Chanel Summer 2011: Bronze Corail

For summer, there are two variations of Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel ($50.00 for 0.49 oz.) — the first I’m reviewing is Bronze Corail (and I will review Bronze Rose later). It is a striped palette with four shades: a warm, medium-dark tan with subtle gold shimmer; warm beige with shimmery sheen; deeper tanned brown with a satin sheen with red undertones; and a pop of coral-pink with a subtle sheen. Swirled together, the resulting color is a sheer, soft bronze with a champagne sheen.

Chanel describes the product as, “Worn alone or blended together, they highlight or ‘tan’ skin for a subtle, natural glow.” It’s definitely a product that is hard to overdo, because it is sheer and soft–certainly subtle. It will be a nice bronzer for light to medium skin tones, but darker skin tones will find it more a highlighter than a bronzing product. The included brush does enable one to use the shades on an individual level better than your average blush brush (which is more useful to swirl and blend the shades together). You can use all four shades to add more pinkness to the cheeks, or you could use the top three for a more traditionally bronzy look. The softest shade is very much like a highlighter, so it, too, could be used on its own as such.

Though the powder is soft as silk and each shade is seemingly pigmented, I felt like once applied, it looked somewhat powdery on my cheeks. There is a fair amount of powdery dust within the compact after using a brush (whether the one included or something separate). Normally, I’m a big fan of the Soleil Tan de Chanel editions, because they can create more multidimensional looks from the different variations in color–you can go lighter, darker, pop of color all bronze–but the product could have laid down more naturally over the skin.

The good news, though, is it lasted all day long (12+ hours), and you get one brick of a bronzer (0.49 oz.) for your money. You won’t run out of this one anytime soon!

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel

Chanel Bronze Corail Soleil Tan de Chanel