Dior 5 Couleurs Palette 646 Montaigne - New Fall Shades

Know the thrill you get when you receive a gift card? Everything is suddenly available from high-end counters no matter how much you're willing to pay in the first place. Of course I didn't plan nor rethink, instead I went straight to Dior. Now I'm officially a makeup hoarder although I'm afraid that train passed by a long time ago. Sister asked me why do I still need more palettes. Well, it's similar to chocolate bars. You know which one do you like the most but that doesn't mean you'll stop trying new ones, right?

Speaking of new, Dior recently renewed their 5 Couleurs eyeshadow line with freshly new colors for Fall 2014. Most of them are permanent editions yet there are a few limited edition releases. I instantly picked out 646 Montaigne, a perfect everyday palette with light neutral tones.

I think we're pretty much all familiar with Dior 5 Couleurs, a small palette with  five eyeshadows that compliment each other. With addition of new shades came also new packaging. It's not much of a difference although the compact is much sleeker and thinner and they got rid of CD logo in the back which actually makes it more sophisticated at first glance. Palette still comes with a velvet pouch and in a dark, deep sea blue color. Applicators are sponges although there's an addition of a tiny brush instead of one of them. In general, applicators are nothing to be excited about although they come handy on the go.

Now onto this particular palette, 646 Montaigne. It's a perfect mix of light neutrals for every day look. I was actually eyeing Cuir Cannage with deeper and highly pigmented colors but I took the safest road. I couldn't imagine myself wearing smokey eyes on a daily basis and I knew I want a palette I would use often enough to justify it's hefty price tag. Montaigne is a mild version of two lighter shades, two medium browns and one darker brown to sculpt and define. What surprised me the most is the expiration date. Palette expires after only 6 months after opening which is pretty ridiculous for powder products. Nonetheless I'm highly impressed by it's performance and blendability. I was however a bit disappointed with pigmentation, but that we will discuss further on. Shadows are smooth and silky so I had no troubles with application. They blend like a dream and I haven't had a similar experience with any other shadows. They are long lasting, don't fade and don't crease. I have creasing issues with some of my cream shadows but these eyeshadows actually set it to perfection and prevent creasing. It's a true joy blending them seamlessly together.

What caught my attention was camel-like, satin brown and almost duochrome peach pink. The centre shade is a perfect blending color for the crease. Creamy white with subtle gold reflection and satiny chocolate brown are a great addition as well. What I was initially disappointed with is pigmentation. I had high hopes for them to be fully pigmented and almost unbarringly potent. Instead you get subtle shades with medium pigmentation which I kind of get after several uses. They aren't meant to be fully pigmented in the first place rather to ''enhance eyes with complimenting shades''. That's why they blend like a dream, they're meant for each other. Don't get me wrong, all darker shades are gorgeously pigmented (especially dark brown), it's the lighter shades I was a bit surprised about. Peachy pink with pink hue and creamy white with gold hue are pretty much kind of semi-translucent. That's why they act great over medium brown to highlight the centre of your lid yet they kind of fail on it's own. In conclusion, if you're not ready to use browns all over the lid and layer lighter shades, you won't be satisfied with this palette. Lighter shades however do act lovely as highlighting shades for inner corners.

Hope you got a good look into Dior Montaigne palette. It was pretty hard to capture hues from lighter shades but they are truly amazing once blended. If you fancy this palette, keep in mind lighter shades are deliberately on the sheer side (at least I hope so) so they are great for layering yet they're not opaque on it's own. Eyeshadows are in general soft, highly blendable and a dream to work with. I would actually consider repurchasing this particular palette over time, I use it religiously in a hurry before every day errands and work. They cost around 53€ in Europe at Dior counters yet you can get Dior also online on Escentual.