Chanel Rouge Coco Ballet Russe

October is hands down my favorite month of the year. Besides Halloween basically being the make up artist’s national holiday, breaking out my beloved Le Creuset dutch oven and my sweaters fills me with a sense of contentment every time.

From the moment the sun begins its annual departure, I find myself gravitating toward the glorious spectrum of harvest shades. Rich merlot stained lips begin to replace August’s seemingly perfect corals in my heart with the exit of the harvest moon. Visions of endless rows of ripening grapes on the vine, golden fields overflowing with bright orange squash, delicate melons and ancient apple trees. Fall arrives with a deceiving quiet, easing us into this short but glorious season of abundance.

Rich wine stained lips always seem to reflect my Fall state of mind ushering in my inevitable draw toward the more moody dramatic colors of winter. This season, the best crushed grape color I’ve found by far is Chanel Rouge Coco in Ballet Russe.

The luxurious texture and color were meant to mimic the deep garnet fabrics used in creating the opulent costumes of Diagilev’s lavish ballet productions. Diaghilev himself was a close friend of Mademoiselle Chanel and many of his most important ballet’s such as The Firebird were composed by Coco’s legendary lover Igor Stravinsky, who Diaghilev introduced her to.

Is it the evocative name or deep berry color that makes Ballet Russe absolute autumnal perfection? I don’t know, maybe it’s both. Used as a stain, as I did here on the gorgeous Kat Dennings or as a bold statement lip, the lipstick is as full of mystery as Mademoiselle Chanel herself and is in a word exquisite.

I love how Coco’s unconventional life even when I think I know it, continues to reveal itself to me again and again with each collection. Every season is like following a trail of fantastical breadcrumbs dropped by her transcendental spirit to remind me of the importance of a passionate life well lived.