Chantecaille Palette d'Olivia Swatches and Review

The Chantecaille Olivia palette is a great example of a product that is beautiful, functional, and yet somehow boring to me. I've owned it for at least a year now, and still, every time I find myself wanting to purge my makeup stash of all unloved beauties, I struggle with whether I should keep it or not. Every time, I do decide to keep it, but I don't know why. The colors are stunning, but subtle, and I tend to prefer higher-impact products so I can customize them at will - use a lighter hand for a subtler look, or apply normally for more powerful color. With the Olivia palette, the colors are so gentle that even when I am going for a soft look, I still find myself piling the colors on, doing layer after layer of shadow until I'm satisfied with it. But I guess it lives on in my stash because I do find the colors so stunning, especially Quartz. Maybe I'll appreciate it more when I'm a little older and I have wrinkly eyes. :)

Here it is, swatched. From left to right, we have Joy (a blush), Perle, Quartz, Tanzanite, Peony, Granite,  Zinc, and Obsidian. Please note that I layered each shade as much as necessary to show true color; for the lighter shades, that meant 1-2 swipes for full opacity, and for the darker shades (Tanzanite, Zinc, and Obsidian), that meant 4-5 swipes. The darker shades are not patchy, chalky, or uneven - just sheer - so they are perfectly buildable. The lighter shades are as soft and creamy to apply as can be.

Outdoors:

Under my new Verilux HappyLight lamp (Thanks Mom! Your gift is not only helpful for S.A.D., but for swatching too!):

I find that most Chantecaille blushes, including Joy, last about 6 hours on me before I notice significant fading. I always wear eyeshadows over primer, so I don't have as much trouble with fading from Chantecaille eyeshadows unless I try to extend the wear beyond a reasonable time frame (say, 12+ hours) or my eyes get very watery, as they sometimes do.

The palette itself is plastic but feels sturdy, and the brush that comes with it is actually a decent one that I like to use for applying the darker colors in my crease. On the inside of the lid is a nice mirror that I find myself using even more than the eyeshadows inside the palette!

Overall, if you like the colors here and prefer a more subtle eye makeup look, I think this could be a fantastic, high-quality palette for you. If, like me, having to pile on color to build your look up to opacity annoys you, you might consider picking 1-2 of your favorite lighter shades from the palette and buying those as singles. I, myself, am considering buying a single of Quartz - the color I use the most - and getting rid of the palette! (But, knowing me, I'll probably just agonize endlessly over not knowing what to do with it instead.)

What do you think, readers? Does this palette bore you, or call out your name?