Sephora + PANTONE UNIVERSE Alchemy of Color Face Palette

Yowsers, this is pretty! Sephora + PANTONE UNIVERSE Alchemy of Color Face Palette ($30) reminded me of a new color "brand within a brand," but with a lot more pizazz. I hope you get my drift because I'm not going to fess up. Let's just say I haven't purchased any of those other brand's items.

Once again, Sephora has introduced extraordinary color makeup in a luxury magnetic-closure compact - this time with six shades to highlight, contour, sculpt, and define your look for the season, or any season. This new Alchemy of Color Face Palette will appeal to everyone, but especially to makeup "collectors."

Fall under the spell of the Alchemy of Color Collection, an enchanting collaboration between PANTONE UNIVERSE and Sephora that marries the shades of the season with exclusive formulation and finish. This versatile palette of silky, soft formulas contains light and dark shades with both matte and pearly finishes to create a natural-looking glow. Achieve a perfect flush with the high-pigment blushes and then wear a beautiful, sheer glow thanks to the airy, ultra-transparent base of the highlighting formulas. 

If you check out Pantone's Fall 2012 colors, you may wonder how Alchemy of Color fits in. Rose Smoke and Honey Gold are probably the connection. I wouldn't be excited by a face palette featuring French Roast. Maybe on the eyes, but...

I ordered this palette from Sephora sight-unseen, and I could not have been more pleased when it arrived. These colors are brilliant - even if my photo directly above is a bit dark. Sometimes, the brilliance of white distracts my camera, and there's a lot of white in this compact's case.

I took swatch photos in an unconventional way. You can see in the palette that there is a narrow strip of color at the top left and bottom right. I blended that color with the shade next to it. So, on my arm, you will see four shades - two of them are blended. I took my swatch photos in full sun, and I swatched heavily with a sponge-tipped applicator.

I drooled. Fortunately I was outdoors. You must consider that this palette costs $30, a bargain. I buy a lot of luxury makeup, and Alchemy of Color is extremely competitive with most of it.

The top shade on my arm is one of the blends. It's a gorgeous copper-rose. The pink below (upper right in the palette) is a warm pink on my skin - one with plenty of pigmentation. It's a pretty blush.

The shimmering, icy pink is a blend of the two side-by-side pinks in the bottom row. The bright, shimmering gold is simply stunning. You can apply these colors dry, as I did above for my photos, or wet for even more brilliance and longer wear.I like them dry because they offer enough wattage for my complexion. I like subtle color.

These colors apply perfectly - no duds in the bunch. I'm in love. Whoever hooked up with PANTONE UNIVERSE at Sephora deserves a raise.

This new palette is exclusive to Sephora. I purchased mine online. What do you think?

Photo at top courtesy of Sephora; other photos by Best Things in Beauty