Le Lion de Chanel invites you for a roaring grand time in the Chanel Collection Libre 2018 Maximalisme de Chanel

Yes I know it’s just October, and yes, I know that Christmas is about 2 months away, and yes, I moan each year about how much earlier Christmas collections become available (and sell out!) every year. But if you can’t beat them, I guess you have to join them! So if you don’t want to miss this exclusive Chanel Collection Libre 2018 Maximalisme de Chanel collection, it’s time to hotfoot it down to your nearest Chanel beauty boutique!

While I am jaded and roll my eyes at the repetitive colours that appear in the Christmas (aka the more politically correct Holiday) collections, I confess to secretly keeping an eye out for Chanel’s this year. The reason was simple – I was intrigued by le Lion de Chanel! 😀

Why the lion head you might be wondering. Apparently, the lion is Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel’s favourite icon, and Lucia Pica picked it to represent the grandeur and intensity of the season. Here is a quote from Lucia Pica I wanted to share.

“The woman who wears MAXIMALISME DE CHANEL doesn’t hide, she loves being looked at,” Lucia Pica says. “She treats makeup almost like she would an accessory – an adornment that brings subtle drama to the mix without necessarily drawing attention to itself. She chooses between products to create striking oppositions.”

I say this often, but I love the refreshing vibe that Lucia Pica has brought to Chanel makeup, and how more daring and different the brand has become under her direction. Instead of a large, sprawling gold and red infested collection as infects most brands for Christmas, the Maximalisme de Chanel collection isn’t too large. I don’t have all the pieces, but what I have is representative of the collection, which I’ll share with you here 🙂

Le Lion de Chanel Illuminating Powder – RM235 | US$70 (Limited Edition)

Le Lion de Chanel sits at the heart of the Maximalisme de Chanel Collection Libre 2018 collection. This beautiful champagne gold illuminating powder is embossed with a regal lion’s head – not something you expect from a makeup collection, and especially not a Christmas makeup collection!

I must confess that when I saw preview images of this a couple of months back, I was intrigued. While illuminating powders, or highlighters aren’t my thing, this was a product that softly whispered “Buy me!”

As I gazed at it, something tugged at my memory. The shade and texture of the highlighter reminded me of something. I just could not put my finger on what. So I trawled my archives, and then I remembered. It reminded me of the Camelia de Chanel highlighter I had my eye on, from back in 2016!

Back then, sanity prevailed and I opted to walk away from that beautiful highlighter. This one reminds me strongly of it. The powder is very fine and not gritty at all. It leaves a beautiful peachy-gold sheen on your skin, that looks beautiful under warm light. The swatch is below.

It isn’t glittery, so you do not have to worry that you have specks of glitter on your face. A larger, more fluffy brush will deposit a kiss of golden champagne light on your skin, while a more dense brush will give you that blaze on your cheekbones, as you prefer.

Use it on your cheekbones, down your nose, along your decolletage… anywhere you want a soft candlelit glow to hit.

If highlighters are your crack, this is one to add to your collection. Not only is the design unique, bold and eye-catching, the formula is stunning. But if you already own something similar from Chanel (I swear it isn’t the first time this shade is appearing!) then you may want to give it a miss.

Still, that lion! Leo babies, this is a collection made for you! 😀

Chanel Ombre Premiere Powder Eyeshadow – RM141 | US$30 (Limited Edition)

There are 4 shades of the exclusively designed Ombre Premiere powder eyeshadows for the Maximalisme de Chanel collection. I have here 2 – 908 Noir Lamé and 907 Cuivre Lamé.

Chanel’s Ombre Premiere powder eyeshadows are single colour eyeshadows with a beautiful, creamy texture and a beautiful colour pay off. The formula is different from that found in their 4 colour palettes with the round pans.

These feel like silk and have an intensity of colour that is stunning, and comes in a variety of shades, textures and formula. For their Maximalisme de Chanel Collection Libre 2018, there are 4 shades, all embossed with the lion icon.

• 907 Cuivre Lamé : The photo above shows a slightly redder colour than it is. But this is a beautiful brown shot through with golden shimmer. The texture is soft, creamy and easily blended, and you can very easily wear it on its own with just a black eyeliner. A beautiful neutral.
• 908 Noir Lamé : This one is a satin black to me. Due to the name – Lamé – I expected a hint of pearl or shine to it but to my eye, there is none. It is a satin black, that applies smoothly, and is a very nice way to deepen any other colour. It is a black eyeshadow, and really, not terribly exciting, except for the fact that it applies and blends smoothly 😛

If you feel perhaps that you want to get one of the Chanel lions but budget does not permit you to get the Le Lion de Chanel Illuminating Powder, or if you aren’t the sort to wear a lot of highlighter powders, then the eyeshadow is a good option.

My suggestion is to get either 907 Cuivre Lamé (brown) or 906 Vert Lamé (khaki) for a versatile colour you can wear on its own, and you get a lion keepsake of this beautiful collection too! 🙂

Chanel La Palette Caractère Lip Palette – RM250 | US$60 (Limited Edition)

Last year, Chanel made lips their focus of the Collection Libre 2017 collection, and stunned the world by releasing their Rouge Allure lipsticks in beautiful, glossy red packaging. There is just one in this year’s collection, which is called No. 5 – homage to Chanel’s most famous perfume! I don’t have it so can’t show it to you.

But what I do have is the limited edition La Palette Caractère lip palette.

I’m going to be the first to tell you this – I don’t use lip palettes. I just don’t like them because I find them fiddly. I prefer just slicking on lipstick from a bullet.

However, the upside of a lip palette is that it allows for customization and variety. Perhaps you want to tone down a bright red. You can blend it with a deeper shade and create one that is just for you. Or perhaps you want a little more warmth, add some orange colour et voila!

The La Palette Caractère allows you to do this, with a palette of 5 shades ranging from bright to deep, from satin to extreme matte. If you can’t bring yourself to splurge on one Chanel lipstick, unsure which formula to choose, consider this your degustation menu 😀

Try one or the other, to see which formula you enjoy using, or which colour suits you best. If you are loathe to slick on a red lip, this is the best way to enjoy it. Use a brush to apply as sheer, or as bold a colour as you prefer.

If it’s too bold, take a dab of the deepest shade, and tone it down. The possibilities are endless, and it slips into your makeup pouch or handbag for quick touch-ups.

All that said, I still don’t have to like it! LOL! 😀

It is opportune at this juncture then to share the swatches with you, because I found that the colours of the lip palette were quite different once swatched on skin, as compared to how they look in the pan. It was quite surprising!

Working from left to right of the La Palette Caractère, the colours to my eye are thus:

• A warm orange-toned red
• A true chilli red
• A bright fuchsia toned pink
• A deep berry
• A deep browned plum

While they are supposed to range from satin to extreme-matte textures, I did not notice much difference in the texture. A brush picks up product easily and applies smoothly. To my eye, they feel like the regular Rouge Allure lipsticks – creamy, slightly luminous with a satin shine. One of my favourite lipstick textures so I have no complaints! 🙂

If you scroll up and compare the swatches to the colours in the palette, you will notice that the colours in the palette look far deeper and in some of them, quite different. Personally, I’m happy with the colours as swatched.

Will I use it? It’d be a waste not to, since I have it.

But I do confess that it will be a struggle for me, because lip palettes just aren’t my thing 😛

Chanel le Vernis – RM99 | US$28 (Limited Edition)

There are also 2 limited edition nail colours in the Maximalisme de Chanel collection.

• 918 Flamboyance is a bright red with a metallic shine. That sort of red that screams Christmas party time! It’s bold and bright and is in character with the collection.
• 917 Opulence is a duochrome browned burgundy with metallic shine that looks very pretty in the bottle, and I’m sure on nails. This one’s a much more wearable shade if you don’t want to draw too much attention.

I do not wear nail polish, so I might be generous in time to come – keep an eye out, stay in touch, say hello! 😉

What is worth getting from the Chanel Collection Libre 2018 Christmas makeup?

As these are all limited edition items, they are only available for a limited time and will eventually disappear once it’s all gone. If you do want to splurge on yourself here are my suggestions:

• Get one of the lion embossed items. They are beautiful to look at, and the formula of le Lion de Chanel Illuminating Powder and Ombre Premiere eyeshadows are stunning. Pick something you’d use – the eyeshadow perhaps, which is more affordable and something you can wear daily.
• Pick the le Lion de Chanel Illuminating Powder if you are a makeup collector. This is one not to be missed for the collectors who go for pretty designs and embossing. I will have to say that you can use the powder quite heavily without too much wear showing, which is a good thing.
• Get the la Palette Caractere lip palette if you don’t own a Chanel lipstick. It’s a cost-effective way to try the texture and to familiarize yourself with the colours you like. When you’re ready, you can graduate to one of the bullet lipsticks.
• Get the Rouge Allure No. 5 lipstick if you missed last year’s. I don’t have it here, but if you missed the beautiful red and gold packaged Rouge Allure lipsticks from last year, grab this No. 5. Instead of having the name “Chanel” etched in it, it says “No. 5” which makes it a collector’s item! But if you got any from last year, I think you can pass 😉

If you’ve reached this part of this treatise, WELL DONE YOU! 😀 SAY HELLO! 😛

I wanted to highlight one more thing about this collection that drew my eye, and reminded me again of the quiet elegance that is Chanel.

Because this is their Christmas/Holiday collection, the packaging is given a festive touch, not with gaudy bling as most brands are wont to do, but with quiet touches. The black packaging remains, but festive golden touches are found in the interlocking C logo of the covers, and in the case of the lip palette.

As Lucia Pica said, it is “… an adornment that brings subtle drama to the mix without necessarily drawing attention to itself.” 🙂

Which item from the Collection Libre 2018 Maximalisme de Chanel catches your eye?

I needed this to go up quickly, because it’s already available at the Chanel beauty boutiques and I did not want you to miss out. I get a little tardy every year, but this time, I promised I’d be on time for something for once! LOL! 😀 Tell me which item you like best? Did you find this helpful or should I just show pictures and shut up next time? Oh wait, that’s not a blog, that’s called ‘Instagram’ 😛

Paris B