Chantecaille Spring Color Collection 06 – The Season of Femininity

Inspired by the spring fashion collections and the “return of the dress” to fashion along with delicate fabrics of lace, chiffon and linen featured in natural tones as well as more intense colors, Olivia Chantecaille looked East to Japanese gardens for her palette. Seen as a sacred, intimate setting, the Japanese garden is a symbol of the feminine power of creation.

With that in mind, and finding “like-minded” designs in the collections of Lanvin and his Japanese Obi style dresses and Paco Rabanne’s deconstructed kimonos, the colors and even the palettes have that essential Japanese influence.

Again using the image of the butterfly as the soul of rebirth, renewal and transformation, the collections feature this popular symbol. The Spring 06 collection also has a serious side too. The American butter fly””the Monarch Butterfly- is now on the endangered species list. The “miracle migration” of the Western Monarch Butterfly has signaled its arrival in California with amazing flashes of orange color against the early autumnal skies. The fragile ecosystem of the winter home of these beautiful insects (Mexico and California) has been disrupted by logging and deforestation. Coupled with an increase in global warming, the death rate of these gorgeous ““and necessary to the ecological chain””creatures has skyrocketed. The particular plant where the female butterfly lays her eggs is seen as a weed and is killed with herbicides.

Chantecaille’s Spring 06 collection seeks to protect the Monarch Butterfly habitat by donating a portion of all sales to the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary Foundation which was established in 1997 by scientists and educators seeking to rebuild, revive and replace the habitats.

So you can not only benefit yourself by purchasing these great products but also help the environment and endangered species too.

For Spring 06, the color collection features a new palette.

The Garden in Kyoto Palette features a Willow Eye Shade duo papillon with a mint green background and a brown butterfly with gold details.

The Cherry Blossom Cheek Shade is a rose ground with a bright pink butterfly with golden surface detailing. The Dragon Fruit Lip gloss is a natural fresh pink that is a universally suitable tone.

All colors are packed in a 3 well palette and will be available mid-February for $79.00

Along with the new palette, three new lip sheers are being included in this collection””fresh, clean lively color perfectly suited for spring 06 fashions and faces!!

Cassiopeia – a bright coral shade
Aphrodite – a beautiful pink
Flare – a soft wearable red

Each lip color is soft, sheer and moisturizing on the lips. Available mid-February for $26.00

Chantecaille is available at Neiman Marcus and Barneys New York stores.