Sunday, September 23, 2012

Bobbi Brown Black Chocolate eyeshadow review + swatches

          "Life [is] like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get." The same can be said for ordering makeup sight unseen. When Bobbi Brown eyeshadow in Black Chocolate was released this fall, I didn't preview it at counters. I simply ordered it online and hoped for the  best.

          Bobbi Brown Black Chocolate eyeshadow is one of four eyeshadow colors in the Fall 2012 Uber Basics collection. The four colors included Bone, Cement, Taupe, and Black Chocolate. I already have the three former colors in full or palette sizes. Black Chocolate was the only new color in the collection. However, it's not completely new, as it did show up previously in Bobbi Brown's tortoiseshell palette.




          Bobbi Brown eyeshadows contain a generous amount of product. They have 0.08 oz. of eyeshadow, which you can compare to 0.05oz for a MAC eyeshadow. They have superb pigmentation and texture. I'd be hard pressed to think of another brand that has line of matte neutral shadows that is as comprehensive and well done as Bobbi's. The eyeshadows can easily pop in and out of their single packaging and be inserted into larger palettes.


          I try not to make it a habit of collecting too much of a certain kind of makeup, but I can never seem to have too many nude lipsticks or dark eyeshadows. My favorite way to define my eyes is with strong yet soft and smudgy line. This typically involves the use of a dark eyeshadow and my Sephora pencil brush (my brush BFF). I like to have a variety of dark colors to vary the look, depending on my mood. Bobbi Brown Caviar and Smoke are among my most-used colors.
          Bobbi Brown Black Chocolate eyeshadow is described online as a 'black brown.' The descriptor is not that helpful, as Caviar is described as a 'black brown', while Smoke is a 'deep brown black.' As you can see from the pans above and the swatches below, the three colors are actually quite different. To me, Bobbi Brown Black Chocolate is a soft dark chocolate brown with just a hint of black. Bobbi Brown Caviar is much darker and blacker. Bobbi Brown Expresso is darker and cooler. Bobbi Brown Smoke has a similar intensity, but is more grey. NARS Coconut Grove (reviewed here) is the most similar, but its pigmentation is a bit richer, darker, and cooler.



         I ordered Bobbi Brown Black Chocolate on a whim, but I'm really pleased with my decision. I've been wanting a soft yet dark brown and this fits the bill. By the way, this was probably one of the best beauty blog photo shoots ever. Suffice it to say, I ended up enjoying a few truffles, favoring the crunchy toffee filled kind. Thanks for reading! Did you pick up anything from the Bobbi Brown Uber Beige collection? What are your favorite dark liner colors? Which chocolates do you go for first in a box?

Love, Dovey.

35 comments:

  1. You make everything look so good Dovey! Sadly, the BB eye textures are too dry for me, they accentuate my dryness even more but I like their murky colours a lot, BB SMoke looks very pretty here / Claire

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    1. Hi Claire, Thank you so much! I didn't realize the texture was dry; perhaps it's a good thing for those with oily lids then! Smoke is a long time favorite of mine.

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  2. gorgeous photos (per usual) but these were a bit more delicious looking than usual!!!
    I also love a good powder shadow on the lashes to enhance them, you have a drool worthy BB collection!!
    Funny enough, when I swatched this in store I did not really like it, I thought the product skipped but i may have swatched a dud.

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    1. Hehe, thanks J! Lash enhancing is always good in my book :) Interesting about the store swatch though. I did layer on the colors here; however I do think the colors wear better than when swatched (if that makes any sense)

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  3. Ahhh Dovey your chocolate photos are giving me a HUGE craving! I'm kinda ashamed to admit I prefer white and milk chocolate to dark. I have to say I'm ashamed because the Belgians are chocolate snobs, and most will tell you white chocolate is NOT chocolate and their favorite is dark :)

    I love Bobbi Brown matte shadows as well! Sable is my brow filler, and Bone is my browbone highlight. I haven't used anything shimmery on my brow bones after discovering Bone :) I'm really digging the Rich Caviar palette that's part of the holiday collection (will blog about it in detail around the launch date). There's a shade in there called Rich Caviar, and compared with Caviar it's more brown than gray. I love that on my lower lash line when I have some crazy colors on my lids!

    (Phew that's a very long comment. Sorry for the gibbersih)

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    1. Hi Sunny, thank you so much! AH, Belgium is an amazing place to be for chocolate!! I love a good white chocolate too (why would they exist if they weren't tasty :P?). I think Sable is the color Duchess Kate uses, right? I've wanted that for my brows too! Bone is a wonderful highlight; I rarely use shimmer as well! I can't wait to see the rich caviar palette. I haven't really seen much of it yet!

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    2. I actually had no idea what Duchess Kate uses, but judging from her skin tone/hair color it's not impossible! Love the Bobbi Brown eyebrow brush too. It took me a LONG time to find it, but it's exactly what I had in mind and I've been using it together with Sable for almost a year now :)

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  4. I didn't realize that when I clicked on this post I would come away with a huge chocolate craving! Every picture in this post is awesome, Dovey... You're always so creative! Great review! :)

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    1. Hi Amy, thank you so much! I hope you have some chocolate on hand :)

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  5. I have to say, I agree those are some amazing photos!! The shadow looks great, you should do a look!

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    1. Hi Kisti, thank you! I'll see if I can work on one...

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  6. this looks so pretty! I'm betting this would make a great powder liner too!

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    1. Hi Kelly, I agree. The dark colors work nicely when wet too!

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  7. very nice color!
    i don't like dark chocolate at all but i love this color. ;p
    (i usually go for a truffle with caramel filling or something. that map of chocolate box is quite important to me. lol)
    NARS night porter is my go-to dark liner color. i'd like to get something like BB caviar, too! :)

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    1. Thank you Lena! I love when I get a gooey caramel inside. These didn't come with labels, so each one is a surprise :). I'm surprised that you use a green as a liner! wow!

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  8. Thankfully, I do not like chocolate :) But this is a great post, Dovey! I've been looking for some matte neutrals, and now I think Bobbi Brown might have what I need. Do they sell empty palettes? I love Espresso!

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    1. Not Dovey - but yes they do.
      http://www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com/products/2288/Brushes-etc/Organizers/Customizable-Palettes/index.tmpl?cm_sp=Gnav-_-BrushesEtc-_-Organizers-CustomizablePalettes

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    2. Hi Larie, it looks like Kristi got to this first! But yes, there are regularly 3,4, and 6 pan palettes. There have been 9 and 2 pan sizes too :) Expresso is also pretty; I have a couple mini sizes so I haven't been able to justify a big one yet!

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  9. Ah all these fine chocolates :Q it makes me really hungry haha I should try bobbi brown eyeshadows now haha Well I like the pigmentation and texture !

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    1. Hi Xin, in that case, I hope you can find a bobbi brown or chocolate near you :)

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  10. Hey, Dovey, you definitely deserve a box of chocolates for your placement in the Blogger Awards :D I saw you in Allure and you look drop-dead gorgeous!

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    1. Hi Sarah, thank you so much! You're too sweet :)

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  11. YUMMMMM! Hold please, while I wipe the drool off my keyboard! You & Jessica are aces at using props that add that extra oomph to your posts. I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for BB!

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    1. Hi Kristi, haha! Thank you so much--- I'm hoping to do more Bobbi posts in the future, as I do like the brand a lot

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  12. This is a delicious post, Dovey! Delicious!

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  13. Cute photo shoot :P That toffee-filled truffle sounds AMAZING--I MUST try it!!! I ALWAYS go for the truffles first--they're def my favorite! The dark chocolate truffles go first, then whatever other kind of truffles they have in the box :P

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    1. Hi Becca, it's fun to hear you're a dark chocolate person! My strategy varies from time to time. Sometimes it's dark, sometimes it's white, sometimes it's in between!

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  14. :) that does look like a nice shade, and i like your chocolate props :)

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  15. Oh my god, this post is just so yummy! I haven't had chocolate in forever actually! And the eyeshadow looks just as delicious. It's the perfect dark, almost black brown.

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    1. Hi Maggie, Thank you! I hadn't had any for a while either... until this! I also like the fact that it's *almost* black brown. It's just the strength I've been looking for lately.

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  16. Oh man, now I'm really regretting passing up See's Candies today after seeing all these chocolates!

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  17. Those chocolates look so good! I love a great chocolate-brown shadow. On another note, I picked up a copy of the October issue of Allure on my way in to work today - congrats on the article! It was a very nice feature & I agree with Sarah - you look fabulous! :D

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