Estée Lauder Pure Color Five Color EyeShadow Palette in Topaz Mosaic for Spring 2012

Estée Lauder's limited-edition Pure Color Five Color EyeShadow Palette in Topaz Mosaic ($45) for Spring 2012 is a sublime mix of five sun-drenched, neutral desert tones with a refreshingly unexpected pop of citron yellow at the center (to match the new Citron Kiss Pure Color Gloss!). The palette offers many options for layering neutral bronze, taupe, and sand dune shades to create a strong or subtle eye look. These aren't my "typical" eye shadow shades - or so I thought. I started to swatch them in the store and had a moment of joyful discovery. This is a gorgeous eye palette.

Illuminate your look by adding the citron yellow, backed with gold particle pearls for a golden halo effect - an effect the models at the Derek Lam Spring 2012 Show walked the runway. Housed in a sophisticated golden-mirrored compact with an oversized Estée Lauder cartouche, Topaz Mosaic delivers high-impact color and texture through a high-performance formula with Estée Lauder's True Vision technology. Skip the marketing speak and what you have is a palette filled with fabulous colors. It's a unique palette that will bring out your inner artist.

I had a small sunshine window yesterday (the sun was partially obscured by high clouds). I nearly froze as I took swatch photos, coatless. You may notice goosebumps in my photos. I applied all shades heavily with a sponge-tipped applicator and swatched starting at the top of my arm with the orange-toned shade at the top left in the palette, moving clockwise, and ending with the yellow center. The photos aren't as bright as I'd like, but I took what I could get.

There are two shades in this palette I'm going to wear out. I am madly in love with the neutrals at top right and bottom left. The shimmering taupe is a perfect shade for me, and the shimmering pastel peach is stunning on the lids. The yellow highlighter will brighten any look (it's not scary when applied sheerly), while the darkest shade (at the bottom in the palette) can be used to contour. It coordinates beautifully with the other shades.

When asked how to wear the vibrant yellow, Tom Pecheux replied, "To wear this yellow, it all depends on what you want to achieve. This is amazing on its own, but can also be used to wake up a neutral color. Try layering with one of the taupe or brown shades to add warmth and depth. Yellow doesn’t need to be scary, try using it just as a highlighter on the brow bone until you get used to playing with such a different shade."

In this model shot, the colors in the palette were paired with the new Pure Color Intense Kajal Eye Crayon in Dramatic Teal ($22), a fat little eye liner with a fine tip - it's easy to use. I think the look is gorgeous. If you want something a bit less flamboyant, recreate the look Pecheux achieved with the model below for the Derek Lam show.

Who couldn't replicate this gentle, natural look? Note that Pecheux deviated from the traditional application by using the darker colors on the center of the lid. It appears that the yellow is blended with the taupe or peach in the crease. This should put to rest any fears that Topaz Mosaic isn't a spring palette. It will take us right into summer too.

For the spring runway, Pecheux saw yellow. "There was definitely a focus on the brows. It’s all about strong, dark brows. And yellow, of course! I used a yellow eye shadow and lip gloss for the Derek Lam Show, and yellow was dominant at other shows as well."

I think you'll enjoy Topaz Mosaic. I bought mine at Bloomingdale's. It's available now at Neiman Marcus and other Estée Lauder counters and at the Estée Lauder Web site. Will you be shopping?

Photos at top and model shots courtesy of Estée Lauder; other photos by Best Things in Beauty