Palettes

When the production crew of Hoarders finally arrives at my doorstep to film “the very special makeup episode,” they’ll find me half-buried under a mound of Friskies Gravy Lovers cans, unread issues of Entertainment Weekly and Chanel eye quads.

I’ll be wearing the gray bathrobe I borrowed from my friend Jen once and never returned and clutching something small and Chanel-like in one of my hands…

“Forget about me!” I’ll say to the production assistant trying to free me from the mound. “Save the quad instead!”

What quad is that?

A new one from Sonia Kashuk called Moroccan Dunes. 🙂

Is it just me, or does this quad shout, “COCO WAS HERE!” The sleek, Chanel-esque packaging, the luminous finish that glimmers on lids, and the colors, like precious metals, in rich, dark brown, grayish mauve, shimmering pink and rosy gold.

But in this case, the price is right — much lower than Chanel. It’s just $16.99, so you won’t feel like you have to sneak it into the house in your big purse (been there, done that).

When I work with these hybrid shadows, which combine baked, powder, cream and liquid finishes/textures, I like to start with a kick-@ss primer on my lids, like NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, to lock the shadows in place.

Then, to apply, I load a flat eye shadow brush with one or two of the shades, tap it to remove the excess and reduce any fallout — which can get pretty wicked with a couple of the fluffier shades — and press the powder on my lids.

Pressing, as opposed to swiping, seems to help the shadows bind a little better to my skin. Then I blend the edges with a domed brush.