Tom Ford Beauty Eye Color Quad in Golden Mink Review, Photos, Swatches

As many of you know, one of my favorite eyeshadow palettes of all time is Tom Ford's Cognac Sable. Because I am so devoted to the palette, I was reluctant to try any of the others in fear that I would be disappointed. Golden Mink, however, is a more subtle alternative to Cognac Sable and I am happy to announce it is a lovely addition to my Tom Ford arsenal. I have been mixing and matching all eight of the shades, what a lovely natural pair. I will show you swatches after the jump!

The lightweight packaging concerned me initially, but I always travel with my Cognac Sable and it has held up quite well. Plus, the large mirror is so convenient for when I am on the go.

Unlike Cognac Sable, the Golden Mink palette has two glittery shades. They are much lighter in color than the lone glittery copper shade in Cognac Sable, so I do think they are still tasteful enough to wear during the day or to the office on a more casual day. The gold is subdued, more of a white gold. The peach glitter is very natural against my warm light-medium skintone. I prefer wearing the peach glitter on my upper lid, with the gold glitter to brighten up my lower lash line. Women stop and ask me all the time about the glitters, they are that impressive.

The neutral nude shade below the gold glitter evens out my lids, adding just a hint of highlight. It is beautifully pigmented and perfectly smooth. The warm deep brown shade below the peach glitter was not as pigmented as I had hoped when swatched with an applicator, but when used with the blending brush like the MAC 217, it is incredibly pigmented! It is so easy to build up in color. The texture of this shadow is more like the two deeper shades in Cognac Sable, a matte base with shimmer bits. I recommend using a creamier eyeshadow base like MAC's Paint Pots to give the shadows something to adhere to.

Now, I generally do not post flash photos of products (especially those not taken with a DSLR and top notch glass), since I find that they do not accurately represent the colors but I wanted to post this one above so you could see the differences in textures. Below is a photo of the shades lightly swatched on my bare forearm, no primer, in my very warm bathroom lighting.

The glitters are much lighter in color, hence more wearable. I truly believe that if you want to try glitter, but do not want to deal with the mess of loose glitter or are intimidated by mixing mediums, Tom Ford's eyeshadow quads are the best way to go. There is very little fallout, and overly complicated priming techniques are not necessary. Yes, they may be expensive at $75 per palette (available at Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, and Neiman Marcus), but the various textures and ease of use alone justify the cost. The icing on the cake is that the palette comes with an IMMENSE amount of product. I use my Cognac Sable religiously, yet it still looks fresh.

These swatches of Golden Mink in natural lighting best represent what the shades look like (on my Macbook Pro's computer screen, anyway). Aren't they just fabulous? These are light swatches with my fingertips. With brushes, they are so much more intense.

Before we wrap up this review, I wanted to show a side by side comparison of Tom Ford's Cognac Sable and Golden Mink. As you can see, Cognac Sable is significantly warmer and darker (swatches can be seen HERE). CS may be a bit too dramatic for fair ladies to use during the day, but it would be a beautiful palette to wear on a night out, whereas GM would be much easier for fair ladies to use on any occasion. Golden Mink is ideal on nights when I want to look polished yet natural, nothing too deep or bold. Some may find the two glitter shades overpowering, but I find that it makes the palette more fun to use!

I really do love Tom Ford's eyeshadow quads. I have also been testing the newest Emerald Lust palette, and I adore that just as much as I adore the two shown in this post. If forced to choose, I would give up Chanel eyeshadow quads for these. That speaks volumes, for I have been dedicated to Chanel palettes for nearly a decade now.

Bottom Line: Tom Ford Golden Mink is a must-have for those that are seeking a bit of something special in a neutral, daily wear palette.

*Edit: I still prefer CS to GM, but I love both.

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