Vintage CHANEL: #76 Curieux and #24 Beige D’Or … Diwali Twins? (swatches & review)

Once more this week, I went rummaging through my CHANEL vintages, but this time I had a specific purpose in mind. When the first photos of CHANEL’s upcoming ‘Diwali’ began circulating, I was sure I had something similar tucked away in the “vault” – ‘Curieux’ and ‘Beige D’Or’ seemed to fit the bill, so naturally that made me wonder if ‘Diwali’ wasn’t a reincarnated version of either one of those. That got me thinking (hoping?) that if CHANEL would reach into their own archives to bring something back, maybe getting my hands on ‘Jade’ or ‘Holographic’ wouldn’t be far behind …

CHANEL’s ‘Diwali’

Diwali applied on models for CHANEL’s Pre Fall Paris-Bombay show

‘Curieux’ is a warm champagne gold hue, not quite a frost but neither a foil, with very subtle shimmer hidden within that lets you catch some faint traces of pink and green flecks when seen in certain lights. The excellent viscosity formula leans towards the sheer side, and while the first coat showed considerable brush strokes, the second coat evened everything out and gave good coverage, although I applied three thin coats for the following swatches. Unfortunately, while the finish in the bottle looks rather foil-like, it does not translate as such when applied. All swatches are with base and top coats.

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

‘Beige D’Or’, the second contender to the crown, is a lemon-curd shade of yellow with some beige-y undertones, and absolutely filled with exceptionally fine golden shimmer in a very sheer formula that flowed with a much waterier consistency than ‘Curieux’. I found that this shade would be much more suited as a layering polish, or for anyone wishing a slight wash of gleaming colour instead of anything too obviously glitzy. Even with three coats as I applied here, full opacity was not reached, although I personally don’t mind this look. BONUS: both lacquers had an excellent dry time.

in sunlight

indoors

flash

Final thoughts: Relief. Yes, relief. Why, you ask? Well, when I believed that ‘Curieux’ or perhaps even ‘Beige D’Or’ were dead-on duplicates for ‘Diwali’, I thought myself immune to that upcoming lacquer’s call, but after swatching mine and comparing them to the photos, I see that they are all so different from each other — which means that I don’t have to feel guilty for earmarking ‘Diwali’! Convoluted logic, but accurate where my purchasing habits are concerned! ‘Diwali’ looks more like a gold foil version of ‘Kaleidoscope’ which leans more towards platinum (stay tuned for my future review on that vintage beauty!), and quite unique amongst the rest of my CHANELs … both new and vintage. Verdict: no doubt about it – this will be the CHANEL varnish of the year, and a welcome addition to my ever-expanding collection!