Dior Smoking Blue (001) Blue Tie Palette Review, Photos, Swatches

Christine — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 20:04:41 +0000

Dior Smoking Blue (001) Blue Tie Palette

Dior Smoking Blue (001) Blue Tie Palette

Dior Smoking Blue (001) Blue Tie Palette ($70.00 for 0.19 oz.) is new and limited for fall, and it contains a mix of silver and navy blue eyeshadows along with a pink lipgloss. The compact itself is metal and includes a full-size mirror when you open it. The gloss has a metal lid that you can open, which is nice, because it helps to minimize any cross-contamination of the eyeshadow powder into the gloss.

My first thought when I was photographing the palette was how lovely it looked. It’s heavy in a luxurious way (though not something I’d love to travel with!) with great detailing on the outside and inside. After swatching it, I was left disappointed. For all of Dior’s sleek packaging, this palette falls flat where it counts the most–quality.

The eyeshadows are dry in texture so they drag and pull when applied, and the lack of pigmentation makes it difficult to apply even layers of color or to really utilize this palette in a meaningful way. For such shimmery colors, these were surprisingly chalky overall. The upper left shade (1) is a semi-sheer gray-blue with a subtle sheen. The upper right shade (2) is a purpled, navy blue with a sheen. It didn’t look anything like the pan–it leaned purple and lacked the vibrancy of the blue in the pan. The bottom left shade (3) is a semi-sheer black with multi-colored shimmer. The bottom right shade (4) was a silvered-gray with a hint of brown, and it was the most pigmented shade of the bunch.

For better alternatives, consider: 1) MAC Prussian, 2) Inglot #332, theBalm Risque Renee, or Make Up For Ever #81, 3) theBalm Guilty Gwen, and 4) Inglot #444, theBalm Sexy Stacey. You can also peruse the Blue Eyeshadow Gallery or Gray Eyeshadow Gallery.

The lipgloss is a sheer peony pink with a subtly glossy finish; there isn’t much color to it, but it gives lips a brightened look. It didn’t quite feel like Dior’s Ultra Glosses, as this was thinner and a little tacky. Both the eyeshadows and gloss wear about average, but with the eyeshadows, it’s difficult to tell since everything looks faded as soon as it is applied.