Brace yourselves for some serious makeup lust: the Soleil collection from Tom Ford has landed. Look at those compacts! So chic. And because I’m on a bit of a bronzer run this week, I thought I’d test out the Ultimate Bronzer.

It’s pleasingly oversized – just calling out for a bit of summer action somewhere glitzy. Mine saw its bit of action in my living room whilst hailstones pelted at the window, but let’s ignore that for now. Here’s how I look with the Tom Ford Soleil Ultimate Bronzer – it’s the shade “Bronze Age”:

(Note that on the Selfridges website this product has the wrong image – it shows an image of the contouring palette instead – so use the link here* to find the right one. And it’s not the older-style, smaller bronzer with the same shade name!)

The Ultimate Bronzer has the same sort of texture as Lauder’s Gelée illuminators, if you’ve ever tried those; creamy and smooth, but with a set, pressed, almost “hard” feel to the surface of the powder. I love this texture – it means that very little dust is kicked up from the compact, so you don’t lose about seventy-five million grams of product every time you swish the brush over it. On the other hand, it does feel as though you have to work quite hard to get any pay-off and it takes a little more time to build up a noticeable colour.

Swings and roundabouts, people!

Bronze Age is a good bronzing option for those with fair skin – it gave mine a flattering, realistic glow with not much effort at all. There’s no shimmer in the powder but it does seem to cleverly reflect light so that the colour doesn’t look too flat – I like it. Obviously it’s a total luxury (turn to my post on the Bourjois Mat Illusion for a more powdery bronzer option) but it gives a grown-up tan that looks mildly sunkissed, rather than full-on St Tropez.

The Soleil compacts feel really very lightweight. If I could find my older Tom Ford bronzer then I would tell you for definite whether they’ve made the packaging lighter, but it’s nowhere to be seen. Maybe it’s because I’ve become used to the almost indecent luxuriousness of the Victoria Beckham ones, with their ribbed leather and heavy golden trim, but I’m sure that Tom Ford’s used to have the same pleasing weightiness. Again, swings and roundabouts: some will prefer a lightweight palette for their handbag, rather than lugging a house brick about with them.

You can find the Ultimate Bronzer from Tom Ford at Selfridges here* – it’s £72.

The entire Tom Ford Soleil collection can be found here* – I’ve also tested the Sheer Highlighting Duo, pictured top, which is absolutely gorgeous, and one to pick up if you always miss out on the limited edition Lauder Illuminating Powder Gelées. I’ve got a (very minimal) spot of the paler highlighter on my cupid’s bow and the bridge of my nose, if you can see that. And I’ve also given the mini “clutch size” tinted balms a bit of a test-run…

In this photo I’m wearing Neotropic, a fiery summery red. Lovely sheen and quite a whack of pigment for such an easy, soft formula! Out of stock at the moment, but if you have the time to keep checking, it’s here* on the Selfridges site. Decadence in the extreme, at £29 for a teeny bullet of balm, but there we go. It’s proper handbag eye-candy.

On a sidenote: the mallow-soft Soleil Bronzing Brush is rather swish. I need to give it a proper test, so I’ll get back to you on functionality, but it’s so gentle and the tapered shape looks great for getting an accurate (but natural) application. Watch this space…