I recently had the pleasure of attending a Chanel makeup event at my local Macy‘s. Chanel makeup artists were on hand to give customers free makeup and skincare consultations, and of course encourage them to purchase some Chanel products. Before the event, I had only gotten my feet wet with Chanel cosmetics (a lipliner, a couple lipsticks, glosses and iridescent liquid eyeshadows), and so I went in eager to learn more about their offerings.

The makeup consultation was fabulous. Just look at the face the artist created on me!

My first Chanel look, using Orient Express e/s duo, Ming lip lacquer and black kohl pencil. (Sorry about the poor picture quality; I recently bought a new camera so future photos will be MUCH clearer!)

In the end, I purchased the Duo Irréelle in Orient Express, the Rouge Allure Laque in Ming, and the Lait Confort makeup remover emulsion. I also received a gift bag with samples of Coco Mademoiselle perfume (which I already have in a full size), Rouge Coco lipstick, mascara, eye makeup remover, moisturizer, and a Chanel-branded pencil and notepad. Nifty!

Orient Express is an eyeshadow duo of bubblegum pink and iridescent violet, and both of them are shimmery, soft and blend like a dream. They can be used dry or wet, but so far I’ve only used them dry. With a light hand, I create a subtle daytime look, and in the evening I add more violet and some black kohl to make a purple smoky eye. Though the colors typically work better on young women, I think they are versatile enough to work well on women of all ages — especially us brown-eyed ladies.

The Laque in Ming is a long-lasting, opaque, glossy lipcolor, and sort of a bluish, milky pink. It’s a very springy color, and goes pretty well with the Orient Express duo. Its lasting power could be better. In my opinion, the Chanel Glossimers wear longer than the Laque, but the Glossimers are more transparent and glittery — Laque is pure color. So, there’s a trade-off.

Lait Confort is the sweetest elixir for dry skin, and it removes both face and eye makeup without burning the eyes and leaving skin oily. It doesn’t remove waterproof makeup very well, though, I’ve found. Nevertheless, as the name implies, the soft, creamy texture feels so nice on the skin and wipes away with some toner on a cotton pad. The result is clean, nourished skin. It’s a great alternative to facial cleansers, especially if I’m coming home from a late night and don’t feel like washing my face.

I also learned a couple of makeup application tricks from the MUA.

1. For deep-set eyes, like mine, a “reverse crease” helps open up the eye. Instead of concentrating the most color in the outer crease, put it in the inner crease, parallel to the innermost end of the eyebrow and out toward the center of the lid, following the natural curve of the crease.

2. For lining the waterline and tightlining, kohl is the only product you should use, be it in pencil or powder form. I highly recommend Wet ‘n’ Wild kohl pencils (they’re only 99 cents apiece!) and L’Oreal HiP kohl powder eyeliner. First apply the kohl to the waterline, finish the rest of your makeup, reline the waterline, and then set it using a superfine translucent powder (I use MAKE UP FOR EVER’s HD Microfinish Powder). This helps seal the kohl to the waterline and last longer.

Since the event, my Chanel makeup collection has grown substantially, but I’ll save that for another post! I’ll give you a little preview, though — this is what I’ve gotten and will write about:

Rouge Coco lipstick in Rose Comète, Mademoiselle, Camélia and Vendôme
Rouge Allure lipstick in Exquise and Flirt
Rouge Double Intensité in Rosestone and Rose Pearl
Mat Lumière foundation in Porcelaine
Ombre Essentielle in Amethyst
Precision Lip Definer lipliner in Praline d’Or and Pink Sugar