Can You Resist Cute Packaging?
Urban Decay Vegan Palette ($34.00) is a new and limited edition eyeshadow palette for fall, and it features six eyeshadows, one eyeliner, and a miniature-sized eyeshadow primer. It features only products that are vegan-friendly.
The packaging is my favorite part about this product, which is creative, pretty, and functional. Otherwise, the eyeshadows are every bit of quality you’d expect from Urban Decay, but with the Naked Palette released simultaneously and featuring three of these shades (Smog, Gunmetal, Half Baked), it makes getting both of them rather redundant.
These are pitfalls of Urban Decay’s limited edition palettes, because long-time collectors often end up with multiples of several shades, since the brand reuses certain shades with great frequency. (I am personally tired of seeing Twice Baked and Baked in their palettes!) On the other hand, for newer Urban Decay fans, the palette is a cute palette with six great shades from the brand’s range. Each eyeshadow is 0.03 oz. in weight, along with a 0.03 oz. Zero 24/7 Eye Pencil and 0.13 oz. Sin Primer Potion. It’s a decent amount for the price tag, but…
The Naked Palette gives you so much for–double the eyeshadow shades (12 in total)–but every single shade in it is full sized at 0.05 oz. For $10 more, you’re getting 0.6 oz. of eyeshadow, instead of 0.18 oz. Pretty awesome, right? All six of the Vegan palette shades can be purchased individually, in case you’re dead-set on one of them. I guess what I’m really saying is if you were waffling between the Vegan and the Naked palette, I would recommend the Naked palette and not even think twice about it.
- Minx is shimmering aqua green with tiny flecks of teal glitter.
- Urb is a softly shimmered olive green with a golden sheen. It was the least pigmented shade of the six, though I wouldn’t call it sheer or lacking in pigmentation overall.
- Gunmetal is a blue-toned gray-black with silver sheen. Very pigmented!
- Twice Baked is a satin-y medium-dark chocolate brown.
- Smog is a shimmering bronze with a copper-gold sheen.
- Half Baked is a lightened copper with a near metallic finish.
The palette also includes a miniature-sized Zero 24/7 Liner (true black) and Sin Eyeshadow Primer Potion (a shimmery burnt champagne base). I need another Zero like I need another eyeliner, period, but it’s a solid black eyeliner which will work well with any of the six shadows and any combinations thereof. I find Sin very, very shimmery–so frosty that it’s hard to use as a base, particularly with frost finished shades like these. I think Eden would have been a better choice here to make it more versatile.
Minx and Urb are the only shades that are on the glittery side, though neither is a glitter bomb. The other four shades are smoother and don’t feel glittery–just shimmery. All six shades are very true-to-color with nice pigmentation and a soft, smooth texture. I really do like and enjoy the palette, and there is nothing wrong with it. It just depends on what Urban Decay palettes you already own and how much overlap you have between them all.
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- Product: 28/30
- Value: 9/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you don’t plan on getting the Naked eyeshadow palette (how could you not?!) and you don’t have too much overlap with previously released palettes, it’s an adorably packaged palette with quality in mind.
AVAILABILITY: Sephora, Urban Decay
Get Ready to Make a Scene
Benefit Scene Queen Makeup Palette ($38.00) contains something for each part of your face — 0.1 oz. CORALista, 0.09 oz. High Beam, 0.18 oz. Juicy Coral Lip Shine, 4 0.1 oz. eyeshadows, Smokin’ Liner, and 2 double-sided makeup brushes.
- CORALista is a pink-cral with subtle sheen but not a lot of shimmer. It’s very pigmented, so a little goes a long way. I actually didn’t even realize it was in the palette until I went to write the review! It’s a pretty small pan, so it may take some maneuvering to get your brush in it. The included brush is a bit stubby, so I find it cumbersome to use.
- High Beam is a light, shimmering pink-toned highlighter. It’s a whitish-pink, and it works best on light to medium skin tones (Moon Beam better for deeper skin tones).
- Juicy Coral Lip Shine is a semi-opaque coral-orange with golden shimmer. It’s a very pretty shade of coral, and it’s not too orange either.
- Smokin’ Liner is a dark black-brown eyeliner that goes opaque without trouble. Very smooth and richly pigmented.
Charcoal is a darkened gray-black with subtle silver shimmer.
- Shimmering Beige is a pink-toned medim beige with a frost finish.
- Misty Blue is a slightlyg rayed medium-dark blue with a silver sheen.
- Navyis a rich navy blue with a purple edge and flecks of midnight sky blue shimmer.
- Dual-Ended Brushes have an angled brush on one end and a fluffier brush on the other–and then two of them. They’re usable in a pinch, but they’re not the best brushes of all time. Better than the usual inclusions, though.
I like all of the products individually, and I feel Benefit gives you a good amount of each of them (in fact, the eyeshadows are surprisingly weighty–0.1 oz. compared to the average of 0.05 oz.–but I don’t feel that such a rich shade of coral on both cheeks and lips is actually all that suitable to pair with the eyeshadows. I think medium skin tones will be able to pull off that look, but paler skin tones may have to be a little cautious. I fear it may be too much all at once. I was expecting a pinker blush (maybe Sugarbomb) rather than CORALista here.
That’s my only gripe about the palette, though! There are only powder products exposed, while the lip and cream products are housed in their own containers, so there’s no worry about cross-pollination of shadow dust. The palette is cute and still functional, and it even includes a step-by-step guide on how to wear the palette.
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- Product: 27/30
- Value: 10/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you like yourself a blue smoky eye, this may make a great g-to palette.
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
An Underappreciated Lancome Blush
Lancome Shimmer Mandarin Sky Blush ($29.50 for 0.18 oz.) is one of the prettiest shades of coral-pink with peachy-gold shimmer and sheen. Even though it seems reminiscent of such cult favorites as NARS Orgasm and MAC Springsheen, the way the gold sheen reflects light makes it stand out. It’s so wearable you could wear it as an everyday blush, but it can be worn subtly or intensely, depending on the look you’re going for. It blends beautifully with skin because of the soft, smooth texture of the powder. I always forget how gorgeous this shade is until I pull it out. It’s even pretty in the pan, but it’s truly at its best when worn. Very glowy without being shimmery.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you’re a fan of coral blush, definitely check this shade out next time you’re near a Lancome counter or Boutique.
AVAILABILITY: Lancome, Macy’s, Nordstrom
A Dalliance with Cute & Functional
Paul & Joe Beaute #06 Sheer Bliss Lip Gloss G ($22.00 for 0.21 oz.) is a new lip gloss for summer that’s available in ten shades — from gold to nude to cherry to clear. I tested out Sheer Bliss, which is a brightened orange-melon with multicolored shimmer. It has a nice, semi-opaque color coverage, and it looks very soft and natural on lips. It looks more like a soft pinky-melon when applied to my lips, and the iridescent purple shimmer seems to catch the light the most.
There’s a modest level of glossiness, and the wear is about average for gloss for me — two to three hours (not eating/drinking). Texture wise, the gloss is medium in thickness (not ultra thin, but not heavy or thick), non-sticky, and moisturizing. It’s lightly scented with melon, but I don’t notice the scent when wearing the gloss.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: Based on this shade, I love that the gloss looks and feels like a gloss, but you still get a healthy dose of color pay off, too, so you can easily wear it alone or layer on top of lipsticks.
AVAILABILITY: Beauty Habit, DermStore
LORAC Multiplex Lipgloss: Intermix, Cliche
Move Over Dazzleglass!
LORAC Multiplex 3D Lip Gloss
($22.00 for 0.17 oz.) is an ultra shimmering, light-reflecting non-sticky lipgloss that gives MAC’s Dazzleglass a run for its money. Giving you nearly three times as much product for $4 more, Multiplex just might dazzle your socks off.
It has a lightweight feel with just the right level of thickness–it’s not so thin that you need to keep going back for more, but it’s not so thick that it feels gooey. There’s no tackiness either, but despite the non-sticky feel, it still lasts a good two to three hours on me–which is average to a little above average for me. A lot of the non-sticky glosses I try tend to disappear in an hour’s time, which I definitely find frustrating.
These glosses are also moisturizing–they don’t dry out lips, even when worn alone, and in fact, my lips feel pretty good after wearing one for several hours. There is a very faint sweetly citrus scent, but I had a tough time detecting it enough to settle on a descriptor for it. Packaging is so-so — it looks cute, but it feels a little cheap in my hand. Not super cheap, but it doesn’t feel as nice as Dazzleglass.
- Cliche is a semi-sheer fuchsia pink. It has a very sheer, pale pink base, but it’s full of fuchsia and iridescent shimmer that it gives it a much fuller coverage look.
- Intermix is a browned nude base with peach-copper shimmer and sheen. I think this would be a really flattering everyday shade for those with warmer skin tones.
According to LORAC, the glosses contain holographic pigments, which is where the dazzling, shimmering, and glistening comes in. They have this rich, glossy sheen mixed with flashes of iridescence and lots of microshimmer. It doesn’t feel like shimmer or glitter, so even when it fades, it’s not gritty. The way the shimmer works is that it almost delivers the color of the lipgloss, rather than the gloss itself. Very cool!
I really loved this gloss–great texture, look, and feel–and I hope LORAC will release many more shades in the future.
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you love the way MAC Dazzleglass shimmers and shines but find yourself running through a tube too quickly, Multiplex offers the fun, shimmering, dazzling look with a non-sticky, lightweight texture with more pigmentation to boot!
AVAILABILITY: Sephora
Chanel Glossimers: Petite Peche, Coral Love, Rose Dilemma, Pink Teaser
Lovin’ Fall for Summer
For fall, Chanel released four new Glossimer shades ($27.00 for 0.19 oz.), but they’re oh-so-perfect for summer–so thank goodness they’re available come July! (Some readers are reporting their local counters have the collection in already, too.)
- Petite Peche is a sheer, softened peach-pink with subtle gold shimmer. It looks a little milky and less peach, more rose on my lips. For those with pinker or redder lips, I think this shade will look very sheer and just a touch milky–the peachiness will be gobbled up by the natural lip pigment.
- Coral Love is a sheer, soft coral-pink with golden shimmer. The golden shimmer in this really stands out in this shade.
- Rose Dilemma is a sheer, blue-based rose pink with white shimmer. This shade is pinker on my lips than Petite Peche, but it has a look that’s part jelly and part milky.
- Pink Teaser is a semi-opaque shade of fuchsia-pink with gold shimmer. This one was easily my favorite–not just because it’s pigmented, but because it’s such a well-done shade overall. It’s very flattering and wearable by anyone, and it doesn’t just look like any ol’ gloss on the lips.
Glossimers have this way of shimmering and glittering that’s subtle but flashy at the same time. I never understood the big deal about them until I wore one and saw my lips in my car mirror. They looked amazing! They were unreal. Now, I can appreciate the nuances of the shimmer to micro-shimmer these glosses contain. Sometimes they’re sheer, sometimes they’re not. The range really varies, though the majority are sheer to semi-sheer. They wear three to four hours and are a rather non-sticky gloss, which makes the length they wear even more impressive.
I’m totally digging the four new shades for fall, even if they feel and look rather summery (or even springy) to me. They do, of course, pair well with bolder eyes and cheeks, which were stars of Chanel’s fall collection!
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- Product: 29/30
- Value: 8/10
- Ease of Use: 4/5
- Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you like your gloss shimmery without being sticky, Glossimers are a luxe option to consider.
AVAILABILITY: July 2010
