Yves Saint Laurent Beauté | Couture Palette Collector Fétiche (LE)

Inspired by the noble yet carnal duality of leather, the Yves Saint Laurent Cuirs Fétiches Collection for Fall 2014 will literally take your breath away. Creative Director Lloyd Simmonds wanted to create a sensually charged-up makeup collection filled with varying textures: matte, shiny, metallic – for eyes, lips, as well as nails – giving women the option of exploring their sexy & edgier rocker-chic side … at least with cosmetics. The undisputed star, is hands down the Couture Palette Collector Fétiche, with its rich hues in the brand’s Mondrian-inspired pattern: 5 luxuriously rich and highly complimentary colours that evoke the many versions of leather. I’ll say it here: with all the Fall releases I’ve seen, this may very well be the palette to rule them all.

If you follow me on social media (if not, then get cracking on that STAT! You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook) you’ll have noticed my love of leather (I basically live in my Theory moto/biker leather jacket) and almost fetish-inspired footwear (Loubs with their painfully high heels, Brian Atwood bondage-look cut-out booties) so when I first heard of this collection, I almost had a visceral response to it – my loves of both beauty products and rocker edginess were about to be combined in one makeup collection? Almost too much to handle. Bring it on.

Yves Saint Laurent – photographed by Jeanloup Sieff in 1971 (source)

Yves Saint Laurent Mondrian-inspired Fall/Winter 1965 Collection (source)

Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), Fall Look 2014 Cuirs Fétiches

Palette Fétiche, Limited Edition (CAN $64.00) | No detail has been spared in the creation of this piece: the luxuriously gold hefty case of usual YSL eyeshadow palettes has been given a dangerously sexy new look, as the exterior of the Palette Fétiche is clothed in full-grain leather and features the “Cassandre” logo embossed in gold lettering. Inside, are 5 shades in ‘varying textures’ to provide a multitude of looks – the descriptions of each colour, according to the brand: Bright Copper, Warm Gold, Amazon Green, Opulent Brown, Infused Black. And now, my versions (going clockwise, starting from the top left):

butterscotch brown with copper reflects
soft nude tan
blackened brown with ultra-fine gold particles
deep yet muted teal
black velvet

Let’s start with the textures, which are absolutely sublime: super easy to apply, extremely well pigmented, non-powdery, and all totally blendable. This palette has taken the ubiquitous earth tones (which can frequently fall on the boring side) and elevates them into something so much more – able to suit every skin tone across the spectrum, as well as being all daytime wearable or amped up for nighttime drama (especially obvious when applied with a dampened brush). Whether worn as single shades, or combined & mixed, there are endless possibilities offered by this palette – some look ideas by Lloyd Simmonds:

CUIR YCONIQUE: The Bright Copper base is applied all over the upper lid, the matte black along the upper lashes & the Amazon Green along the lower lash line

CUIR PATINÉ: The upper lid is sculpted with the Bright Copper base and Opulent Brown, the arch of the brow bone is highlighted with Warm Gold and matte black is drawn along the lower lash line.

CUIR NUDE: The inside corner of the eye is illuminated with Warm Gold and Bright Copper is then drawn towards the outer corner

I totally appreciate how well thought out this palette is, with the shades you’ll want to use more of (i.e. the Bright Copper, Infused Black, Amazon Green) larger in size than the ones that you won’t necessarily need as much of (the Warm Gold). I personally did not find that this palette held too many varieties of textures (a good thing, in my book), with all bearing some degree of shine – although that being said, that shine level did vary somewhat, with the top 2 definitely exhibiting more than the 3 darker hues. The black shade (bottom left) is perfectly named: Infused Black (and not matte as described in the press release), as it’s deep but with a little kick – bearing a slight sheen such as that given off by rich buttery leather. The other dark (and also perfectly named) shade, Opulent Brown, works in perfect tandem with the top two colours and while deep, the coppery gold reflects in the formula help to give this a unique tone & depth, keeping this colour from coming off as flat. Even the Amazon Green (or teal) has just the right amount of texture/shine to keep it from appearing one-dimensional, as well as being one of the most wearable hues I’ve seen in this colour family. My favourite hue of this palette, is the Bright Copper – this is such a spectacular caramel shade, that I may start a campaign to have the brand release this as a single – I love it. The application on all is almost suede-like in feel – they are all that smooth. The Warm Gold shade, while the lightest pigmentation-wise, still packs enough colour that it shows up against your skin – although it may be too subtle for those with deeper complexions. Wear time (on primed lids) is amazing – going well past the 11 hour mark, without showing any signs of creasing or fading.
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Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), Fall Look 2014 Cuirs Fétiches

Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), swatched dry – in sunlight

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Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), swatches dry – in shaded light

Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), swatched damp – in sunlight

Yves Saint Laurent | Palette Fétiche (Limited Edition), swatched damp – in shaded light

Photos and arm swatches do not do this palette full justice, and if you pick up just one item from all the recent Fall releases, then make it the Couture Palette Collector Fétiche from Yves Saint Laurent Beauté. I absolutely adore this for all the right reasons: shade selection, quality, pigmentation levels, and its total wearability factor – which may be a contradiction to the name (“fetish” which calls to mind whips and Hannibal Lecter-esque masks), but one I happily embrace just the same. Let loose and explore your ‘dark side’ with this palette – safety word, optional.
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