Yves Saint Laurent Couture Palette 5 Couleurs #02 Fauves, Swatches, Review & FOTD

Can one ever have enough natural eye shadows (palettes)?

Knowing that the answer for me is certainly a "no", I got curious over the natural side of YSL's new permanent Couture Palette 5 Couleurs line, and ordered #02 Fauves. I usually go for the more dramatic and dense natural palettes from a certain brand, since I like my natural eye to have some definition, so I felt me and Fauves would get along well. Afterwards I forgot my "no nude nudes" rule and ordered #04 Saharienne, which is a whole other story and will be saved for another post.

The first thing to note about #03 Fauves is that it is one of the less shimmery palette of the range with mostly satin to matte finish. I was a little underwhelmed with #07 Parisienne and #03 Afrique in terms of texture versatility but I am happy to report that #02 Fauves is not only a soft shimmer no definition kind of palette. It has different tones, different finishes and less shimmer. It is that almost matte palette each brand has to offer for an everyday or bridal makeup.  

That being said, I still find the darkest shade to be too soft and a little more shimmery than I would prefer, but not to the degree of, say, #07 Parisienne. I like the fact that Fauves plays with the undertones rather than tones, providing browns with different degrees of coolness. I can see this palette getting into make-up kits of professionals to be used across different complexions. 

The shades of #02 Fauves are as follows:

Upper left (base shade): A light natural brown with matte finish. 

Upper right (highlight): A very light warm off-white with satin finish

Bottom right (color): A medium toned warm to natural brown with satin to matte finish  

Bottom left (color): A medium to deep cool brown with satin to matte finish

Center: A deep cool brownish grey with satin finish.

Below I used the highlight shade on the inner corner, base shade all over the lid, bottom right shade to define the outer corner and center shade to define the crease. The textures are silky and very easy to blend. All of the shades have great color pay-off. 

Below I combined this eye look with MAC Cheeky Bugger blush and Kelly Yum-Yum lipstick worn as a stain, both were reviewed here. #02 Fauves gives the opportunity to combine the eye look with various other elements such as looks with bold lips or defined cheeks.

Final thoughts: #02 Fauves is a solid palette of Yves Saint Laurent's Couture Palette 5 Couleurs range. On me I like natural palettes with slight plummy undertones (such as Chanel Charming) but YSL Fauves is a lovely addition to my small(!) natural eye palette collection.

Yves Saint Laurent Couture Palette 5 Couleurs #02 Fauves is permanent and now available across YSL counter.

Do you bother with the "undertones" of your natural quads? What kind of brown tones do you like most?