The Chanel Les Beiges Summer 2015 Collection: This Kind of Beige Makes Everything Better

There’s beige…a color which is often associated with drab hospital walls, sensible shoes and cat barf.

And then there’s Chanel Beige. 🙂 Also known as yaaaaaas.

I have no idea how Chanel turned a color as historically boring as beige into something so covetable, but they did it with the new Les Beiges Summer 2015 Collection.

The Chanel Les Beiges Summer 2015 collection includes…

• Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Multi-Colour Broad Spectrum SPF 15 Sunscreen in Mariniere No. 1 and Marinimere No. 02 ($65 each)
• Les Beiges Blush Healthy Glow Sheer Colour Sticks in No. 20, No. 21 and No. 22 ($45 each)
• Le Vernis Nail Colours in Beige Rose, Beige Pur, Precious Beige and Lovely Beige ($27 each)
• Levres Scintillantes Glossimers in 204 Rose Tendre and 206 Beige Star ($30 each)
• Les Beiges Healthy Glow Hydrating Lip Balm ($36)
• Retractable Kabuki Brush ($70)
• Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Colour SPF 15 in No. 10, No. 20, No. 30, No. 40, No. 50, No. 60 and No. 70 ($58 each)
• Les Beiges All-In-One Healthy Glow Fluid Broad Spectrum SPF 15 Sunscreen in No. 10, No. 20., No. 30, No. 40, No. 50 and No. 60 ($45 each)

For the hardcore Chanel-ophiles among us, I’ll get to that striped face powder in the above picture and what it’s doing there in a minute, but first! — what is Les Beiges?

Well, it’s two things. One, it’s a line of sheer face powders in the Chanel permanent collection, and two, it’s also a collection of sun-protected and healthy glowing skin-themed annual summertime products released by Chanel for summer over the past couple years.

Think polished but not overly perfected, and picture sheer tinted moisturizers, cream blushes and sheer face powders. All very summery.

This year’s Les Beiges Summer 2015 release follow that same idea, and it includes multicolored face/cheek powders, stick blushes (these are new!), nail polishes, a couple of glosses, a balm, a retractable kabuki brush, face powders and tinted moisturizers. The only things listed on the Chanel website as “limited edition” are the tinted moisturizers, so here’s to hoping that most of these items stick around a while.

Now, about that striped face powder in the above picture…OK, I didn’t realize until after taking these pictures that this version here is from last year’s Les Beiges Summer 2014 Collection.

Yup.

Whoops! My bad. This year’s version has more stripes (see here), as well as two colors in the pan instead of three, but if the 2015 version’s finish is like last year’s, which I believe it is, it should be worth checking out.

The pan of Les Beiges Healthy Glow Multi-Colour Powder in No. 02 in these pics, which I’m wearing as a sheer bronzer, creates a soft, natural-looking sheen/glow. In these pics I’m wearing it lightly dusted around the perimeter of my face, across the bridge of my nose and toward the back of my cheeks.

As for the other Les Beiges pieces I’ve been wearing…

Chanel Les Beiges All-In-One Healthy Glow Fluid Broad Spectrum SPF 15 Sunscreen

Les Beiges All-In-One Healthy Glow Fluid Broad Spectrum SPF 15 Sunscreen, a tinted moisturizer with SPF, is lightweight, sheer (expensive) and pore-blurring, with a strong gardenia and green apple scent. Skin looks natural when wearing it, but ever-so-slightly perfected. When I use it, my skin tone appears even, but I can still see my freckles.

I wear shade No. 40, which is a deep tan with slightly peach undertones, and for reference, I’m a MAC NC42. My skin leans warm with yellow undertones, and No. 40 is a tad darker and peachier than I usually like to wear. But because it’s quite sheer, I think it’s still doable.

The moral of this story is this: if you can’t find an exact match for your skin tone with this product, don’t fret. If you can get close, you can probably still work it.

I really dig this tinted moisturizer. It’s comfortable and beautiful, and I love the non-fussy semi-matte finish.

I am kind of alarmed, though, that it’s listed on the Chanel website as limited edition. Why is the good stuff always LE? Ack! It SUCKS!!!

Chanel Les Beiges Blush Healthy Glow Sheer Colour Stick in No. 21

Les Beiges Blush Healthy Glow Sheer Colour Stick in No. 21 feels exactly like Chanel’s Cream Blush, except that it comes in stick packaging. What starts as a silky cream when it’s first applied dries down to a powder with a satiny finish. Apply it with either fingers or a brush because both work well.

No. 21, the shade I’m wearing in these pics, is a warm pinkish coral, and I’m kind of in love with it. Being visible but not hella obvious, it should be great for summer.

Also great for helping me on my quest to become “Cool Auntie Karen,” who differs from “Crazy Auntie Karen Who Wears Too Much Rouge.” 🙂

Chanel Les Vernis Nail Colour in 663 Lovely Beige

Honestly, I can’t say that beige nail polish makes me want to drop my pants, but if there were a beige nail polish capable of doing that, it would be one from Chanel. Obviously.

This shade, 663 Lovely Beige, is exactly that. A lovely beige. Ladylike and warm, it’s pigmented to the nines. You could easily do one coat of this peachy beige and go on your merry way.

If you’re into classic, casual makeup that doesn’t look heavy, I think you’ll find something to love in Chanel Les Beiges, available now online and at Chanel counters.

Additional deets on this look…

Face — Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Color No. 40, NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Biscuit
Brows — MAC Brun Eye Shadow, Anastasia Brow Wiz Clear Gel
Eyes — Chanel Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow in Tisse Mademoiselle, Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof in Santal
Lips — Chanel Rouge Allure in 158 Virevoltante, Chanel Aqualumiere in 91 Tutu
Lashes — Estee Lauder Little Black Primer, Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara
Necklace — Ann Taylor
Shirt — Halogen (an older item)
Earrings — Tiffany Paloma Picasso Olive Leaf Earrings

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen