Guerlain Ombre Eclat
Velours D'or 410


Before this thing of beauty landed in my hands i was OB-SESSED with acquiring it.  I actually stumbled across it accidentally when browsing the Christmas Sales - something which has fast become somewhat of an addiction: you name it, I shop it!  Anyways, back to the story.  So, I have been off work for approximately 8 weeks now after having an operation (back to work tomorrow EEK!), and found myself unable to really do much.  So after being slightly depressed at the lack of movement my body was enabling me to do on Christmas day, that night I hit the (cyber-) sales!  I browsed, and ordered, my way through ASOS (ended up returning most of that), Very (beauuuuutiful lingerie and pair of boots, although I didn't realise there was a 6-week dispatch time on the boots until I received my order comfirmation: oops!), eBay, Debenhams (great lingerie sale), and ended up at the House of Fraser Beauty Sale.  Ooooooo the goodies to behold here were in-cred-i-ble, but trying to exercise some self-control, I decided I would purchase something high-end, luxe, and slightly different from what is already in my extensive make up collection!

What I ended up seeing was the following picture:


And the following price:

£18.00

Oh! How I thought the heavens were shining upon me that day!!  I have been coveting a true, dark, intense purple eyeshadow for the longest time, but no brand has fulfilled my desire.
So, after adding this gorgeous piece of craftsmanship to my 'bag' I stumbled across a little problem that had seemed to previously completely slip my mind.  I had not yet been paid, and the realisation was dawning upon me that actually no money would be entering my bank account for approximately two, perhaps three weeks! DI-SAS-TER!!
So off I trotted, adding it to my favourites, and checking back every day to make sure it still existed, and that it still existed at that beautiful price!


In the meantime, I re-read one of my fave books - Nefertiti by Michelle Moran.


I highly recommend any of her books if you like a lil historic fiction (think 'The Other Boleyn Girl" etc), and am currently waiting for her latest offering "Madam Tussaud".
  

I religiously checked my online banking, until sometime waaaaaaay after the new year, I WAS RICH! Heading straight from the link on my favourites bar, alas, my thing of beauty was now back to full price.  Sigh. So, what is a girl to do, you may ponder.. Well, head to eBay of course, and, as luck should have it, I managed to purchase it for around about the sale price! Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
And here it is, in the flesh - worth the wait, I think you will agree.




I love the bee.  Buzz buzz buzz!
aaaaand the honeycomb patter

Isn't it funny
How a bear likes honey?
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
I wonder why he does?
- A. A. Milne




 The Colours are beautiful. 


 Top Left is a real yellow gold, with a lot of shimmer, very, very fine shimmer, great for a highlight on the inner corner of the eye.

Top Right is the purple I have lusted over my entire life - mostly matte, not overly shimmery, dark and intense, but not chalky.

Bottom left is a very difficult colour to describe, so I will coin a name for it: Grurple! It leans more towards the purple family, but laced into the purple are aspects of mauve, a mauvey-grey and almost a greenish tinge - very multi-dimensional!

Lastly in the bottom right we have a gorgeous almost-matte black.  Due to my colouring (slightly lighter than NC40) I always need a dark colour in the outer corner and crease - this is perfection!

The Below picture was swatched without a primer, and under some ridiculously bad lighting, so I can assure you that the colour payoff and intensity is hugely better than how it appears in the pictures!






I love this palette, both for the colours, and just for the beauty of it!

A thing of beauty is a joy forever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness.
John Keats