Diorshow Fusion Mono #81 Aventure, #281 Cosmos, #381 Millenium, #661 Meteore and #881 Hypnotique from Mystic Metallics Fall 2013 Collection, Swatches & Comparison

On my last visit to various counters across Stuttgart, right before I flew to holiday and as usual on the last 10 minute, I happened to see the Dior Fall 2013 collection in Douglas on Koenig Strasse, Stuttgart. It was unexpected since there was no indication of it coming to Germany before mid/end of August. I even purchased some pieces from US to make sure I get my hands on them before they sell out, such as the two quads (see reviews here and here) and nail polishes (reviews coming up soon). Several minutes later, I walked out with these beauties in my bag, rushing home, too impatient to swatch&compare. I surely was excited.

Diorshow Fusion Mono is a mono eye shadow in mousse/creme consistency similar to Chanel's Illusion d'Ombres. The packaging is very similar to the creme blushes released earlier this summer, such as this one I reviewed here, the lid and the glass container are exactly the same. The feel of Fusion Monos are more like a mousse, therefore the density is lower compared to the blushes. One container has 6.5g/ 0.22 Oz of product, which is a larger than usual 4g offers.

In US there are 8 colors but in Germany we got only 6 of them, of which I chose five and it was an easy choice since the sixth one is #001 Lune which is a white glitter shade and reminded me of Chanel Illusion d'Ombre #81 in Fantasme, which I own and didn't even use once. So I purchased these:

I have to admit, once I have seen those in counter, I first kept a distance, not knowing what to get. I have read many "not so pleasant" reviews about Diorshow Fusion Mono, mostly stating these are very sheer and too glittery. After I swatched one at the back of my hand, I was surprised by the mid coverage I have seen. Was it because I was expecting the worse? I was expecting something close to a few Chanel Illusion d'Ombre shades, such as Fantasme or Vision with almost a clear base and chunky glitter but Diorshow Fusion Monos were different. These had glitter but they were not chunky and the base color was indeed showing up. I am not saying that you can get a full coverage with it but it does give color once applied with fingers on the eye lid. Its sheersness is similar to Chanel's Illusion d'Ombres and I found some of the shades even less sheer than their Chanel counterparts. I took swatch pictures with direct and indirect light to give you better idea of the glitter and base colors.

As for the first comparison, Chanel Illusion d'Ombre contains 4g/0.14 Oz of product and costs 29.90EUR/$36. Diorshow Fusion Mono has 6.5g/0.22 Oz of product and costs 29.90 EUR/$30. Below you can see that my Chanel Illusion d'Ombres dried slighty in a year or two and got detached from the container. I believe this is also what is going to happen to Diorshow Fusion Mono, but we have to wait a year to see the effect. I would say their consistency and coverage are very similar. The first shades which were released two years ago with Fall 2011 Collection of Chanel were also all very metallic. Some of the shades which were released later on, such as Apparition have less glitter. So first enjoy pan vs. pan shots.

I swatched Diorshow Fusion Monos side by side to similar Chanel Illusion d'Ombres:

Diorshow Fusion Mono #881 Hypnotique vs. Chanel #83 Illusoire: 

I have to say that #83 Illusoire is my favorite of Illusion d'Ombres, so this one was a tough call. I found Dior Hypnotique darker, therefore providing slightly more coverage but at the same time had a bit more glitter inside. I do like it because I was finding Illusoire slightly too light. 

The difference is apperant in the pictures, Millenium is more gold/khaki and darker, Epatant is lighter and more of a metallic light taupe. Millenium gives you more color, if this is what you would like.

This is one of the most distinctive pairs. Apparition is rather matte and warmer, leaning slightly purple. Cosmos on the other hand is more of a teal blue with blue glitters. I love cosmos, I think it is a unique shade and so fitting to its name.

These two were also very different. Chanel Illusion d'Ombre line has many golds, which were too yellow or silver once compared to Meteore. Ebloui, although the closest, leans more red/brown and has also less glitter. Meteore is more of a rose gold/copper gold shade, which Chanel line doesn't have yet, so is also rather unique at the moment.

Were you classifying Mirifique as a black? It certainly shows dark in the pan but once swatched side by side with Dior's Aventure, you can see that Aventure is darker/deeper than Mirifique. They both have similar silver glitter but Aventure has definitely more color.

Final thoughts: If you like Chanel Illusion d'Ombres, most probably you will like Diorshow Fusion Monos too. Note that Dior offers 50% more product for same/cheaper price. Currently they offer up to 8 shades, depending on the country (6 shades for Europe) and I am overall pleased with five of the shades I have purchased. These can be used as a base color or alone as a wash of color on the lid for quick looks. Sheernes is similar with Chanel Illusion d'Ombres, so if you like intense eye looks, you may have to pad some eye shadow on top of that. If you don't like glitter, then be aware though. They have gorgeous multi dimensional glitter some might fall in love with but for some these may not be worn daily. I personally find those day time appropriate but maybe this is just me, since I also like the glitter eye shadows of Tom Ford on day-time looks.