Way to stay ahead of the curve, Team Chanel! The three new Chanel Palette Essentielles from the Travel Diary Fall 2017 Collection go against the grain of the “more is more” trend taking over the mainstream makeup world right now.
They strip face makeup down to the bare essentials — a cream concealer, cream blush and a cream highlighter. That’s it. As a makeup junkie who now wholeheartedly embraces minimal looks, I like it.
Travel Diary is Chanel’s LE fall collection, and it’s inspired by a California road trip that Chanel Makeup Designer Lucia Pica took with her friends up the California coast.
Based on these face palettes alone, even though I’ve also liked everything else I’ve tried from this collection, I can tell that Lucia totally gets me. I mean, did homegirl peek into my makeup bag?? Because these palettes are exactly the kind of palettes I’d want to bring if I were road-tripping.
There are three of them — a light, medium and darker option — and they’re all available now with the rest of the collection at Chanel counters and online.
Peach-toned concealer obliterates dark circles! NEWS AT 11!
There’s so much I love about these palettes, starting with the peach-toned concealer… It OBLITERATES dark circles. It’s brilliant.
I was a little concerned about the texture at first, because it feels dry — similar to Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage, which I’ve never had great luck with (looks heavy on my skin and settle into my lines), but this version looks much more natural. I can’t tell where the concealer stops and my skin begins.
If you have yellow undertones in your skin like I do, I would probably stick to using the concealer under your eyes, because the peach can look very stark when worn elsewhere. It’s not impossible to use it on other areas, but I like it best under my eyes.
Yeah, that’s a little limiting, and it’s annoying, considering that the palette costs $61, but it fits the minimal aesthetic of Travel Diary.
Scary blush looks shockingly natural
Oh, and that hella scary-looking blush? Shockingly, it looks natural on the skin. It’s pigmented, for sure, but with a light tap-tap-tap, you’ll look kissed by the sun, as if you’ve been cruising down the Pacific Coast Highway with your best babes for hours.
Long-wearing creams
Like the concealer, the creams are long-lasting. Um…totally important, right? Yeah, I probably should’ve mentioned it earlier! All of the creams in the palettes last a long time. I can apply them in the morning on my combo dry/oily skin, and they last all day. Of course, there is some fading after 6-7 hours, but that’s to be expected with creams sitting on bare skin.
Is Lucia Pica a MAC CCB fan?
The highlighter is so much YES! I have a sneaking suspicion that Lucia Pica is a secret fan of the MAC Cream Colour Bases, because the highlighters feel and look just like them. They have a similarly subtle sheen and glow that are just perfect for laid-back looks.
Status: recommended
I really like these a lot, but I encourage you to try them first, if you can, because there are only three versions available, and you’ll want to pick the one with the right peach-toned concealer for your skin. For reference, I’m about an NC42 in MAC, and the 170 Beige Intense Palette works best for me.
Easiest chicken bake EVER
I made this really delicious and easy chicken bake last night from a recipe I found on Recipe Tin Eats, which is a fantastic food blog, BTW, with zillions of recipes that I use and love.
This one takes five minutes to prep. Then you throw it in the oven. The main ingredients are chicken, broccoli, spiral pasta, garlic, flour, milk, broth, garlic (haha! garlic twice), spices, salt and pepper, and you literally throw everything into a baking pan, and shove it into the oven. Seriously, it’s that easy.
Last night I substituted the chicken breast for ground chicken, and the chicken stock for vegetable stock. Basically, I used what I had on hand, and it turned out great! I should’ve taken a picture, but it’s already mostly gone, LOL. Even the baby loved it.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Jane says
Sorry for not commenting on the previous blogs, but the WiFi at the hotel here is pretty bad. I so want to know more about the palette. Would it work for older, dry skin? I would probably use the medium palette, especially after the summer. I will have to visit my Chanel counter ASAP!
Hope all is well. I will be home tomorrow evening.
p.s. College touring is fun, but strange at the same time.
Karen says
Hi Jane,
I just got the pic you sent! 🙂 Your son looks like such a sweet person.
So, about the palette, yes, I think it would work for older, dry skin. The creams sit so smoothly on skin so you should be OK. I think you could do 150 Beige Clair, but if you can swatch it first because you really want to make sure that the concealer works for your skin tone. The next level up, 160 Beige Medium, might be a good fit too. I know the blush looks super frightening but it’s not once it’s on cheeks.
LindaLibraLoca says
As excited as I am about the eye quad, as indifferent I am about that one. I do like creams for summer, but I don’t know, these just seem too basic for me? Maybe because I don’t roadtrip that often.
Karen says
I thought I wouldn’t be excited about this either until I tried it. 🙂 But it’s great!
Kim says
Oh, Chanel. Always so lovely. 🙂
Your chicken bake looks yummy. Chicken Divan is a big hit in our house (chicken, broccoli and a creamy topping made from Cream of Chicken Soup, mayo, shredded cheddar and a little curry powder/lemon juice). Probably not up your alley because of the creamy topping but I actually double that part for one of the boys. HAHA!
PS The hubs and I woke up at 3 AM to a visitor in our bedroom. Or should I say “bat cave”? I’m laughing now but probably won’t be when the rabies shots start! Good times. Thankfully our door is always closed and there were no kids or kitties affected. 🙂
Karen says
OH MY GOD!!! I would not have handled that situation well. How did you get it out of the room?
Kim says
The Hubs assisted it with a tennis racket (poor thing, I felt awful but… the rabies!). He then bagged it and I dropped it off at the Health Dept yesterday for testing. They should have the results back this afternoon. Fingers crossed it’s negative on the rabies. One of my friends had this happen a few weeks ago and needed the shots because she didn’t save the bat for testing. I believe she just stunned it (again, with a tennis racket) and threw it out. She had to get the shots because they just assume it’s infected if they can’t test. Her misfortune was a learning experience for us!! 🙂 So, in case this ever happens to you, I know it’s awful to have to kill any wildlife but it could save you many rounds of shots. Just remember the head must be intact and you’ll need to pop it in the freezer until you can get it to the HD. Oh, and I should say that this is only necessary if you wake up to find one in your room – because then you don’t know if you’ve been bitten. If you walk into an unattended room and find one, you can totally shoo it out!
Erin says
I’ll have to look at the lighter options next time I’m in Nordies. That chicken bake looks nice!
Karen says
It was good and super easy. We had leftovers for days, too.
Indya says
I love the idea of this!!! Sadly, none of those concealer shades are going to work for my chocolate skin!
Karen says
Yeah, it would’ve been nice if Chanel included a wider range of for deeper skin tones!
Lorraine. E.R says
That was my first thought when I saw these. That’s unfortunate!
Eleni says
I’m not sure about these Karen… I swatched them and tried them on and they’re wonderfully creamy and melting on my skin but I don’t feel the highlighter-blush combos for the skin tones they best match… I mean, I’m probably beige medium in concealer but the blush didn’t look right and didn’t feel amazed by the highlight (too white for my taste). I love this Chanel Collection, especially the eye products and the concept behind it, but I’m still unsure about these palettes. The bake is so yummy!!!! Reminds me of one my mum makes…!
Karen says
Oh really? I think these are great. It really hinges on the color combos for your skin. The one I wear really works for me.
Tatiana says
I’m waiting for my local counter to get the lightest version of this to try it out in person. I’m not convinced it will be light enough, so I hate to order it on-line.
Chicken, broccoli, pasta bake sounds yummy.
Nicole says
Hi Karen! Which palette do you recommend for NC25? I love the blush color in Beige Clair, but the one in Beige Medium is a bit scary/dark.