I really hope I am not the only girl in the world who would happily re-arrange my make-up palettes all day long without the onset of boredom. I love my eye palettes as they have either been gifts from someone special or been as a little treat to myself over the years. I suppose, they are reminders of contentment of having cosmetics wishes being fulfilled. I first noticed the Perfect Palette Tag making the rounds on YouTube just before Christmas and really enjoyed watching them. After four months of viewing palette picks from some of my favourite beauty enthusiasts and make-up artists I decided to do my own. Click here to watch my selection in motion.
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| Perfect Palette Tag. |
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| Perfect Palette Tag. |
1.Best Packaging
Urban Decay 'Book of Shadows Volume 3/NYC' Palette
This was gifted to me in 2010 and I rarely use it simply because it was a gift and I want to cherish it forever. Bit of a silly reason to not use something, I may as well enjoy it. The Urban Decay NYC palette contains 16 eyeshadows in a variety of neutral and colour shades, all with shimmer and frost finishes. The shades are Perversion, Uzi, Loaded, Kush, Midnight Cowbuy Rides Again, Last Call, Rockstar, Money, Haight, Maui Wowie, Smog, Bordello, Radium, Snatch, Suspect, and Psychedelic Sister. It also comes with a tiny eyeshadow primer potion and two Urban Decay 24/7 glide-on pencils including the shades Zero and Ransom. The special aspect of of this palette is when you flip the lid, exposed is a motionless animation of an illuminated New York City scene. As it was limited edition for the Christmas season the year I received it, it is no longer available to buy via the usual places. If you do manage to find it for a reasonable price, it makes a great display addition to a vanity table.
Number of Eyeshadows: 16.
Net Weight: Shipping weight is 2lbs.
Individual Shadow Weight: 0.9g
Availability: Unknown.
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| Best Packaging: Urban Decay 'Book of Shadows Volume 3/NYC' palette. |
2.Best Colour Payoff
Sugarpill 'Addicted To Pretty' Palettes
These Sugarpill palettes are beyond pigmented. I have two from the 'Addicted To Pretty' range which are 'Burning Heart' and 'Sweetheart.' Each palette contains four shadows and between them the colours are Love+, Flamepoint, Buttercupcake, Poison Plum, Dollipop, Tako, Afterparty and Midori. They are mostly matte shades but some do have a trace of shimmer, which is virtyually undetectable when applied to the lids. These shadows are rich and intense with a soft feel, making application and blending seamless.
RRP £24.95/$34.
Number of Eyeshadows: 4 per palette.
Net Weight: 3.5g per palette.
Individual Shadow Weight: Just under 0.9g per shadow.
Availability: Cocktail Cosmetics, Love Make-Up and Sugarpill.
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| Best Colour Payoff: Sugarpill 'Addicted To Pretty' palettes. |
3.Most Versatile
ELF '144 Neutral' Palette
The ELF '144 Neutral' Palette contains every neutral colour you could imagine including cool and warm hues of brown, cream, bronze, gold, burgundy, cranberry, silver and black. This palette is versatile in texture as they range between matte, satin and shimmer finishes. When layered on top of an eyeshadow base these colours can last all day. It is a perfect palette to take your look from day to night making it an adaptable palette that will help you achieve any number of looks. For a full review click here.
RRP £20/$30
Number of Eyeshadows: 144.
Net Weight: 86.4g.
Individual Shadow Weight: 0.6g.
Availability: EyesLipsFace USA and Amazon UK.
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| Most Versatile: ELF '144 Neutral' palette. |
4.Best for Travelling
Coastal Scents 'Revealed' Palette
The Coastal Scents 'Revealed' palette is a more affordable version of the Urban Decay Naked and Naked 2 palettes as it combines the colours of both with a wallet-friendly price. The neutral shadows range in finishes including matte, shimmer and satin as well as vary in colour from taupes and pewters to bronzes and golds, not forgetting creamy beiges, ochre nudes and a spectrum of browns. With the colour choices and Revealed's stiff slimline cardboard packaging, it the perfect travelling cosmetics companion.
RRP £21.49/$19.95
Number of Eyeshadows: 20.
Net Weight: 30g.
Individual Shadow Weight: 1.5g.
Availability: Coastal Scents, Amazon UK and eBay.
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| Best for Travelling: Coastal Scents 'Revealed' palette. |
5.Biggest Regret
Urban Decay 'Black' Palette
I don't have any make-up regrets as, I believe, with everything in life, it is all a learning curve. However, for me, a disappointing palette was the Urban Decay 'Black' palette. Not a recent release as such, just a late purchase from me. The downfall of this one is not because of the palette itself as the smoky colours are impressive, it is more to do with my own experience. I bought this from eBay and the seller listed it as 'new other' stating that it was barely used. The shadows themselves have hardly even scratched the surface and I disinfected it with surgical spirit as soon as I received it. I was just disheartened that the packaging was shabby as if it had been living in unkempt squalor. The silver lettering was not as pristinely intact as I'd have preferred. I think I was more annoyed with myself for buying a used palette, even though previously used (yet clean) products are part of the territory for make-up aficionados. My OCD brain just won't let me use it myself. I think once I actually wear it, I'll feel more encouraged to use it regularly.
RRP £32/$39
Number of Eyeshadows: 6.
Net Weight: 6.8.
Individual Shadow Weight: Just over 1.1g each.
Availability: eBay.
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| Biggest Regret: Urban Decay 'Black' palette. |
6.Best Colour Names
Urban Decay 'Deluxe Shadow Box' Palette
Urban Decay colour names always combine metropolitan glamour with an alluring hobo corrosion, making the brand appealing to make-up addicts similar to me who adore raw, idiosyncratic beauty. The 'Deluxe Shadow Bow' was the first Urban Decay palette I owned and so these were the first unconventional colour names I knew of, making this palette the most memorable. Subsequently, Urban Decay palettes contain some of my all time favourite eyeshadows and this love of the unorthodox influenced my interest in other brands that similarly promote individuality such as Illamasqua and Too Faced. The names of this palette include Fishnet, Honey, Ransom, Graffiti, Zero, Peace, Shag, Scratch, and Underground - all of which nod to Urban Decay's mission of edgy, feminine beauty. Could not possibly love them more.
RRP £14.99/$21.99
Number of Eyeshadows: 9.
Net Weight: 10g.
Individual Shadow Weight: Just over 1g each.
Availability: eBay.
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| Best Colour Names: Urban Decay 'Deluxe Shadow Box' palette. |
7.Least Used
Make-Up Academy 'Undress Me Too' Palette
Make-Up Academy is one of my favourite brands. This palette is a replica of the often copied Naked 2 - which I love so this is not a personal dislike. It is simply a matter of already owning Naked 2 AND W7's 'In The Buff and so now I have triple the amount of these cool neutral eyeshadow palettes (and now coveting Make-Up Revolution's 'Iconic 2' - why?? ... because I have make-up mania). There really is no need for me to use this except as a means to save room in my make-up bag as I'd opt for this over the bulkier Naked 2 and In The Buff palettes.
RRP £4/$10.99
Number of Eyeshadows: 12.
Net Weight: 9.6g.
Individual Shadow Weight: 0.8g.
Availability: Make-Up Academy and Superdrug.
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| Least Used: MUA 'Undress Me Too' palette. |
8.Most Used
Sleek 'Oh So Special' Palette
The Sleek 'Oh So Special' i-Divine palette is affordable, compact and contains exceptional quality pink and neutral shadows. This palette is essentially a condensed version of the Naked 3 and has a good mixture of matte and shimmer shades. These are Bow (matte white cream), Organza (pale iridescent pink), Ribbon (matte pink), Gift Basket (pink bronze), Glitz (pewter mauve), Celebrate (blackened plum), Pamper (shimmering pale pink), Gateau (pale golden mauve), The Mail (matte beige), Boxed (matte chocolate brown), Wrapped Up (deep matte mauve), and Noir (matte black). This is perhaps one of my favourite ever palettes as these pink gold colours are most complementary to my skin tone and eye colour.
RRP £7.99/$11.99
Number of Eyeshadows: 12.
Net Weight: 13g.
Individual Shadow Weight: 1.1g.
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| Most Used: Sleek 'Oh So Special' palette. |
9.Most Loved
Too Faced 'Chocolate Bar' Palette
This cocoa infused Too Faced Chocolate bar smells good enough to eat. This palette has a great mixture of matte, satin and shimmer shades, two of which have a larger pans for highlight colours. The shadows are Gilded Ganache, White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Black Forest Truffle, Triple Fudge, Salted Caramel, Marzipan, Semi-Sweet, Strawberry Bon Bon, Candied Violet, Armaretto, Hazelnut, Creme Brule, Haute Chocolate, Cherry Cordial, and Champagne Truffle. With these charming names, suggestive of luxurious sweet treats mixed with velvety soft, richly pigmented shadows, it's no wonder it is my most loved palette. Read a full review here.
RRP £45/$49
Number of Eyeshadows: 14.
Net Weight: 13.3g
Individual Shadow Weight: Just over 0.8g per shadow and 1.6g per highlight shade.
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| Most Loved: Too Faced 'Chocolate Bar' palette. |
10.Desert Island
Urban Decay 'Naked 3' Palette
The Urban Decay Naked 3 is a much cherished Christmas gift from my fiancé who understands my immediate need for yet another eyeshadow palette. Naked 3 is the rosy hued sister of Naked, Naked 2 and Naked Basics. It comes with a dual ended synthetic brush perfect for laying down the product on one end and blending out with the other. Naked 3 does not disappoint with 12 blendable, never seen before velvety shades all centred around rose gold hues. There is a mixture of matte, shimmer and glitter shades. The colours are Strange, Dust, Burnout, Limit, Buzz, Trick, Nooner, Liar, Factory, Mugshot, Darkside, and Blackheart which resemble the metallic cast of a certain infamous Michael Kors watch. Read a full review here.
RRP £37/$52
Number of Eyeshadows: 12.
Net Weight: 15.6g.
Individual Shadow Weight: 1.3g.
Availability: Debenhams, House Of Fraser, Feel Unique, Urban Decay, Sephora and Ulta.
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| Desert Island: Urban Decay Naked 3. |
I imagine that the way I talk about my make-up palettes is the way Miranda interacts with her fruit friends and vegetapals.
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| Now I want to put faces on my palettes. |
I think I will do this tag again in another six months to see if I have found anything to replace my current selection.
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| Perfect Palette Tag. |
