Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette Review, Photos, Swatches
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette ($59.00 for 0.24 oz.) is a new and limited edition palette for fall that features shades of “golden khaki, golden ivory, silver taupe, and matte khaki.” This quad is only interesting if you like softer, sheerer neutrals; the color payoff, with the exception of the golden shade, was sheerer, while the texture of all four shades was slightly dry and ranged from slightly powdery to somewhat powdery. As a result, they all look very barely-there applied to the lid, and the colors lost a lot of contrast and dimension as a result. I experienced noticeable fading after six and a half hours, and after nine hours, it was like I hadn’t put on any eyeshadow (I felt like my lids thought the eyeshadow made for a tasty morsel!).
Mystere #1 is a blackened brown with small gold shimmer. It had so-so color payoff, and it was a bit dry and powdery to work with. I applied it using a small crease brush, and it gave more intense payoff but did need some extra patience while blending. Disney Cinders is similar. Bobbi Brown Black Gold has larger shimmer. Guerlain Terra Azzurra #4 is less shimmery. Dior Night Golds #3 is cooler-toned, lighter. Chanel Topkapi is cooler-toned, darker. bareMinerals VIP is cooler-toned. See comparison swatches.
Mystere #2 is a creamy, pale gold with warm, yellow-y undertones and a golden pearl finish. It had good color payoff, and the eyeshadow applied smoothly but was slightly powdery. Chanel Convoitise is yellower, more frosted, cream. Disney Sand in the Glass is warmer. MAC Femme-fi is similar. Guerlain Calligraphy #1 is also similar. Chanel Pearl River #2 is yellower. Buxom Poodle is yellower, cream. bareMinerals Carte Blanche is lighter. See comparison swatches.
Mystere #3 is a subtly warm-toned, medium-dark taupe with a soft sparkle. It was semi-opaque and was a bit dry and powdery. MAC Romance Me is darker. MAC Earthly is browner. MAC Era is similar. Chanel Prelude #3 is slightly grayer. See comparison swatches.
Mystere #4 is a cool-toned, olive brown with a blackened base and green pearl that’s really not noticeable applied. It was sheer and powdery. theBalm Sophisticated is more shimmery. MAC Mystery is darker. See comparison swatches.
It is listed as a U.S. exclusive, but check with your local Chanel artist to verify–my guess is the baked version will be available globally (which is the norm for for the majority of Chanel quads), just not this formula. I don’t know why Chanel has two formulas, and I can’t fathom why they continue to have two formulas when time and time again readers confirm that the baked version is almost always inferior.
Mystere (43)
LELimited Edition. $59.00.
Mystere #1
LELimited Edition.
Mystere #2
LELimited Edition.
Mystere #3
LELimited Edition.
Mystere #4
LELimited Edition.
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere (43) Les 4 Ombres Eyeshadow Palette
Chanel Mystere #1 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #1 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #2 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #2 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #3 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #3 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #4 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere #4 Eyeshadow
Chanel Mystere (43): #1 (inner lid), #3 (middle of lid), #4 outer lid, #1 (outer crease)
I’m so happy I didn’t order this palette now! The shadows barely show up on the lids, such a shame because they look gorgeous in the palette.
I can see that the swatches look a bit chalky. Too bad, because this looked like a great, neutral palette for autumn.
Very pretty, but unfortunately, it’s just not in my budget for the next few months. As for the two different formulas, it could have something to do with regulations in the ingredients. The US has stricter guidelines for some things (which is why there are several Illamasqua eye products we don’t get here), and Europe has stricter guidelines for others. Again, I’m not sure this is, in fact, the case, but it is a possibility.
Regarding the strictness in different regulations, this is generally true and I find that overall, the US tends to have less strict regualtions. (Just for some context, I have studied this sort of thing as part of my university studies, toxicity, setting regulations for safe amounts etc. etc.) With some ingredients where Europe is less strict than the US, the US sets amounts so low you can’t even meaningfully measure it!
I don’t think the two completely different Chanel formulas are to do with this at all though. Chanel has traditionally had different products and formulas for the US market for business reasons. I can’t recall the fine details, but that’s what it was. I know they’ve been working on merging them so that things are more consistent in future.
Anyway, what a shame to see this palette so sheer! Well at least it’s easily dupeable.
Oh no!!!!!!!!!!! Sadddddd
Me too! It’s the only thing I want from the collection.
My wallet is happy, though! Looks so beautiful in the pan but what a let down when swatched/used.
So glad so many people will save money by not buying this!
BUT IT’S SO PRETTY IN THE PAN. Goodness, did I dodge a bullet on this one. o_0 When I picked up Gri-Gri, I spent about fifteen minutes mulling over whether or not I wanted this palette because it was just. so. lovely. The only reason I decided to pass it up was because the shades looked too dark for everyday wear on my hooded eyes. I’m going to do my best to ignore that the sheerer color payoff would actually be a plus for me and just focus on the D+ part to save myself the money. 😛
I have hooded eyes too, and for me the sheer smokiness is AAA+++. I’ll be the little devil on your shoulder ;).
These colours look absolutely appealing in the pan and the 4 shades look so well-co-ordinated. It’s a shame that the quality is so poor, otherwise, I’d be wanting this for sure as I love neutrals like these. At almost $60 (so probably $70 here in Canada) there is no excuse for such poor performance. There is something very wrong when a $5 Wet n Wild palette does better than Chanel!
Wow, so pretty in the pan, but such a disappointment when swatched. I think I’ll pass on this one.
So nice looking in swatches, so BLAH on the lid. :/
I swatched this a week or so ago, when I was jonesing after the Fall collections, and the Dior quints weren’t out yet. I had similar thoughts…there was significant fallout and the colors were nothing remarkable.
I’m glad I waited! I got both of the Dior palettes, and am very happy with them!
I’m so surprised you had a bad experience with this! (Although, I did notice how powdery it is — yeesh, it’s a dust storm.) But then again, I have extremely fair skin, and I feel like it shows up very dark on me. I have to use a light hand to get a day look going. So there may be some hope for women with extremely fair skin, though I can see how it would be a bust for folks with deeper toned skin.
Hi Liz,
I was also stunned when I saw Christine’s pictures and read her descriptions of the colors. The quad looked so brown in tone and her eye look was completely washed out. My quad produces an intense, sloghtly green-tinged smoky eye that is ideal for autumn. It’s not hit-you-over-the-head green, rather it is a subtle effect produced by blending colors that all have a touch of green in their undertone. I find the colors in my quad are saturated, suitable for evening, and that I have to use a light hand for day wear. The blackened olivine with gold shimmer (that Christine describes as brown) is particularly gorgeous when applied over the eye pencil in Celedon and smoked along the lashes.
Hi Christine,
As you can tell, I’m completely baffled by our totally different color experience. In fact, all four of the colors in my quad are green tinged neutrals that combine to create a subtle green smokiness that is in keeping with the season. The Chanel national artist who showed me how to do the promo look didn’t seem to have any problem with lack of color saturation, and neither did I when I replicated the look at hone. When I saw that faded out beige and brown eye look you created, I was absolutely shocked. You certainly know how to apply makeup well, so all I can surmise is that you got a dud for it to have had so little color payoff.
I completely agree with you about the powderiness of some of the colors which can easily translate to fallout if the brush is too heavily loaded, but despite that attribute, my colors pat on without any loss of saturation. I use my blending brush to lightly smooth out the edges and I’m good to go. I also completely agree that color fading is an issue and so I always apply Mystère over my moisturizing eyelid base in order to preserve the delicate olive hue. I usually don’t have a problem because my lids are dry, but in the case of Mystère, I find a base/primer is a must.
It seems that Mystère is quite a mystery! 🙂
Oops! I meant to add that if you look at the pictures of Mystère at Café Makeup, the green tinge to all the colors is quite visible. That’s exactly how my quad looks and not at all like yours 🙁 As I said, it’s quite a mystery.
Yes, mine is more like Cafemakeup’s as well. Like Eileen and Liz I have no problems with the pigmentation either. I am fair but I wonder if there is batch to batch variation with this quad???
My opinion was very similar to yours. Although my main reason to skip was the glitter fallout from the dark shade, I also felt these were inferior for Chanel. And I’m a chanel devotee. Money saved
I bought this one and have to say I actually really liked it. Would I go out and by a back up of it, no, but I do like the looks it gives. I wish the khaki shade had a little more green, but overall I liked it.
It’s a miss for me too! At first when I saw the colors, it didn’t scream wow to me, however, I still picked it up because I love collecting Chanel makeup. The pigmentation was so light and I don’t know if it was my quad but when applying the shadows, it felt.. crumbly and cheap. I love Chanel but I have to say sorry for not saying good things about this one.
I like the color selection but after reading the review, not impressed
Aw man, this sucks 🙁 . It had all the right shades for me, I lack khakhi taupey colours in my makeup and was hoping this would be a great quad. Anyone know of any other palette that has such colours? They don’t have to be a dupe. (I’d prefer a palette and not individual colours).
You could try Prelude or Raffinement if you can find them!
Oh Chanel, what are you doing? They look great in the pan (especially the #1 shade), alright swatched, but so dismal on the lid. What a shame!
I’m glad you confirmed my opinion of this palette! I had read a lot of hype about it but didn’t like it when I tried it at Nordstroms . Still looking for a good gold- khaki colored palette besides my Naked palette.
Thankfully I read this review before I put my order in!
This looks great and bit chalky too
I completely agree w/ you. I couldn’t understand why the web had so much buzz about this, when I tested at my local counter the shades were so crumbly and chalky, I didn’t like it at all. Especially when compared to previous neutral quads, such as Prelude and Raffinement, both so gorgeous and superior quality. I hated the nail polishes, so drab and truly ugly. Dior fall is the winner so far…can’t wait to see Guerlain and Armani.
Definitely not the same texture/feel as Prelude or Raffinement. Kind of felt like a cross between the U.S. pressed formula and the rest-of-the-world baked formula.
Wow…no texture problems with mine. I think I got lucky and received a good one!
Maybe something is wrong w/yours – I love the colors and have even had someone (a stranger) ask me what I had on – I have blue eyes and blonde hair and had on coral blush & lips?
At first glance I thought I would love this but the color payoff (or lack thereof) is disappointing! Will definitely be passing on this one! Thanks Christine!
Wow, am I glad I didn’t order this! I have so much better stuff in my stash. Think I’m going to hold out for Guerlain 🙂 It really is a shame, the shades are beautiful.
The usual overpriced and underperforming Chanel eye shadows!!!!
I do not buy them anymore…
Chanel should stick with what they do best: lipsticks, nail polishes, skin care products, fragrances, and clothing and accessories
Hmmm… I actually love this quad. It’s pigmented and pretty true to colour on my eyes as well so I’m puzzled as to why it looks so bad in the last photo. I did, however, just start using Too Faced Shadow Insurance. I still like NARS a lot but I feel that the Too Faced makes colours pop, more than NARS does (for me). Another reason may be that everyone has different styles of applying makeup (different brushes, strokes, eye shapes and colour placement). For example, Christine gave the purple Dior constellation palette a good review but I thought that it was the worst high-end palette I’d had the misfortune of using in a long time. So glad I tried it out first because they don’t do returns where I live. The shadows looked amazing in pan and swatched very well at first but they don’t stay very well. In fact the two darker purple shades are almost indistinguishable on my lids. Dior eyeshadow brushes are kind of the pits as well so I resorted to using their eyeliner brush to pack on those two colours and still nada. My eyelids were sore at the end and I was doubly mad because the sales assistants were trying to chalk it up to my (lack of) makeup skills. Right. When I buy eyeshadow that expensive, I don’t want to HAVE TO use primer or concealer or cream eyeshadow as a base. It should work well by itself already. The palette was pretty unique as a whole but each of those shades has a MAC dupe and putting together my own MAC palette would not have cost much more. I also have a diploma in professional makeup artistry, which doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m a makeup genius, but does indicate that I have achieved a certain proficiency in makeup application.
What I’m trying to say (so clumsily) is that your mileage may vary and if you’re thinking of getting this palette, you should go to a counter and try it out yourself. Having said this, I do really appreciate Christine’s meticulous and well-documented reviews because I generally agree with her opinions and they give me a ballpark estimate of whether the product is something I’d be interested in or if it’s a complete no-go. Thanks for your hard work, Christine!
I suggest trying this on yourself if you are considering it, because it looks COMPLETELY different on me! Maybe it is a difference in skin tone – it looks much more green and gray and less brown when I wear it.
Hi J,
Several of us who have commented have had the same experience as you–that is, our quad and how it looks on our eyes is completely different from Christine’s quad and finished look. Also, pictures and descriptions of it that I’ve encountered on other blogs mention the green undertones and saturated color whereas Christine’s was decidedly brown/beige and looked faded. There must have been a major problem with the quad she received.
Anyway, I hope you’re enjoying your quad as much as I am enjoying mine. I get the same misty, smokey green look that you’re getting and I think it is beautiful.
I only own about 4 or 5 Chanel palettes. And the reasoning is simple. You Americans have a FANTASTIC formula! Us? Here in Canada? Not so much. Not at ALL! You are certainly right about our baked ones being inferior. The colours are sheer and often patchy. I consistently hear from Chanel sales associates that women want options and prefer to be able to build up a colour as they see fit. Yet everyone I know simply wants PIGMENT! I want to swipe a shadow and get on my finger/brush/eye the SAME THING I see in the pan. Sigh……….
/End Rant!
This palette intrigued me after seeing Sam Chapman (pixiwoo) and Lisa Eldredge use it in their videos. I ended up buying it (tried it out at the store of course) and I really like it. I guess YMMV.
I am very surprised by this review. I just bought this (I’m in Europe so it’s the baked version, which I also wish would go away) and made my first look, and I am in heaven. The colours are soft, well pigmented, not powdery at all and apply very smoothly. My eye look is soft and smoky, a kind of blended blackened green/gold. With the eye pencil in Khaki Precieux on the lower lashline I’ve had compliments from friends I just casually met for coffee. My look is nothing like yours, so I am also wondering whether you got a dud?
This is the best Chanel palette since Harmonie du Soir in my humble opinion!!!!
A few days later, I can only sing its praises again. Maybe this time our European formula is better? I feel sad for all the people missing out on this, because I have now made a variety of looks of different intensity with this palette, and I love them all. For me it is effortless and it lasts all day on my lids without a primer, which is unique for my hooded eyes.
I would advise everyone to try this on the eye in store before deciding either to purchase or to dismiss. Though, if everyone avoids it I may be able to lay my hands on a backup later ;).
I have to disagree with this review, i have the uk version of this palette which i think must have a slightly different formula, because all the shades were pretty well pigmented and showed up well on my nc42 skin. i created a dark khaki smokey eye using the matte khaki shade, the darkest shade and the taupe as a pop on the center of the lid and found it to be a very nice buildable look. i popped a tiny amount of primer or concealer on my lid and they worked like a dream. i think if you want something soft yet buildable with a few layers this is a really nice quad, i would give it an A-.
Hey Amber!
Glad you are enjoying 🙂 I don’t typically test with primer or concealer unless the brand says you need to specifically, so that might why you’re having better results – a primer will always help! 🙂