Dior’s Holiday 2023 Collection draws inspiration from the Tuileries, the oldest French-style garden in Paris. With their baroque motifs and festive hues, these pieces totally capture the spirit of the season, while also throwing in a few interesting surprises …
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Les Jardins des Tuileries, as laid out by Le Nôtre, circa 1670, drawing by Israel Silvestre
Diorshow 5 Couleurs Palettes, limited edition (CAN $84.00/each) | Housed in slim-lined lacquered compacts, there are 2 palettes in the collection, with one leaning cool and the other warmer. The exquisite motif on the surface was designed by Italian artist Pietro Ruffo, inspired by the baroque patterns of iconic French gardens. Richly pigmented, the texture of the shades is buttery smooth and all blend effortlessly. As to finish, they range between satin and metallic, without ever coming off as overdone despite the fact that there are no mattes. When worn over primer, staying power is excellent.
043 Night Walk | The cooler palette of the two, I was actually surprised by the gold centre shade, but upon swatching it’s clear that even though it has a cool undertone, it nevertheless manages to easily work with the rest. I also love how complex the shimmer is for all of the shades, which helps to lend them a rich depth of tone.
- silver, top left
- icy white, top right
- gold, centre
- anthracite, bottom right
- steel, bottom left
543 Promenade Dorée | As with Night Walk, I was once again surprised by the silver centre shade of this palette, as that’s traditionally a cool colour, yet somehow it works with the others, possibly because it has a pewter-ish cast — plus mixing metals is definitely a thing now. Either way, these are all a great option when you want a more neutral festive look, while also being perfect for all year round as well.
- champagne, top left
- oyster, top right
- silver, centre
- amber, bottom right
- bronze, bottom left
Rouge Blush, limited edition (CAN $63.00/each) | The Dior Rouge Blush range has been recently reformulated (detailed review here) and I am loving it; the two shades of this collection are no exception. With the same stunning motif on the powder’s surface as the eyeshadow palettes, the texture is incredibly fine-milled and well pigmented, laying down beautifully and once blended out, almost melts into the skin without ever looking like it’s sitting at surface level. Staying power is excellent, when applied over primer/foundation.
211 Precious Rose | Nude peach, this is the perfect shade for those with fair to light complexions, and provides subtle colour on light-medium skin tones.
621 Splendid Rose | Rosewood, the pigmentation level is excellent and can be easily blended out for a light flush of colour, or amped up for a more editorial look.
Dior Addict Tuileries Lipstick Case, limited edition (CAN $42.00) | This stunning case displays exquisite baroque motifs done in gold against an ivory fabric base, and can be used with any Dior Addict lipstick. Honestly, as someone who’s not a fan of applying lipstick in public, I can guarantee that I’ll have no problem whipping this beauty out any chance I get.
Rouge Dior Forever Liquid Sequin, limited edition (CAN $58.00/each) | And now for the undisputed stars of the collection. Seriously. Dior’s liquid lippies have been elevated to a whole new level for this collection, and there’s an excellent reason this finish is called ‘sequin’. Housed in transparent lightly frosted acrylic tubes, these liquid lipsticks apply with a spade-shaped flocked applicator and hide a secret: once applied and allowed to dry for a couple of minutes, you press your lips together to reveal a stunning shimmery/sparkling finish. Pictures really do not do these justice, believe me. Available in the 4 shades shown, they are all richly pigmented, provide full coverage with a single swipe, and feel incredibly comfortable throughout wear. As well, the ‘sequins’ continue to appear every time you press your lips together. Think: Pat McGrath’s iconic sequinned lip look (reviewed here), but without the hassle of needing to mix and apply a bunch of different products. Personally, I couldn’t imagine a more festive-appropriate lip and plan on wearing these over as many occasions as I can.
- 620 Seductive – rosewood
- 833 Fascinating – brown
- 999 – Dior’s iconic red
- 993 Magical – deep plum
The 2 more neutral shades of the four, I found that 833 Fascinating‘s shimmer is somewhat more pronounced. Both are perfect for a more understated take on the glitter lip.
The darker hues of this collection are certainly eye-catching and while 999 is one of my all-time favourite reds, I found myself surprised by how drawn I am to the shimmer effect of 993 Magical. If you want mega impact, that’s your baby.
Le Vernis, limited edition (CAN $42.00/each) | I’ve said it so many times here on the blog, but it bears repeating: Dior’s nail polish formula is one of the best out there — and also one of my favourites. The three shades of this collection couldn’t fit in better with the theme and all display excellence in every way: flow, application, shine, and longevity. Even the brush is incredibly well crafted, designed to hug the curve of the nail bed and help you effortlessly deposit product along the nails. In the swatches below, I applied Dorure both on its own, and layered over Black Rivoli to show its versatility. I did try applying it over Mirror, but it didn’t show up well as there wasn’t enough contrast between the two.
All swatches are with 2 layers of nail polish, no base or top coat added (for photography reasons)
- 209 Mirror – platinum silver, brilliant finish with barely any visible brush lines
- 218 Dorure – top coat with irregularly shaped gold pearlecence
- 900 Black Rivoli – deepest purple with tone on tone sparkle, non-staining but I’d still advise wearing base coat just the same
One word: WOW. Dior has absolutely nailed the holidays with this collection and what’s more, everything absolutely delivers in every way: colour, formulation, and performance. If there’s anything I’d recommend you jump on ASAP, then that would be the Forever Liquid Sequin lippies because I’m guessing you don’t have anything like this, and who doesn’t love innovative beauty?
Available at Dior counters and online
Kindly provided by Dior for my unbiased consideration
