Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder Review, Photos, Swatches
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder ($80.00 for 0.53 oz.) is described as a “golden powder” that acts as a highlighter for cheekbones and eyelids. It’s a light-medium yellow gold with a frosted shimmer-sheen. I couldn’t think of a cheek product that’s quite this yellow. Chanel Shimmering Tweed came the closest, but it is darker, more bronzy. Chanel Empreinte de Chanel is more orange. theBalm Mary Lou-Manizer is a softer, lighter gold with subtler yellow undertones (think more of a white gold). Now, there are several eyeshadows that come close! Chanel Blazing Gold is slightly darker. MAC Goldmine is more orange. Urban Decay Eldorado is perhaps a hint les yellow. Make Up For Ever #10 is a smidgen darker.
It’s a pretty highlighter with strong, yellow coloring, so it will be more flattering on warmer complexions, but it doesn’t run orange and there’s a little paleness to it that seems to neutralize some of the yellowy gold tones.  The powder is surprisingly pigmented–you can really achieve true-to-pan color if you so desire.  It does have a silver glitter overlay that gets swept away after the first use (and I’d advise removing it if you don’t want a few stray flecks of glitter on your cheeks).  Despite the high frost and shimmer in the highlighter’s finish, it didn’t emphasize pores or the natural texture of the skin, like many other frosted finishes do.  The texture is soft, finely-milled, and allows for easy blending during application.  I haven’t been so lucky with the wear on some of the recent powder releases by Chanel, but Routes des Indes de Chanel wore magnificently for eight hours; no fading, separating, or signs of going away.
If you love whoa! highlighters that are all about delivering a full-on glow, I think you might find Routes des Indes de Chanel worth checking out–if you’re able to sneak a peek at it in stores.  I know that majority of distribution is online through Chanel’s website, which makes it a rather spendy item to buy sight unseen.  It’s a bit of a collector’s piece, I’d say, with the price tag and design. You’re not going to see me ever comfortable with pushing something at this price point with a “must have! you will die without it!” (I don’t know if I’ve ever said that about any product!) It’s a very nice powder, enjoyable, and performs exceptionally well. But it definitely comes with a grimace-worthy price tag for most.
Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
LELimited Edition. $80.00.
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder (Diffused Flash)
Chanel Routes des Indes de Chanel Illuminating Powder (Studio Lighting)
Christine, I’m really loving all of the earrings you’re wearing recently. Where are these from?
 @eyeheartit A lot of mine are from Etsy! These are from this shop – http://www.etsy.com/shop/artemisartdesign
 @Christine (Temptalia) Oooh, great! Thank you! 🙂
I love it, but I’ll leave it at $80..yowch! Â even though it is really really pretty.. Â
Looks gorgeous, Christine, though probably too yellow for my coloring. I can’t imagine anyone spending $80 on a highlighter, though…wow.Â
it’s sooooo pretty. i wish i could afford that.
It’s surprisingly LESS yellow than I thought it would be after reading your description. Paler and lighter, too. I don’t know, perhaps I expected full-on gold yellow. Also, and this may just be my monitor, but it strongly resembles the photo of you wearing Albatross with that white, yellow sheen. Am I imagining it? Regardless, I don’t think it would flatter me, even if it weren’t $80.
I’m loving it, but at $80 I need it to work for me, not just be pretty, and this is too yellow for my skintone. Hopefully someone will come out with a highlighter this season I want! So far I’m not impressed by anything I’ve seen.
 @blueraccoon Have you ever looked at NARS’ Copacabana? A silvery white with a pink base. I’m nowhere as pale as I think you are (from my memory of prior posts) but even on my olive skin, it’s stunning. A lot of people compare it to Benefit’s High Beam but I think it’s much lovelier.
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 @Kafka I have not, but I definitely will! I want the NARS cheek palette from Nordstrom and that comes with Albatross, so I’ll have that, but I will definitely look at Copacabana. Thanks!
 @blueraccoon  @Kafka I’ll 2nd NARS’ Copacabana. I prefer the liquid version over the multiple version, but it’s a gorgeous silvery pink pearl tone…if that makes any sense, lol. Also, Dior Rose Diamond is a shimmery pale pink. I use Amber Diamond, but the texture feels so buttery and soft while the shimmer is a refined shimmer that gives a beautiful glow. It’s expensive, but might be worth checking out. 🙂
 @Kafka @Miss J – I actually *have* Rose Diamond, I bought it off a blog sale and haven’t used it yet. Is it better than Copacabana, different, worse, what do you think?Â
 @blueraccoon  @Miss I wouldn’t say it’s better or worse, but it’s different. RD has a much more noticeable pink/rose tone whereas Copacabana is predominantly a silvery pearl, but with a slight pink tinge. RD on very pale skin could actually pass as a blush. I’m NC20-NC30ish, and it can even pass as a light blush on me. I think the shimmer in Copacabana is a bit more pronounced, but I personally don’t find it to be too much. I really love the texture of the Dior Skin Shimmers, BUT between RD and Copacabana, I actually like Copacabana a bit better in terms of highlighting. It gives a gorgeous ethereal, angelic glow with that tinge of pink without adding much additional color like RD.
If not for both upcoming NARS collections, and the UD Smoky Palette, I would *definitely* have a look at this. It reminds me *alot* of a WnW powder-creme that I had many, many years ago (though I’m sure this is a bit better quality), and I wore it all the time. I guess for now I’ll just stick with Albatross if I want gold shimmer.
I love it, but not for that price! Ouch!
As long as these luxury brands keep releasing yellow-based illuminators that I can’t wear, my pocket book is safe. 😛 Although, it actually looks similar to how NARS Albatross wears on my skin, odd as that may sound. Then again, my skin’s lighter than yours, so the gold in Albatross stands out a bit more.
@Veronica It doesn’t sound odd at all! I said the exact same thing about Albatross. To me, how this looks on Christine’s cheeks is *incredibly* close to how Albatross looked on her. The two products may appear totally in the pan, but when worn (on Christine, at least), the similarities are uncanny. Only the faintest (*faintest*) touch of extra goldness shows up with the Chanel, or so it seems to me.
Wow, this is a VERY yellow gold…. too yellow for me!
Wow I think the gold sheen looks absolutely gorgeous on you Christine!
Hi Christine! Thanks for the review! How similar is this to Guerlain Sun in the City?
 @Bani Lighter, less orange!
Woah- that is a really steep price tag! I appreciate your honesty that you’d never push something that pricey- it would be hard for me too. Â It would have to erase or distract every wrinkle on my face for me to say it was a must have! Â But it sure is pretty on you:) Â
How does this compare to the guerlain Terracotta sun in the city
 @chiinggy  Lighter, less orange!
Mac whisper of gilt is prettier with a better price.
Hmm, I’m not sure how I feel about a totally gold highlighter. A highlighter or blush with gold shimmer = awesomeness, but the gold by itself maybe not so much. Always good to have options, though! And that’s awesome that despite the frostiness, it doesn’t emphasize pores.
Hmm, I know this might work on my skintone, but at that price point I’m going to have to skip on it. I only need one eyeshadow-like mega-highlighter, and Guerlain Sun in the City already fit the bill. XD;
I have this and the nail laquer from the collection and I have to say I love them both!! Â Absolutely luxury items for sure but so darn pretty, even just looking at them in the containers. Â Just lovely. Â Plus, the nail polish does not chip on me, which is a miracle in and of itself. Â This has been a tough year for me and sometimes a girl needs a little makeup to help her feel better……
NARS Albatross caught my heart for a second, then this one just stole it away !
I will have this for sure !
Ty for the best review
I like it but it is a lot of $$. Â How does it compare to Chanel’s Or blush?
 @icedcaramellatte Or is a darker gold – more glittery, less pigmented in a way.
I have to wonder what makes them think that these kinds of products are *really* worth that much money. Like honestly, if they lowered their prices, more people would buy them, and they’d make more money. It’s not real gold, y’all, no need to break the bank for something that won’t last that long. I just find it so disrespectful to their customers to make them believe that it’s perfectly reasonably to pay that much just because it’s “luxery”.
 @Ravn94 The luxury model has nothing to do with getting more people to buy a product – they want to limit their customer base so they can achieve a certain image of exclusivity, prestige, luxury, etc. They definitely make plenty o’ money! You might want to read more about this type of business model (it’s very interesting) if you want to know more 🙂
 @Ravn94 By more people, I really mean they’re not trying to get everyone to buy it, which is why you’re not going to see Chanel discounted.  They don’t want to cheapen the brand by making it available to everyone. Â
 @Christine (Temptalia) I still find it majorly ridiculous to put a price tag far exceeding the products real value/worth, which is especially obvious when you compare it to other brands. It always makes me shake my head and laugh when I see how bad most palettes by luxury brands are.
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I get your point though, consider me educated yet still of the belief that the only luxury brand worth the dough is Guerlain.
 @Ravn94 Definitely nothing wrong with critiquing or noting that something with a luxury price tag fails to meet quality standards. I have no problem with the aspirational/luxury mindset of brands, but I definitely expect the quality to be top notch. They get plenty of money to purchase those high quality ingredients to churn out an excellent formula!
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It is totally a slap in the face when a $$$ product performs anywhere below average. Well, I get pretty annoyed when anything that costs more than $10 is a flop 😉
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One thing I appreciate about Guerlain is they use a lot of metal in their packaging – you see Dior, Chanel, etc. all using plastic. Â Plastic isn’t bad, but it isn’t luxury. Â (Though with metal you get all those stupid fingerprints, which are annoying!)
Amen!!!@Christine (Temptalia) @Ravn94
how does it compare to MAC whisper of gilt? i really love Chanel products but they’re just too expensive. Â
Whisper of Gilt is more champagne/beige 🙂
@Joanna S But u deserve to splurge a tad on yourself once in a while girl!!! 🙂
Not for $80.00.
Love it but it is out of my budget:(
Ohhh my!!! I just purchased on Chanel’s website with free shipping… Can’t freakin’ wait to try it out!!! 🙂 thanks for ur wonderful blogs!!
When it looks this yellow on Christine’s yellow toned skin, it would probably look weird, bright canary yellow on my peachy skin. It does add a nice glow, though, just not very natural.
Is this similar to the gold side of the Bobbi Brown Party Shimmer Brick at all?
This is a bit warmer 🙂