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Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer & Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadows Reviews, Photos, Swatches

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute True Colour Creme Eyeshadow ($28.00 for 0.17 oz.) is described as a “long-wearing,” “waterproof,” and crease-resistant. I will respectfully disagree with all three things and not just slightly but fully. Both shades were extremely emollient, and they never set or dried down; they remained movable, slippery, and as a result, slid around and settled into creases with great delight within a half hour. This occurred whether applied at more opaque color or as a barely-there, sheer wash of color. So, long-wearing and crease-resistant–not at all. They’re more water-resistant than waterproof (which is actually a separate claim that gets made: -resistant vs. -proof), as they won’t immediately start running or bleeding when in contact with water, but they do migrate somewhat and will move if you rub. The latter probably has more to do with the fact that they don’t set/dry down.

I did try using the Champagne Shimmer shade on my cheeks and brow bone as a highlight, but the look is very, very dewy–or in my eyes, greasy–and separated my foundation within an hour. I also tried applying these over a primer and then patting on powder eyeshadow on top, which was the most successful way to use them, but I had significant creasing after four and a half hours.

Champagne Shimmer is a light-medium brown with warm, reddish-orange undertones, and a champagne and copper shimmer. It had good color payoff and could be applied as a light wash of color or more intensely for opaque color. A little goes a long way, so apply just a smidgen for a wash of color. CoverGirl Scorching Cocoa is a bit darker, not as red-toned. Clinique Ample Amber is less red-toned. Tom Ford Platinum is slightly darker. Illamasqua Focus is grayer. See comparison swatches.

Starry Night is a medium-dark black with silver sparkle. It can be applied with mostly opaque color or a semi-sheer wash of color. MAC Blacklit is similar. Chanel Mirifique is darker and more sparkly. Buxom Black Lab is similar. See comparison swatches.

Also, this is also a “review” so-to-speak of the September 2013 Beauty Vault VIP Subscription Box, as both of these shades were what I received in this past month’s box. The box, then, had a total value of $56 (and the subscription works out to be $29/month). The box also included a postcard that provided information about the included products. Subscribers did receive the products ahead of them officially being released on Saks by a week or two. After two months, we’re at a total value of $310.

Champagne Shimmer

PPermanent. $28.00.
F
F
2
Product
9
Pigmentation
9
Texture
1
Longevity
2
Application
51%
Total

Starry Night

PPermanent. $28.00.
F
F
2
Product
8.5
Pigmentation
9
Texture
1
Longevity
2
Application
50%
Total

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Champagne Shimmer True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute September 2013 Beauty Box

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute September 2013 Beauty Box

Le Metier de Beaute Starry Night True Colour Creme Eyeshadow
Le Metier de Beaute September 2013 Beauty Box

34 Comments

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Sunny Avatar

Oh wow, I never expected to be so fully disappointed in this brand, but apparently it’s happening! This is really when I wonder if they tested out wear before settling down on the formula. Doesn’t seem that way!

Teri Avatar

Ouch! I’m usually a fan of the LMDB products but it looks like they did not succeed in making a good cream eyeshadow formula. They actually do look greasy and way too slippery. So sad!

Malia Avatar

Is it bad to say I love negative reviews sometimes? I’ll take brutal honesty any day over sugar coating, that way we know what to stay away from…and these definitely deserve the rating!

Andie Avatar

I almost wouldn’t count these as worth $56. They are sub-par, and you would probably return them if you could.
This is why I’m weary of “a box a month” delivery services.

KaseyCannuck Avatar

It would be interesting at the end of your VIP subscription year to see not only the amount spent compared to the total dollar value of the products, but also the dollar value of the workable products, just in case there are more bombs like these. It almost seems misleading to add these to the dollar value overall as these are products that would never get used, and therefore the value should be $0.

Rigor_Mortis Avatar

A nice dupe for the black eyeshadow that DOES last without creasing is shiseido’s cream eyeshadow in caviar, by the way. Lasts all day even on my super oily eyelids.

As usual, thanks for trustworthy review, Christine! I don’t know what my wallet would do without you!

mkdallas Avatar

Wow, that’s a shocker; a rare flop for LMDB, which is normally a terrific brand. So glad to know these are problematic or I definitely would have purchased. What a shame…maybe they will adjust the formula if the new cream shadows are a commercial bust.

Anne Avatar

“Le Metier de Beaute True Colour Creme Eyeshadow ($28.00 for 0.17 oz.) is described as a “long-wearing,” “waterproof,” and crease-resistant. I will respectfully disagree with all three things and not just slightly but fully. ”
AHAHAHAH oh my God Christine, you’re cracking me up! I must admit, it’s a bit entertaining to watch something crash and burn sometimes. Although I’d have been so pissed, had I bought these cream shadows!

Rachel Avatar

I have these as well and experienced the same creasing and smearing. They are pretty much unwearable. The champagne color is too dark for a highlighter for me.

Elizabeth Avatar

I had forgotten you subscribed to this as well, and I’m relived to hear you feel the same way. I was heartbroken and mortified by the performance of this product since at first glance the pigmentation is good and the colors are good basics. I have been doing a bit of complaining in a makeup forum on the topic. I even wrote the company to give them constructive criticism and they gave me this reply about the product’s intention from their Director of Color that you might be curious to hear.

“The Cream Shadows are fashion items, and they’re meant to be a little slick to give the eyes a dewy, sexy, and imperfect appearance. The product should be used very lightly, only in tiny amounts. The softest touch over or under powder shadows add mystery to the eye. They are not meant to be used in the crease of the eye(where oil penetrates too quickly), or in the inner membrane, or in substantial amounts. However, the look is meant to be slightly undone.

For more long wearing looks, we use the Dualistic Eye Pencil as base, or applied over shadow. These pencils come in basic black(Noir), matte brown(Sequoia), shimmering bronze(Tamarack), and beige(Champagne). The Dualistic formula is more durable for real life, the pots are meant for
fashion and fun.”

So in other words, unless you find colors melting off your face in 15 minutes fun, I’m not sure these have a purpose. They crease under powder very quickly for me, so that doesn’t help. The only way I could make anything work is a light hand of the black shade pressed OVER shadow which really isn’t something I feel the need to do.

Christine Avatar

Well, that’s all well and good (their reply), except it is NOTHING like what they’ve given to Saks to market their products, which just makes what they’ve said even worse. Copied and pasted: “Introducing True Colour Crème Eye Shadows in Champagne Shimmer and Starry Night. Long-wearing, waterproof and resistant to settling into creases, this hydrating, smooth-as-silk formula is incredibly easy to apply and even easier to admire.”

The reply you received says “not meant to be used in the crease,” yet they’re advertising it as “resistant to settling into creases.” If they wanted these to be an “undone” look, I’m not sure why there’s nothing mentioned in their copy for marketing/selling these products that says anything like that. I would also say it is not a good idea to send “fashion items” to a subscriber base made out of a diverse and varied group of people. Someone may appreciate the look, but it’s going to be someone very specifically looking for that look, that effect (and the reality is they’ll probably do it the old fashioned way – add gloss or Vaseline to any eyeshadow!).

If you detect any frustration, it is not with you, Elizabeth – thank you for sharing their response with me and the readers here – my frustration is with LMdB more over selling you one story when they’re very obviously selling a completely different tale to unsuspecting buyers.

Elizabeth Avatar

Oh, I didn’t for a moment think the frustration was with me. I’m agitated as well. I had just found the Saks description right before you sent this and was quite irritated with it myself because they specifically told me not to put it in the crease. There was another girl on the forum that was emailed the exact same quote about the product that I also was sent, and this quote is directly from the individual who was responsible for the formula–at least what she and I were told is a more apt description of the product even if it is a description that would never lead me to make a purchase. If I wanted to look greasy and be runny, I’d use Vaseline or other tricks like you said.

I suppose it’s time to write them again and express my disappointment at the conflicting reports of what this product is supposed to be. I want them to be aware of how misleading they are presenting themselves. It’s a shame because I really want to like this brand since the first box was great and the personal touches are lovely, but this is a huge misstep in my eyes, and I’m not a fan of being sent products that are unusable. It would be one thing if I didn’t like a color, but these just don’t perform.

Christine Avatar

Do let me know what they say, Elizabeth! I’m very curious. I don’t like when products under-perform and brands try to make excuses for why they’re the way they are — obviously when it’s contrary to how they’re being marketed/sold as. It would be one thing if it was a new formula and they were using subscribers like test subjects – then it might be interesting/cool to give feedback and see how the product eventually turned out (that’s not exactly what I’d want to do at this price point, though – maybe if it was one of several products, so two good/already tested ones, and then one, “Hey, we’re trying something new out and want your feedback!” type of product), but these launched maybe a week or two after boxes were sent, so they were already in production and finished.

Elizabeth Avatar

While I did mention briefly that I was unable to make the product work for me, the email I sent to them was primarily about the discrepancies in their advertising versus what they told me and my resulting confusion and frustration.

It seems they missed the point, and this was their response:

“It is unfortunate that you have had a bad experience with the creme eyeshadows. We have received a good amount of positive feedback from others on the product and the wear. You will see some people have also used our social media channels to voice their positive experience with the products. One thing we have learned is that products do not perform the same for everyone. Skin type, environmental conditions, application techniques, interaction with other product formulations and many other factors, including a poor batch, can lead to a bad experience with a product. The chemistry involved in our manufacturing process is elaborate and our testing is state of the art.

We are absolutely disappointed that you are disappointed and hope that this will be an isolated incident for you in regards to Le Metier de Beaute. We pride ourselves on direct manufacturing custom formulations that perform. We invest heavily in our research and development and do not take customer feedback for granted. We will share your thoughts with our development teams and look into each issue and replicate them with the product.

Thank you for keeping us informed.”

I’m just going to let that speak for itself for now because I’m not entirely sure how to take that information. I’m going to write them once more and see if they will address my concern over how they are advertising this product and how I was told this was supposed to perform.

Elizabeth Avatar

For the record, they never responded to my polite follow-up I sent Sept 24th where I said they hadn’t responded to my concern that the description I was given was drastically different than the way it was being advertised. I inquired which of the two conflicting descriptions was their official stance.

I guess it was easier to just ignore me.

Oh well, new boxes have shipped and this next product is drastically different. I just want to put these shadows behind me.

Terri Avatar

Yikes!!! That picture of the full look actually makes me feel a bit nauseated because I too have a subscription, which I bought on the SECOND go around after I missed the first. I got an email saying they were offering 50 more in total and if I wanted one I’d better hurry, etc.etc. So I did.
I haven’t had the chance to use these yet and now…..if YOU can’t make it work, there is no hope for me. Sigh!!! Maybe my kids can use them as extremely overpriced finger paints. :]

Ciambella Avatar

I was SO disappointed with these! And I had been nothing but pleased with the LMdB products I’d managed to snag before then. I’m glad it isn’t just me and my oily lids. They are not crease-resistent by any means!

Iris Avatar

I received my box after reading horrible reviews on other beauty forums, so I just put it away instead of wasting my time, but today I was bored so I went on and give it a try. Since everyone says it never sets so I just dab a very small amount on my lids and blend it out with a MAC 217. It has been on my eyes for 2 hours and there is no sign of creasing. Part of it maybe because the weather is pretty chilly here in Seattle, so my lids are less oily than in summer time.
Although the black shade appears to be so closed to the MAC paintpot, I have to say the paintpot is way easier to work with. However, if anyone wants to salvage the LMdB ones, I think you can try mixing a very small amount of the cream with some gold or bronze regular powder shadow and see if that works better. I have tried by mixing with one of the LMdB gold shades (I believe it’s Nutmeg), and it looks awesome!

Elizabeth Avatar

I’m curious as to how you are mixing this product with a powder shadow. Are you loading both onto your brush and applying? Which of the two products do you start with and does this make any sort of “mess” in either container? I’d be willing to give that a try….

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