time of my post; that may explain why NM's site doesn't show it yet.

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for looking into that for me! I guess I'll have to be patient ;-) Armani doesn't ship to Canada so I'll have to wait for Neiman Marcus.

Natasha said...

This palette is amazing, and will be added to my current Armani collection. Thank you so much for letting us know where to get it. I called Armani, and multiple stores, then saw you mention Kathy. I called her yesterday (she is so sweet and helpful), and my palette should arrive in NC by Friday! Thanks so much!!!

Charlestongirl said...

Hey Natasha!

Isn't she a doll? So amazingly wonderful!

Hope you love the palette as much as I do.

Andreea said...

I bought immediately unseen and I think it is really lovely, though rather warm. I still use much more often the autumn LE because of the blue shadow in it.

The peachy colour is a bit too warm for me, but as soon as someone has the slightest hint of tan this will look great. The combination AND the quality are unique!
With an black eyeliner you can use just one single colour, and still look fabulous.

I love Armani as well - it is just really GOOD.

I am looking forward to the next LE - seen a pic already. I missed the nude look palette spring (2009 I think?) and THIS will not happen again ;-)

Charlestongirl said...

Collection FINALLY available online at http://www.giorgioarmanibeauty-usa.com.