N-No-Notorious

Chanel Notorious "blush"
(photo from Chanel website - this stuff is seriously difficult to photograph well)

Sorry, no, not the Duran Duran song from the '80s... this is the Chanel powder "blush" called Notorious.  Seriously extremely LE (and therefore, I Had to have it) and only available in Ireland through the Chanel Boutique in Brown Thomas, I've been waiting on this one for a while (it launched, like a lot of the very LE Chanel makeup, a few weeks late).

As most of you who have read this blog from time to time know, I have an obsession for all things contour-y.  And this is no different.

Notorious is apparently a "blush/shadow hybrid" powder, from the same Chanel Ready to Wear Fall 2012 Contrastes Essentielles Collection that gave us such lovelies as Frenzy and Vertigo, and is, according to Chanel, a "unique mauve-taupe powder acts as a sculpting veil for eyes and face, subtly defining features for a sophisticated, stylishly contoured effect".

Chanel Notorious
I did warn you above this this is very hard to photo well
But it does have fabulously dirrrrrrrrty grey undertones that are perfect for contouring

Yup.  It is that strange "griege" shade, a dirtied, greyed, slightly blue, slightly lavender, coolish brown toned almost taupe* colour.

* I know I know, taupe isn't a colour.  Stop being pedantic and let's get on with it.

In other words, it's the perfect mix of shades that add up to an ashy cool grey that gives a wonderful impression of a shadow.  Which is not warm or frosted, not sparkly, not orange-toned (like most bronzers).  I can create razor cheekbones on myself with this (and I don't have them, believe me).

It has the tiniest, slightest, barely imperceptible sheen to it, which I think would be probably needed to take what might otherwise be a corpse-blue dead look to it if it were more matte and chalky.  But it's not shiny or metallic or frosted.  This is an incredibly subtle sheen.

Blush/shadow hybrid?  Hmmmm.  I found it creased, and creased badly on my lids, and after very little time (which were rather radically sans primer, I should point out however).

Blush?  Don't use this on your cheeks unless you like the corpse look.  This is a contour product.  It's for creating a shadow.  It does it brilliantly.  Just blend the bejesus out of this, it really seriously needs blending.  Because a little really goes a long way with this stuff.

I am NC25ish and this works really well on me.  I really had honestly thought that I'd be purchasing this only for my kit for contouring porcelain pale ladies.  (Feck that.  I'm keeping it.  For me!)

If you can get your mitts on this, I highly recommend.