Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette

There is no denying that Urban Decay are the queen of eyeshadow palettes! The quality and shade range is quite frankly unbeatable which makes those beautiful palettes well worth the splurge! Whenever a new palette is added to the range particularly amongst the cult ‘Naked’ series, my eyes pretty much pop out my head! That was indeed what happened when my eyes met with the newly launched Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics palette.

The ‘Basics’ range from Urban Decay is an all matte collection and one that I’ve previously not tried before. This time however they have launched an ‘Ultimate’ edition in a bigger palette with 12 shades. The palette is encased beautifully in gold square packaging that is pretty sturdy, in fact probably the most heaviest and sturdiest packaging from the Naked range! Inside, it has a large mirror which is of a great size and the usual double ended brush. The palette retails for £38.50 which is the standard price now for all the bigger Naked palettes which is pretty reasonable considering the amazing quality you can expect.

The palette contains 12 shades that are all matte (although I believe one shade is more ‘satin’) ranging from cool toned shades to warm tones. As you would expect from Urban Decay, the shades are beautifully pigmented and blend beautifully. Mattes can be tricky to master but as always Urban Decay get it spot on! The shade range is also beautiful with every possible matte shade you could need! Some of my favourite shades include those gorgeous stand out browns on the bottom row Extra Bitter, Faith and Lookout. In particular, the warm reddy brown tones of Extra Bitter is truly to die for! As a mauve plum lover, I also love the last three on the top row which are Tempted, Instinct and Lethal which are all so pretty and work wonderfully together! Although all in all I love all the shades as every shade is so wearable and it is great to have it in the one palette and in a reliable great formula!

(L to R) Bottom row, Top Row. (Apologies for poor swatch image, they were difficult to capture)

What do you think of this palette?

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Becca Ombre Rouge Eye Palette

The Becca Ombre Rouge Eye Palette is a palette I have been reaching for a lot recently yet despite owning it for a while it seems to have gone under the radar in terms of blog posts. I haven’t mentioned this one much at all yet this simple but pretty palette is definitely one that deserves a second glance at in the beauty aisles.

From the first look at this palette, it is fairly simple with only five neutral shades. However the shades and performance of them make this a great staple to have in any eyeshadow collection. The shade range itself is neutral in tone but such a pretty selection of warm toned shades great for the upcoming season. The shades are arranged from the lightest to the darkest shade making it super easy to create a simple but defined eye look that can go from day to night. The shades vary with a selection of matte and satin finishes but across the board, the pigmentation is impressive with each shade having great colour pay-off. The formulas are also impressive in terms of longevity and last well on my oily eye lids even without primer which is quite a bonus!

The palette retails for £36 which is pricey for only five shades particularly when you can get a larger palette like the Urban Decay Naked palettes for around the same price however it does make a great everyday palette in my collection. The quality of the palette also makes this well worth the extra pennies! Definitely a palette that shouldn’t be overlooked!

Are you a fan of this palette?

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In Review: Tarte Tartelette Palette

I’ve already covered the Tartelette 2 palette (here) and it is clearly about time that I reviewed the original Tarte Tartelette palette. Also, having tried the two editions of the popular palette I can also lend a hand in comparisons behind the two, so does this one beat my beloved Tartelette 2?

AVAILABILITY/PRICE

Starting with the general info on the palette. As I have covered before, Tarte is pretty difficult to get a hold of outwith countries that (luckily) have a Sephora store. In the UK, Tarte is only available via QVC so annoyingly it is an online only brand. I believe their own Tarte website also offers international shipping however this may come at a high cost. In the UK at the moment (QVC’s prices can vary now and again) it retails for £35 and £33 on the own brand Tarte website which are fairly standard for the price of a high end eyeshadow palette.

PACKAGING

Yup, a whole section dedicated to the packaging. It is important, okay. Both of the palettes have a similar outer sturdy encasing which is in an eye catching gold with a purple ombre top. The second palette is nicer looking with the floral design but it isn’t necessarily a big deal! Again, this palette features a full lid length mirror inside which I know many people will appreciate. Also, the palette comes with a double-sided brush, if you have bought from Tarte before you may be aware of their much generosity when it comes to added on brushes!

SHADES

Compared to the Tartelette 2, this palette is much more cooler in tone. If you are into cooler shades then this might be more suited to your tastes. Again there is 12 shades in this palette with all 12 being matte compared to the Tartelette 2 that features a few shimmery shades. What I really like about these palettes is the layout of the shades with each row corresponding to a different look with the light shades first working up to the darker shades. The good thing here is that it also means you can create a full look with this palette with great light shades, transition colours and darker crease colours too. Looking at the colour range in the palette, the first row is the warmest you will get with more brown-y toned shades. The next two are much cooler in tone with the second having a lilac-y purple tone to it and the last a more grey smoke-y vibe.

FORMULA

 The most important part and sadly the part were this palette disappoints. Starting with the pigmentation, the colour pay off varies which you may be able to see from the swatches. A couple of shades such as the last shade has pretty decent pigmentation but others fall short. The lightest shades are pretty sheer and didn’t swatch well but that is usually expected. The real issue I had however with the formula was the blend-ability. I felt like many of the shades were hard to work with, they just didn’t blend well and they also were a little tricky to pick up on a brush. It is a strong contrast from the Tartelette 2 palette which I actually believe to have an incredible buttery smooth formula. The lasting power is also pretty poor as the colour seems to slide off my lids and crease in no time.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS

What is a beautifully presented palette with a good range of neutral shades falls short when it comes to the formula. For any eyeshadow beginners out there, I wouldn’t recommend this palette as it definitely requires much extra effort in the blending department. However if you are eager to try the Tarte eyeshadow range then I cannot recommend the Tartelette 2 palette enough. Probably one of my favourite ever palettes, the shade range is more appealing and the formula is much superior and longer lasting.

Have you tried the Tartelette palettes?

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In Review: Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette | Swatches

Too Faced are a brand that I’ve been desperate to try for some time now. I finally got a good taster of the brand over Christmas when I picked up the Better Than Sex Mascara and then finally received the Chocolate Bar palette that was top of my wishlist for a while. Whilst I may have more than enough neutral eyeshadow palettes for the time being, I couldn’t resist this chocolate themed and scented (!) palette. Rightly so, it has been a very well welcomed palette into my collection and one I would highly suggest for those neutral eyeshadow lovers out there!

Starting with all the outer packaging details. If you are familiar with the Too Faced brand then I am sure you will be aware of their fun and well thought out packaging. With a chocolate theme, Too Faced have designed this palette with that in mind with a cute brown chocolate bar shaped hard casing with a magnetic closure. The palette is actually pretty weighty too but not overly bulky. Inside features a mirror on one side of the palette which personally isn’t of interest to me but I am sure it appeals to many. The palette itself retails for £39 which isn’t too bad considering it offers 16 shades particularly in comparison to the UD Naked palettes.

The palette features a mix of both matte and shimmer shades as well as two larger sized lighter highlighting shades. I have absolutely no complains surrounding the formulas of the shadows, the mattes are beautifully buttery and soft whilst the shimmers are pigmented and smooth. I definitely recommend the Too Faced eyeshadow formula from using this palette and I definitely want to try more of their palettes! The shades have the most perfect names, all chocolate inspired with the likes of Salted Caramel, Milk Chocolate, Triple Fudge etc. Infused with cocoa powder, the shadows also have an amazing cocoa scent to make the palette seem even more edible! The shades are pretty warmed toned and mostly all wearable. Some of my favourites include, Champagne Truffle; a gorgeous champagne-y highlight shade, Milk Chocolate; the perfect soft matte brown shade and Creme Brulee and Hazelnut; two shimmery gold-y bronze shades. I sound like I am describing a box of chocolates! Overall, a gorgeous wearable palette all with great workable formulas, I couldn’t recommend it enough!

Are you a fan of Too Faced?

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In Review: Tarte Tartelette 2 In Bloom Palette

Tarte are a brand I am still looking to explore. In the UK it is pretty difficult to get a hold of although nevertheless I have got my hands on their two Tartelette palettes so far. If you read my January Favourites, then you would have seen me mention the latest Tartelette palette, Tartelette 2 In Bloom. Essentially a newer update on the original Tartelette palette although this time featuring a few shimmer/metallic shades opposed to being all matte like the first edition. Whilst I have had the first Tartelette palette for a while I haven’t properly reviewed it, so if you would like to see that then let me know! However having tried this palette, I am totally obsessed and definitely prefer this latest one to the previous.

Starting with the packaging and the availability etc. The palette comes encased in a similar way to the original palette with a hard outer casing that is in a beautiful rose gold shade. As it does have the hard casing it does make it feel a lot more secure and sturdy. The design on the front features a very pretty spring appropriate pink/purple floral pattern which is ever so aesthetically pleasing. Inside the palette, it features a full mirror on one side which is pretty handy. I never really use compact/palette mirrors but if you do it is a pretty good size! Like the original, it also comes with a double-ended brush. I like using my own brushes although this one is pretty decent. It comes with a flatter blush at one side and then a fluffier brush which is angled to really help get into the crease. The brush comes alone rather than fitting in the palette but considering the value of a Tarte brush, it is a pretty good deal! In the UK, you can get Tarte via QVC and the prices vary quite often. At the time of writing, you are looking around the £30 mark which is pretty decent and a good bit cheaper than the UD and Too Faced palettes!

On to the actual contents of the palette. There is 12 eyeshadows inside, mostly matte besides the addition of three shimmery shades. The arrangement of the palette is also pretty helpful as there is three rows of shadows with each row sticking to a colour theme that can be used to create a full look with lighter base shades to darker crease colours. The first row follows a taupe, greige-y colour scheme and isn’t too far from the likes of the Naked 2 palette. The shade Jetsetter in this row is a standout for me, a really buttery smooth soft taupe matte shade which works great as a base. On to the next row, the shades are a little warmer with more brown-y tan shades. The shade Firecracker is probably my favourite from the whole palette. This is a bronze shimmer and is so incredibly pigmented, it applies like a wet loose pigment! It is just the most perfect bronze-y shade you will ever need! The last row is probably my favourite selection from the palette with more warm burgundy, rosy tones. There is a gorgeous champagne shade for the inner corner and then a couple of dark burgundy shades great for warming up the crease.

Thinking of the shadows as a whole, the mattes are incredibly buttery and smooth. For me it is a huge improvement on the original palette as I did struggle working with some shades in the previous palette. This palette in fact has pretty much drawn me to all matte eyeshadow looks which is something I wouldn’t have worn before. The shimmers are nice too with Firecracker performing the best with a super soft texture. All in all, these shadows are all really good quality and I’ve been getting a lot of wear out of them! The longevity is also much better than the original palette and these shadows are pretty long lasting on me. So overall, a pretty good purchase! Also, apologies for no swatches I had a little difficulty with that, but do check out Temptalia’s here!

Have you tried the Tartelette palettes?

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My Makeup Geek Eyeshadow Collection… so far

As soon as I heard Makeup Geek hit the UK I had to try out their well hyped eyeshadow range. I have heard nothing but raves about these affordable eyeshadows from all the US gals on Youtube/blogs etc including Jaclyn Hill who I can always trust for makeup recommendations! Over the last month, I have picked up 9 shadows from the range alongside a Z palette to fit them all into. For those in the UK, Makeup Geek is available via Beauty Bay and comes in at £4.95 per single shadow and £7.95 for foiled shadows which is pretty decent particularly compared to the price of Mac eyeshadows! So here is the start to my hopefully soon full Makeup Geek palette!

In order from first row to second (same with swatches..)

Shimma Shimma

This is the perfect inner corner highlight shade. A gorgeous champagne shade, this is also said to be a good dupe for Stila Kitten .

Peach Smoothie

Not a shade I would typically go for but when Jaclyn Hill raves you gotta go with it! A light, peachy shade which is gorgeous as a base colour and into the crease to really give a little warmth to your eyes. It also has a pretty amazing name!

Prom Night 

A gorgeous lilac grey shimmer shade that looks beautiful all over the lid as a sheer wash of colour or built up more intensely.

Homecoming

One of my favourite shades, an easy wearable light brown shimmer that is an essential in everyone’s eyeshadow collection

Taupe Notch

A medium brown taupe shade with slight shimmer running through it that looks gorgeous paired with Homecoming.

Grandstand

A newer addition to my collection but a easily a stand-out! This is from the foiled range, a gorgeous rose gold which has very impressive pigmentation.

Burlesque

I am forever in love with berry/burgundy eyeshadows despite the challenge they present in trying to make them wearable. Nevertheless I had to add a couple to this palette, Burlesque is a gorgeous shimmery burgundy shade. This shade can be built up to be more pigmented or used as a sheer wash over the lid which makes it a lot more wearable and a little different but still simple enough for everyday wear.

Showtime

Showtime is very similar to Burlesque although this shade is a foiled shadow and the colour is slighty more brown-y red toned. It goes really nicely with Burlesque in the crease and this over the lid for a more shimmery look.

Steampunk

Finally, my last shadow is the darkest one from the bunch and one of the duo-chrome shades. Being duo-chrome, it has a pretty interesting colour, it is descibred as having a ‘black base with copper reflects’ which is pretty accurate as it appears pretty dark on me but there is a slight shimmer running through it. It’s not one I’ve used much so I will definitely need to work with this one a little more!

Overall, these shadows are all super pigmented and so buttery and smooth to blend and work with. The lasting power is one of the best things though as I have very oily eyelids and always suffer from creased and faded shadows before the day is even over but these are so long lasting on me! Definitely a hit and for the price they are so worth it! Any recommendations of what to add to my palette next!?

Are you a fan of Makeup Geek eyeshadows?

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Autumnal Eyes

The part of my makeup routine that I enjoy most is doing my eyes. Especially since Autumn came into play, I have been loving a little more dramatic eye makeup look. When I first got into makeup, eye makeup was always the scary part for me and looking back now I do slightly worry what I looked like when I left the house! Although I would like to think that I have upped my skills since then! Anyway over the last while I have been reaching for a variety of eyeshadows from singles to palettes all in my usual brown, warm toned shades so I thought I would share my top picks for the season.

The Palettes 

Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette – This was an obvious one. I raved about this last week here if you missed it. This is such a perfect Autumnal eye palette with more dark and smoky shades fit for a more dramatic look. Who would have thought I would be rocking a smoky eye but this palette makes it easier and more wearable to create something a little smoky even if its just for everyday wear. The palette also has a mix of both cool toned and warm toned shades so its super versatile and the looks are endless.

Zoeva Cocoa Blend Palette – Another highly raved about palette from moi, check my full review here. This is Autumn in an eyeshadow palette. I believe this palette can be a little tricky to get a hold of sometimes but I so recommend this to anyone. The quality of the shadows are fantastic with a good mix of shimmers and mattes and the shades are super beautiful too. Ooo and did I mention its a complete bargain too!

The Creams 

Maybelline Colour Tattoos (On and On Bronze/ Metallic Pomegranate) – One of my favourite drugstore eyeshadow formulas has to be these cream shadows from Maybelline. The formula is a dream to work with, they are super easy to apply with a smooth creamy formula that applies so evenly. The colour options are also gorgeous, in particular the bronze and plum-y red shade which are ever so fit for the Autumn months!

Max Factor Excess Shimmer (Bronze) – Another fabulous drugstore cream formulation comes from Max Factor. These differ slightly from the Maybelline shadows as the Excess Shimmers have a more mousse cream like formula. I find these eyeshadows completely underrated as they are truly a unique product to the drugstore that could be worth so much more. The mousse-y formula is so lovely and the shades are gorgeous especially Bronze which is a perfect warm toasty brown with incredible pigmentation that is basically Autumn in a jar.

The Powders 

H&M Eyeshadow (Robusta) – I spoke about the highly raved H&M beauty line here and mentioned my love for this eyeshadow.  The colour Robusta is a shimmery gold-y bronze shade that would look gorgeous as the festive season creeps in. The quality of these are great too and super impressive for such a budget line.

Burberry Wet & Dry Silk Shadow (Midnight Brown) – Are these not the most beautiful looking eyeshadows you have ever seen!? I sadly only have one shade (not for long I imagine!) although it’s such a gorgeous colour. I have the shade Midnight Brown which is a lovely soft shimmery brown which can be worn sheerly or built to be more intense. The formula is great too and blends really nicely on the lid.

What is your go-to eye looks for Autumn?

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Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette

When I first started getting into makeup, one of my first high end makeup products was the original Urban Decay Naked palette, a palette I still adore to this day. Since then, I have grown my little collection of Naked palettes to complete status well that was until a newbie arrived on the scene. Enter the Naked Smoky palette, the newest addition to the Naked range. Obviously I couldn’t let my collection down and had to purchase this. The palette is complete of dark and smoky shades all fit for the perfect smoky eye whether it be an everyday look or a full on night time smoky eye. Compared to the other Naked palettes, this is up there as one of my favourites and a palette I know I will get a lot of use out of.

First things first, we have to mention the gorgeous packaging. Without a doubt this is by far the best packaging of all the Naked palettes. The exterior packaging has a hard casing and feels pretty sturdy especially in comparison to the packaging of the original palette. The palette also features a magnetic closure making it easy to open and close as well as an improved top lid which makes the palette open further. The packaging design is also super beautiful, a grey and black smoked out pattern matching the smoky theme of the palette. Also, you can expect to find the usual decent sized mirror inside and also a double ended brush which is actually different to the brush included in the earlier palettes. I tend to stick with using my own brushes but it is nice to find a decent enough brush in a palette that doesn’t include spongy applicators!

I’ve heard a lot of people saying that the quality of this palette doesn’t live up to the other Naked palettes although I can’t really say that I agree. I find the quality of these eyeshadows superb as you would expect. The pigmentation is there, they are super blend-able and they are also pretty long wearing too! I never really found any application problems as the eyeshadows are all a dream to work with. In terms of the shades included in this palette, there is a mix of finishes. With 12 shadows in total, the palette is arranged by finish starting with four shimmers, four satins and four mattes. Rather than arranging the shades by colour I actually prefer the layout in this palette by finish. The shimmer shades are probably my favourites as they are all so gorgeous. A beautiful inner corner highlight followed by warmer toned bronze-y shades which then leads into a selection of cooler toned shades. Whilst I always tend to go for my usual warm shades of browns I have been really liking the cooler toned options in this palette. Despite the intimidation of the smoky eye, all these shades are super wearable which I love and they all don’t have to be reserved for a full blown smoky look. Following the cool toned options are some more smokier dark shades that work a treat at smoking things out a little for a more night time appropriate look. Finally the addition of two lighter toned matte shades which are perfect as a base shade or for highlighting the brow bone. Overall this is gorgeous palette and whilst the smoky eye look isn’t for everyone I do find that this palette offers a full collection of wearable shades that can work from day to night. Another big thumbs up to Urban Decay!

Check out my other Naked palette reviews:

Original Naked palette review

Naked 2 review

Naked 3 review 

Are you a fan of the Naked palettes?

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Nars Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow Palette

Whenever ASOS have a 20% off event it is basically a rule that I have to purchase something. With brands like Nars, Stila and Illamasqua I simply couldn’t say no. Being a huge lover of Nars I had always wanted to try their Dual-Intensity eyeshadow range. After working out the cost of buying single shades it actually worked out much better value buying the palette and who am I to turn down another eyeshadow palette in my collection!? After trialling it out for a while I thought I would rundown my thoughts on this beauty of an eyeshadow palette.

When it comes to eyeshadow I always like to keep things neutral and warm toned so this palette stretches a little out of my comfort zone. Having said that, I was pleasantly surprised by the wear-ability of all the shades. The palette includes a couple of light shades suitable for a base colour or the inner corner, a couple of brown toned shades and the addition of some cooler toned blue shades. Also, a deep purple-y shade and a dark black colour. My favourite shade is probably Himalia, a golden-y bronze-y brown shade that I actually considered buying as a single. It is a super wearable everyday shade that looks gorgeous on it’s own. I was also really surprised by the two blue toned shades; Lysithea and Giove which together create a really nice cool toned look which is completely different to my usual go-to.

You may be able to tell from the name ‘Dual-Intensity’ that these shadows work in two ways; wet or dry. Whilst the shadows apply much more intense wet they still offer impressive pigmentation applied dry. Although if there is one thing I struggled with in this palette, it was the application. From flat shader brushes to fluffy brushes it was a little tricky finding the right way to apply these shades. Some applied much more evenly than others particularly the lighter shades. I also did find it easier working with the shadows dry rather than wet but I guess that’s something I have still gotta work on. With good lasting power and super wearable shades, it’s definitely a thumbs up for me although the application is still something that I need to continue testing out.

Are you a fan of the Nars Dual-Intensity eyeshadows? 

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