Face, featuring Le Metier de Beaute Nouvelle Vague Kaleidoscope

The kaleidoscopes from Le Metier de Beaute are foolproof. The colors are so dynamic, the pigments so forgiving, that you can throw them onto your eyelid any which way and always come out looking fabulous. Le Metier de Beaute Eye Kaleidoscope in Nouvelle Vague allows you to easily create a soft pink-neutral eye or a dramatic smoky eye. For this look, I went with the second.

Nouvelle, the first shade, is a "sheer mink negative." It barely shows up on my skin tone, and works as a brow highlighter. The second shade is named Gamine and is described as a "satin pink celluloid." This translates into an opaque shimmering cool pink. The third shade, Icon, is exactly as advertised, a "silky matte Parisian mauve." It's a rather dark color. The final shade is called Fin, and is an epic "smoldering black carbon." It is intense but smooth. (Both Temptalia and Messy Wands have superb swatches.)

To create this look, I washed the first shade all over the eyelid and browbone. The second shade went on the eyelid up to the crease, and the third shade was restricted to the lower eyelid. The black shade, Fin, was tricky yet easy to work with. It's so pigmented that even a tiny amount can go overboard, but it moves around and blends effortlessly. I lined part of my upper lashline with Fin, then blended it upward, adding a little extra to the crease. Then over this, I added more of the first two shades to the center of the eyelid. I also lightly drew all four shades down along the lower lashline. Voila.

To finish off the eyes, I lined the lower waterline with Le Metier de Beaute Dualistic Eye Pencil in Noir. My upper lashes received Le Metier de Beaute Anamorphic Lash Mascara in Black. This is my favorite mascara: it simply enhances your lashes without making it obvious that you're wearing mascara. I call it MLBB (My Lashes But Better).

My cheeks gained a pop of color from Le Metier de Beaute Creme Fresh Tint in Mystique. I had been anticipating a misty wash of pink, and instead got a bubblegum pink so bright it was practically fluorescent. At a distance my cheekbones have a pretty flush, but up close you can see the unnatural cast to them: Mystique is not a color I would ever blush in real life. I suspect blondes could pull this shade off, however. If I were to redo this look, I might go with a sheer luminizer such as the pink Aura or white Halo crushed pearl & 24k gold leaf balms from Belmacz, both of which I just ordered the other day.

Rouge Bunny Rouge Succulence of Dew Sheer Lipstick in Dark Juices is described as "shiny, sheer blue-toned plum, shimmering with silver." On my lips, this shade is an intriguing multi-dimensional copper mauve that echoes the eyes beautifully. The shimmer made it difficult for me to capture a good close-up. Both Best Things in Beauty and Perilously Pale both have spectacular natural-light swatches.

The base for my face was merely Omorovicza Complexion Perfector BB SPF 20 over Visoanska VV5 Solution. Nouvelle Vague is a lovely, classic kaleidoscope from Le Metier de Beaute. It makes even an amateur like me look good.

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