Cosmetic connoisseurs will adore these items.
I confess to having a small collection of pretty-as-a-picture palettes. The carefully calibrated cosmetic colours are designed to be worn together, not gather dust in a drawer, but I'm loath to poke about with such miniature masterpieces.
Each season there will be either a dreamy new shade selection or an exquisite little limited edition case that catches my eye. Bobbi Brown's Tortoise Shell palettes did it for me for this year and Dior's miniature handbag cosmetic carry cases are always collectable.
If you're not a compulsive hoarder like me you'll be pleased to know that as well as looking great, these palettes are very wearable. The likes of Lancome's latest may seem more decorative than practical, but as with many other high-end blush, illuminator or powder compacts (such as Bobbi Brown's renowned Shimmer Bricks) it is designed for you to swirl a brush through the series of colours and then sweep it across your complexion for an enlivened look rather than the obvious application of just one shade. If you do wish to preserve the Parisian picture a little longer you can pick out individual colours, but eventually it will be a case of use it and lose it.
Such a shame, but as with Clarins' lovely Cotton Flower collection, there will always be a new seasonal crop coming along to replace it. Look out in February for the New Zealand launches of the Northern Hemisphere's spring-summer makeup palettes which include some stunning sunset shades still in time for a late summer outing here.
