I skipped yet another annual Nordstrom Trend Show this morning. Eight o'clock is just way too early for a Saturday morning. I scheduled my Chanel makeover for noon instead. (And even so, I woke up at 11am - eep!)
The promise of the trying out the new Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation made me haul a__ to get dressed and out the door. Though many companies make foundations in colors for women of color these days, it can still be hard to find the right one, depending upon your skin's undertones. To be fair, I already have a couple that work well for me - by Jouer and Le Metier de Beaute - but since high school, when there was virtually nothing for "us," I've been driven to look at new products designed for women of color.
The beauty lines at Nordstrom bring in a number of makeup artists (MAs) including national makeup artists for this annual event. Each customer was assigned to a makeup artist, while one of Chanel's star national artists, John Fussell, oversaw each application, made recommendations, and gave useful new tips. I asked that they use Perfection Lumiere as the foundation, but gave them free reign over everything else. I'll save the foundation review for later after I've had a chance to see if it lives up to its long-wear promise.
In addition to applying Perfection Lumiere to my face, Mr. Fussell directed the MA use it also as an eye shadow base, and to apply it to my lips, which allows the true shades of the lip color to show and evens out any color variances that may exist around the edges of the lip. She used Fandango on my cheeks, an excellent color for me and one one I already have. Next, she applied colors from the "Prelude" quad on my eyes, which I also already own, so I was intrigued to see what she might do differently.
Wash of color #1 over the entire lid below the crease.
A dot of color #2 in the center of the lid, just above the lash line.
Color #3 in the crease, and lining under the eye from corner to corner.
Color #4 under the brow.
Though using liner on the waterline is common, it's new for me. The MA encircled the entire waterline, top and bottom, with Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof eyeliner in black. It gave me an entire new look.
My brows were filled in with the Crayon Sourcils Eyebrow Pencil in Brun Naturel. What an improvement over the old one! It's much softer and applies far more easily. And it's waterproof, a real bennie in this humid Washington environment.
Mr. Fussell finished my brows by lightly dipping a very thin, flat eyeliner brush into color #4 of the Prelude quad, then followed the line of the underside of my brows, giving the eye a much more finished look. I added a little more for the photo when I got home - you will blend better than I did, of course! I am really pleased with this intense smokey eye look. Just as if he knew I had some doubts about the cool tones of Prelude on my warm complexion, Mr. Fussell said that using cool-toned eye shadow colors brings out the hazel colors in brown eyes such as mine. I didn't see any green in my eyes, but they did appear to be a richer brown. Finally, the MA lined my lips with Aqua Crayon "Chocolate," and filled in with Rouge Coco Shine "Deauville," a neutral pink, then topped it with "Meteore" Glossimer. The fall looks feature both a strong eye and lip this season, but I may keep these anyway.
My makeover was completed with a complimentary nail polish application. It was a nice service, but I was surprised that the nail technician didn't have base or top coat to apply. Fortunately, the color I chose, Graphite, dried quickly and shows no nicks.
While I was pleased with my makeover, I was disappointed that Nordstrom didn't coordinate the timing of the Trend Show and National Artist Event with the release of the Holiday Collections. The Chanel Holiday collection is due out next month. It would have been nice to have gotten a makeover and nail application with the new products. It was a great event nevertheless. I always enjoy learning new things from the pros.
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