Beauty: Dior 5 Couleurs Designer palettes in Navy and Amber

Hi guys! When we got back from France, one thing that definitely helped softening the blow of being back in dreary Belgium was finding some parcels waiting for me. One of those packages turned out to be from Dior - oooooh. I don't think it ever gets old to receive make up collections for the purpose of reviewing, but it gets another layer of awesomeness when that collection is from an upscale brand like Dior. I mean, Charlize Theron/Furiosa models for them, man. That's some classy shit. I received a whole range of goodies which I will be reviewing asap, but there was so much that I couldn't do it all in one post. Last week I reviewed the new formula Diorshow mascara which instantly became a new favourite, and today I'm showing you the two eyeshadow palettes: 5 Couleurs Navy Design 208, and 5 Couleurs Amber Design 708. First up, Navy!

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

The palette consists of five shades: a matte primer, a light all over colour, a darker colour for the crease, a glittery highlighter and a gel liner. In addition, it comes with two applicators: a double sponge applicator (ugh, never use those please, sponge applicators suck), and a two sided brush that is usable but not on par with my regular brushes. A plastic cover illustrates where every colour should go on the lid, making it easy for make up newbies. Of course, you can experiment with placement to suit your preferences and your eye shape, but this is what the palette was designed for.

Let's go in for a closer look.

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

At first sight, the ombre/crease shadow immediately stood out to me because of its almost denim-like textured colour. Whens swatched, it reveals a sheer but lovely, lilac/purple leaning shimmer. I was less impressed by the base and the liner: the base is too powdery and barely shows up, I don't see what it contributes to the quint. The gel liner is too waxy and requires a lot of work to get opaque, which makes a neat finish pretty much impossible. The all over eyelid colour is a satin finish icy blue that does a decent job, pigmentation-wise, and I also liked the highlighter: very difficult to swatch, but it packed a lovely, multicolour glitter punch that I very much enjoyed.

Here's what the shades look like on the eye.

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

The gel liner could definitely be more intense, but apart from that I really love the end result: a purple-leaning, soft shimmery blue make up look that looks lovely with my colouring. The eyeshadows apply evenly (perhaps because of that base colour I don't understand the point of?), are very blendable, and while the pigmentation isn't amazing, I love the finish which is all sparkly and magical without screaming "HI I'M PASTEL AND GLITTER". Sophisticated, but playful.

Next up, Amber.

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

Again, the same lay out. I didn't photograph the brushes/sponges, but the applicators are the same as well. This palette didn't speak to me as clearly as the Navy one: I love a good neutral palette, but this one just seemed... really very basic. Not intense or rich (I feel like a brown-based palette should always be intense), not warm or cool, just neutral. Very beige.

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

Swatching the shades revealed a base that seemed even less pigmented than the one in the Navy palette, a very sheer all over colour, an overly glittery highlighter and a decent crease colour and gel liner. I liked the bronze shimmer in the crease colour and the purple leaning dark brown gel liner, lending some interest to the palette that seemed lacking at first glance. Again, I followed the application instructions to create a look.

Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review
Diorshow 5 couleurs designer palette review

Meh, what can I say... I feel like the all over lid colour should have more "pop" to it to harmonize with the brown crease colour, like the crease colour should apply more evenly, and like the gel liner should definitely be more pigmented. To me, this is an underwhelming look that I could easily recreate with drugstore products, and it doesn't measure up to my Naked Palette in any way. Not a hit, Dior!

These quints come in a couple of other colour schemes as well: the Khaki design mixes olive green with gold, and Taupe design combines taupe with rose gold. Those both look quite alright, but I still feel like this line lacks something. A contrasting colour, intensity, a finish that makes it stand out enough to make it worth its 60€ retail price.

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