Clarins · Sunkissed Summer 2017 Collection

Several years while away on holiday, I came across a Clarins bronzer that basically took my breath away — and that was even before I swatched it or learned of its amazing price point. Since then, I always look forward to the Clarins Summer collections and this year’s version certainly does not disappoint: the 4 limited edition pieces of the Sunkissed 2017 Collection are all equally lovely and pretty much guaranteed to bring the heat on.

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Bronzing & Blush Compact, limited edition (CAN $42.00) | Housed in an semi-transparent amber compact with a tropical leaf print on the lid, the pattern on the inside will most likely render you speechless (as it did to me). The three matte graduating bronzer hues and iridescent orange blush shade are created with a ‘Light-Optimizing+ Complex’ to catch the light, along with ‘micro patch vegetal’ to help fight skin dehydration and an anti-pollution complex as added benefits. If you go in with a smallish brush, you just might be able to pick up all four segments individually, but the real beauty of this bronzer is in combining the colours as desired for a customized effect. There is some powdery kickback when a brush is swirled across the surface but nothing a quick tap to shake the excess off couldn’t solve, with no fall down seen on the skin once applied.

Naturally, I had to pull out all the other limited edition Clarins bronzers I had to see how they compared. For starters, each has a unique surface design and combination of colours, and none of the previous versions are an exact match to this year’s compact (see below).

4-Colour Eyeshadow Palette, limited edition (CAN $45.00) | Housed in a compact with a similar design to that of the bronzer, the four hues of this palette are made of 100% mineral plant pigments as well as polyglycerides made exclusively of plant origin. With a shade selection meant to enhance a summery glow, there’s enough variation of colour to help you create looks that will take you from day all the way to evening. Both the orange and brown shades displayed amazing pigmentation and applied true to pan colour, while of lightest hue makes for an excellent base (although it’s rather invisible swatched on my arm, it does appear better when applied along the lid) and the gold can also double as a highlighter — but it did have a slightly drier texture and may need a touch more work (not enough to be a deal breaker, though). The shade breakdown (left to right):

bone, matte
soft gold, metallic
burnt orange, shimmer
cocoa, shimmer

Waterproof Eye Pencil, limited edition (CAN $27.00/each) | The last 2 pieces of this collection are these pencils that I have fallen extremely hard for. Said to be waterproof (I’d say that they’re closer to very water-resistant), each glides easily along the delicate skin around the eyes with a creamy texture, and are pigmented enough to easily deposit colour from the first stroke. If you’ll be blending either out, I recommend working one eye at a time as once the colour sets, it’s pretty much there for the duration.

06 Gold – complex bronze/gold
07 Copper – rich true copper

14 Juicy Mandarin Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector, limited edition (CAN $20.00) | Also released with this collection are 2 new Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector shades (13 Pink Grapefruit not shown). Housed in limited edition packaging and bearing a bevelled flocked applicator, these are effectively tinted balms made with extracts of shea butter and wild mango butter that provide [light] colour along with major hydration and nourishing benefits to lips. Plus, they smell DAMN amazing (taste pretty good too).

Fun fact: 1 Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector is sold every 36 seconds around the world.

To me, summer beauty is all about lightly tanned & glowingly radiant skin (although I’ve been known to switch things up, regardless of the season) and I have to admit that Clarins totally nailed it with this Sunkissed collection. All the pieces are universally wearable by a broad range of skin tones along with being excellent performers too, while the icing on the cake is the amazing price point for each item. All of which means you can indulge without feeling guilty or breaking the bank — pretty sweet, no?

Available at The Bay & online