I have had the worst week! You don't even know. My MacBook broke on Thursday afternoon so I couldn't get any work done and didn't manage to get it fixed until about 7pm last night after the hefty price of $300 (although I had a seriously lovely chat with my Apple genius - finally a Canadian with banter and the guy who did fix my laptop kept the shop open for me thankfully!). Anyway, because that took so long I missed the ice hockey and I'm two days behind schedule work wise so I missed day of the long boats too. I'm devastated and haven't even got one report finished yet! At least I have had some marks back and they are really good - I'm super happy! I actually got the top mark in the class for one thing (I think!?) so that's just incredible.
Anyway, the point of all this was that to cheer myself I found Maybelline's new palette, The Nudes! This palette isn't available in the UK so I had to find it whilst I was here. It was actually in the first place I looked in (the shop next door to the place I got my Mac fixed) so you know - silver linings.
In North America Maybelline are the first drug store brand to come out with a large eyeshadow palette all for one price. Now, in the UK this isn't a big thing. Lots of brands including MUA, Beauty UK and Makeup Revolution have been doing these for years but considering the price of eye palettes here I am not surprised people went crazy for this palette. I intended to pick up the Naked 1 palette in Sephora and then saw it was $70 whereas this was only $17. Yeah, it is a big difference!
The palette consists of three quads: neutral, warm and cool. There is a handy little guide on the back telling you where to apply what which I love. I'm so awful with nude eyes and smokey eyes and definitely need a guide at all times. They have separated it into quads, trios and duos so there is so much versatility considering there are just 12 eyeshadows (haha just!).
Now, I'm not going to lie - this is not the best palette in the world. The colours in the pan look absolutely gorgeous. I saw it and literally grabbed it before running to the till like a headless chicken to go buy it before someone took it off me. The girls working in the store were in awe over it because the colours are so nice. There is a nice mix of matte and shimmer and enough to see you through day and night - good job Maybelline!
Anyway, the colour payoff is not that great. I have only really tried the neutral palette but the matte shadows are so weak that they would not show up on white paper. They look lovely on the eye but it takes a lot of shadow to get anywhere. The final look was lovely but it was a lot more effort than I expected. The blendability isn't great - it was hard work! The shimmer shadows seem much softer so I expect they'll blend a bit more easily but the matte shadows are not fantastic.
For now, I'm happy I picked up this palette. I have been in need of one since I moved to Van and this one has a lovely collection of colours. Sure, it was pricer than I would have liked but considering I paid an extra $5 for an extra 8 shadows I don't mind so much. I think my issue may be that I am used to a Benefit palette which is gorgeously soft and blendable and versatile whereas this is a much cheaper palette. However, until I actually give in and buy either the Naked 1 or Lorac Pro nudes palette this one will do just fine. I'd say if you want to have a go at trying out more eye makeup during the day but don't want to spend a months food shop on it this palette is worth a try. It isn't the best palette ever. The ones in the UK are a much better quality for half of the price but it really isn't that bad. I will get good use out of it and it looks super cute too.
Have you tried this palette? Do you have any tips that make it that bit better? Let me know!
I haven't tried this - Never actually seen it!! I'm just a sucker for my naked palette!
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Can't wait to see more!
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If you have the Naked palette I really wouldn't bother picking this up! It's absolutely perfect for me in the mean time before I go and splurge on a better palette but if you are used to a high end quality then you probably will be very disappointed. It's good enough for me though (although I haven't tried the Naked palette yet - I'm scared I'll love it too much!)
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I haven't seen it yet either. but like your review, I haven't heard too much positive feedback about it. Which is unfortunate because we're seriously lacking an affordable drugstore palette. I just can't rationalize something as expensive as the Naked Palette, but boy I wish I could!
ReplyDeleteI was so surprised to see it I just picked it up. I think the issue is that cosmetics are so expensive here and so to warrant the high end brands being worth it they have to be so much better than the drug store competitors. I think I'm going to see how much I use this palette and if I do use it quite a bit pick up the Lorac Pro palette (I'm hoping to pop over to the states soon so no shipping!) which is just $45 in the US. I haven't heard anything bad about that palette!
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This is so gorgeous looking, but kind of sucks that it's not great. All the good palettes are so expensive, and my budget just can't afford it. Although MUA and Make Up revolution are pretty good for the price!
ReplyDeleteEmma x
Writing Essays With Wine
I have heard so much about the MUA and Make Up Revolution palettes. I assumed make up prices would be similar to back home but that is everything BUT the case here. The more I'm using this palette the more I'm liking it but it is nowhere near as good as by Benefit palette just sitting at home gathering dust (boo!)
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Lovely looking palette, but shame to hear it's not the best quality. Sometimes it's worth splashing out but I totally understand it's good for a budget. I find Makeup Rev palettes great..and they're super cheap! Glad to hear you're doing well in your reports...I bet it's a relief after trying to manage a total lifestyle change :) Danielle x
ReplyDeletefrontière girl
I so wish I had picked up one of the Makeup Rev palettes - biggest mistake ever!
DeleteI'm hopefully popping over to the US soon and the Lorac Pro palette will be mine. $40 for a good palette is okay, $75 dollars however is a bit too much!
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I love the colors in this palette! I love natural eyeshadows!
ReplyDeletexx, Be || lovefrombe
They are so pretty! It's such a shame some of the pigmentation isn't great. I have found that as I have used them more the pigmentation is increasing a little bit (or I'm using more shadow - who knows!)
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I really like the look of this, it has some gorgeous shades! Shame to hear about the quality, though I find that always happens with the more affordable palettes it was the same with my W7 palette!
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I find that 9/10 you get what you pay for. I have been dabbling in both drug store and high end and have seen that my high end products are 100 times better than their cheaper alternatives. I guess it depends on how much you are willing to pay. If you know you'll use a palette most days then go for it and spend $70 but if not then it is just not worth it.
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I like the post and I like the palette, great colours! Can't go wrong with Maybelline and just so much better than forking out over the top for the Naked palettes, as much as they look nice! xx
ReplyDelete-Becca
www.beccasshoppingblog.com
I generally love Maybelline products - their mascaras are my holy grail. I haven't had a bad one yet! I have decided the Lorac Pro palette will be mine - it's just when that will be the issue.
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Such a nice palette! I think it is coming to the UK but god knows when. L'Oreal is also releasing one soon. Drugstore brands are definitely upping their game. And I'm loving it. :) x
ReplyDeleteSpeaking Beauty UK | Nars, Urban Decay, YSL GIVEAWAY
It looks such a gorgeous palette. You have a lovely blog x
ReplyDeletehan x
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