Well hellooooo lovely new AW13 goodies from the almighty Kiko that I think you’re very much going to love, as it’s packed full of shades and colours that make autumn just that little bit more bearable; think hues of plums, nudes and earthy tones mixed with girly pinks and apricots, plus gothy rouge noirs and you have the Kiko Fall Collection, Dark Heroine.
I was extremely lucky to be sent a few of the products from the Kiko Dark Heroine collection that I had been perving over to give me a taste of what the new collection has to offer. It really is a wonderfully autumnal collection that isn’t breaking any boundaries, yet still feels fresh and vibrant. As is usually the case with Kiko, there’s plenty to choose from covering a multitude of shades, so have a good nose as you’re bound to find something you like!
Colour Impact Eyeshadow Palette
I’ll start with the product that got me all flustered, which is this stunner of a palette in Lounge Warm Tones. Will you JUST LOOK at those shades? It’s as if Bobbi Brown got daring for one night only and decided to chuck in a few wildcard shades among her signature nudes. I absolutely love that matte plum shade that works so well within the edit, and that matte peach shade is such a fantastic naked shade. In Lounge Warm Tones there are three matte shades and three high shimmer shades, plus an extremely handy mirror. There are four variants of this palette in total and each palette is £16.90.
Is this not the cutest little blush stick? It’s a chubby cheek stick! However, don’t let it’s cuteness deceive you as it packs a solid colour payoff that’s very buildable, blends wonderfully and leaves a matte yet non-drying finish. The shade I have is Verve Peony (05) which is a kind of a pink-leaning apricot shade. It’s very easy to wear against my pale skin, so is definitely one to try if you’re a bit on the pale side. There’s also a beautiful pink shade called Cadillac Pink, as well as four other shades, all of which are £7.90 each.
This was a real surprise for me as it kind of goes against the typical autumnal formula of thick, matte/semi-matte finishes and instead is extremely creamy and buttery, which I happily welcome. The shade I have is called Attractive Pink, and as you can see, not only does it have a glossy finish, it also packs a good hit of colour without looking too thick or plasticky. I can see this being an extremely popular formula as it offers the best of both worlds in a good selection of shades. There are six shades in total and they’re £7.50 each.
Swatches from left to right : all shades together, tan on its own, pink on its own, white on its own.
The design of the Loud Night Bronzer was a little bit lost on me to be honest! It’s very pretty and definitely makes you coo, but I don’t know if there’s a functional purpose behind the layout of the pink and white line, or if it’s just something a bit funky? The bronzer itself is an absolute star and my perfect shade (Silky Mat Tan – 02) and you can introduce the pink line (which, as you can see in the swatch is extremely bright) for more warmth to give pale skins that natural slightly pink tan, or the white to neutralise it. The left hand side swatch is a combination of all shades together, but it isn’t very accurate as the finish is nowhere near as pink as that when all shades are involved. Thankfully these are shimmer-free, available in 2 shades including the one above, and cost £14.90.
I was so happy to receive the brown shade of this (Inspiring Golden Brown – 02) as I love a good brown eye pencil, which is thankfully exactly what this is! This is easy to use, glides well without being slippery and packs a good, solid line of colour. I wouldn’t go quite as far as to say that it feels liquid as the press release suggests, but for a self-sharpening, crayon style pencil it is extremely good and very well priced at £6.90 for each of the six shades.
I was sent Strong Chocolate to try and it is such a fascinating and surprisingly complex shade! In certain lights it can look black, in others a little grey, yet it’s actually a dark, dirgy chocolate shade with the tiniest flecks of warm amber/red shimmer that give it lift. It’s very interesting to look at and certainly hasn’t been effectively captured in my photos. I think this is the shade that dark nail shade fans will go for as I would imagine it’s quite a tricky one to dupe. I’m pleased I was sent this shade as I’d say the rest is fairly run of the mill, although there are some pretty shades to be found. There are six shades in the collection in total, and these are a very purse-friendly £4.90.
There are some other fab items in Dark Heroine, such as the new Face Brush (pictured above – £15.90) which is double-ended and designed for cream and powder products, with the slanted end aimed at cream products and the fluffier end for powder. I’ve used both ends today, the cream end to blend down the Velvet Stick Blush and the fluffy end to apply and buff in my powder foundation, so you can see the finish of both in the FOTD pictures at the top. Just under £16 for these two brushes is an absolute bargain, as they perform brilliantly and are very soft and densely packed. Next up are the Dazzling Highlighters (not pictured) which come in the same format as the Velvet Stick Blushes and are available in two shades for £7.90 each. They look wonderful and I think glitter free, so if you’re a highlighter fan then they’re worth checking out. If you buy one thing from the collection, I’d recommend one of the Colour Impact palettes as they’re extremely good value at just under £16 for six shades and contain fresh, pigmented shades that will aid you in the transition from summer to autumn.
*PR Samples
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