Archived Post
What makes you interested in a makeup palette?
What makes you interested in a makeup palette?/strong> Share!
I want to instantly see color combinations come together — I want to get inspired by what’s in the palette. There should be obvious combinations that jump out, but then when I look more closely at it, there are even more that come to mind. I like to see more shimmers than mattes (a personal preference) and a variety in tone and undertone.
Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
First off is its quality!!!
And you put the other enormous consideration into words perfectly. When I first lay eyes on it, I need to see a cohesive set of looks that my mind’s-eye has immediately put together. It needs to inspire and spark my creative juices from the get go, not leave me wondering what in heck I’ll do with it (Vice 4)!
I love to have a variety of finishes in most cases, anyway. Exceptions would be UD Spectrum (ALL shimmer) or Tarte’s Tartlette or any one of the good Viseart palettes.
Btw, I really loved the look I did today using my new MAC Macnificent Me palette! So easy to use for one of the prettiest nude/natural eye looks I’ve done in awhile!
I like to see colors. I don’t mind a few neutrals, but there’s got to be some colors – purples, greens, blues, grays, etc. And I prefer mostly shimmery with maybe 1 or 2 mattes. And MUFE or UD palettes always warrant at least a curious look from me, as they have nice shadows
The quality of the shadows and colours. I’m somewhat happy that I don’t have a palette addiction like some people, so that means i’m VERY picky with what i buy. I find that I’m drawn to very light shades because my eyes are small, semi-hooded and sometimes behind spectacle frames. So a palette has to have at least 2 lighter shades that perform very well, matte or satin preferably.
EYESHADOW PALETTE:
I am mostly drawn to neutral, warm, earth toned eyeshadow palettes. I rarely ever purchase a bright palette. A palette will win me over if I can imagine myself wearing several combinations of the eyeshadow shades almost everyday; especially for work/the office. Also, I like palettes that have a good mix of matte and satin finishes. I’m not a fan of glittery shades and I don’t mind if some eyeshadows have a shimmery finish, but it cannot overwhelm the palette. Lastly, opacity is a must! I don’t care is the color doesn’t necessarily “pop”, but I must be able to see the eyeshadow on my lids, with or without an eyeshadow base. I can’t stand it when a palette looks amazing on the outside, and then you swatch it, but some or most of the eyeshadows are lies…pure lies! (cough::MAC Blue Velvet::cough)
BLUSH PALETTE:
You’d never catch me buying a pre-made blush palette. A lot of the time, I find myself liking only one or two shades out of a blush palette (dependent on palette size), which deters me from from buying. I’d rather build my own.
LIPSTICK PALETTE:
Follows the same principle as the blush palette.
HIGHLIGHTER PALETTE:
I’m normally very open-mined to highlighter palettes. Color isn’t an issue [for me], since most highlighters come in beige, pinky, reddish, and orangey shades. I love palettes that include golden and/or champagne finishes. Once again, I must be able to imagine myself wearing these shades almost everyday. The only thing I dislike is if all the highlighters in a palette seem as though they’d glitter bomb my face. Chunky highlighters are a no-no.
The quality, for starters, and the way it’s been “co-ordinated” – if it’s going to meet my personal preferences for colour, etc., and if it’s going to be something from which I’ll get good use. The original Naked palette is a good example of all the good things a palette has to offer; the new Vice4, on the other hand, has so many shades I will just never use and a few of the colours I really like are such poor quality that, much as my heart still skips a beat when I see it, it’s a palette I probably won’t buy or, if I do, it won’t get a lot of use.
Couldn’t have said it better, you took the words right out of my mouth 🙂 Though I do actually prefer to have more mattes and satiny shades than shimmer or glitter shades.
I look for quality and variety in a make up palette. For shadows, I like a verity of matte shades that resemble an ombre, so I can build up the crease. For shimmers/vibrant shades, I also like a variety. I like to build up the crease with neutral mattes and add some shimmery color to the lid/waterline. The UD Vice palettes kind of make me panic- the colors are placed sporadically in the palette, with a lack of matte shades.
If there are face products in the palette, I prefer there to be a bronzer and a blush so that it is travel friendly.
The color combinations and general aesthetics of the palette have to catch my eye. After that, obviously quality, but I’m not going to bother looking into a palette that doesn’t attract me from the get-go.
For a palette I think it determines on the quality and colors it has that could suit me. I go for warmer shades and at the same time, I look for the versatility of a palette of any kind. My top two favorite eyeshadow palette this year is Naked 1, Naked Basics, Semi Sweet Chocolate Bar; the warm shades are my huge weakness, the quality is so bomb it’s almost unbelievable, and I use those palettes a whole lot this year. If I don’t see myself reaching for anything, I would think I’ve wasted money. Before I make purchases I be sure that I know I’ll use it more and if they were stolen, would I buy them again. Those palettes are my holy grail this year and I just love them to bits. If I get face palettes for blush, highlight, and bronzer, I be sure that they are neutral and something I can just grab on the day to day basis. I only have one and it’s the Naked Flush Blush in Streak. I do love coral shades but because I love the bronzer and highlight so much, I got myself two separate blushes and I have Tarte’s Exposed and Benefit’s Rockateur blush. Other than that, really… I think I’m all set. I need those palettes in my life, I know like I’m nothing without them. XD
I wish brands thought more critically about how women actually use makeup. I don’t need everything in a massive 12-tone palette. I’d love to be able to pick and choose among triads or quads that actually committed to being either fully warm or fully cool.
Quality and knowing that there are shades that I will actually use.
The brand. I usually just stick to MAC or Urban Decay to keep it simple. If a palette from them looks like crap, I just wait it out for the next one because God knows there’ll be one coming in the next few months. MAC has usually had a good mix of finishes and I can see the look I want to do with it when I look at it. I am new to Urban Decay but have bought a few palettes and like them quite a bit. It makes it a lot easier for me to just have HG brands rather than products for the purposes of keeping it simple and organized. With the palettes I’ve bought (thanks to checking here first and doing my research) from both MAC and UD, I have been very pleased so I don’t have that frenzied “MUST HAVE NOW” feeling anymore when I look at gorgeous palettes from other brands. That being said, if Tom Ford ever came out with a Tom Ford X9 or X15, even if it was crap I still think I’d have to have it.
Contents: Variety of colors, finishes, and products. Whether I like the shades, do they suit my coloring/accentuate my eye color, will the browns turn muddy on me. Whether it’s a full face palette (they’re handy, but I find I don’t use them as often as single product palettes, so it needs to be pretty special), eye palette, blush palette, etc. For full face palettes, I also have to factor in if it has bronzers. If there’s one and I can’t use it, no big deal. I’ll count it as an eyeshadow. If it has two or more and I can’t use any of them, I’d probably pass. Are the products cream or powder. I can get away with cream blush and highlighter on my cheeks, but everything else wants to not stick or melts off. Cream concealer, contour, and eye palettes are a big “NO.”
Quality is the next big decider. If the quality is awful, it doesn’t matter how pretty the shades are. On the other hand, if the quality is a only a little bothersome, I’m willing to work with a palette if I love the colors.
Versatility, price, packaging, brand, whether any of the money goes to charity (if so, how much), CF status vs other positives (I prefer CF, but for example, I support Viva Glam and Return to MAC as being good things, so I will sometimes still buy from MAC), and reviews all factor in, too.
I’m very, very picky about palettes so I usually stick to the “build your own” types like MAC.
That being said, there are specific things that I require in pre-made palettes if I’m going to shell out the money- a good formula, good packaging and particular shades/finishes I like. I also like semi-obvious color combos.
I have two Too Faced palettes– Natural Matte and Sugar Pop– and both of those stood out to me in part because of the ease of seeing color combinations– they tend to do three rows that could go well on their own– in addition to the particular colors (and the fact that I got the Sugar Pop one 50% off otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten one with such vibrant colors).
I have both Naked Basics palettes for ease of use and travel, and I have the Naked2 palette as it’s got a good shade range and mix of finishes. It also has sturdy packaging, unlike the original Naked palette, which I won’t buy unless they update the packaging.
I have the Stila Eyes are the Window in Spirit, which was kind of an impulse “having a crappy day” buy back in Canada, but I still quite like it. Good packaging, good range of colors and finishes, and I like that a lot of the shades are the more popular Stila ones (like Kitten) so I get to try them out as that was the first (and so far only) Stila product I got.
Eye palettes- I prefer more shimmers and a few satins. I don’t like completely matte shadows. Also, I prefer for the shades to be Uber pigmented but easy to use.
Blush – I don’t really wear blush, so I never buy the palettes that have blush included ( plus I know that the typical blush included in a palette won’t work on my dark skin).
A good mix of colors, with a nice balance of light, medium and deep shades. Out of the ordinary color combinations, so I’m inspired to try something new – but not an all neon palette, I prefer something I can wear on its own. Nice, sturdy and compact packaging. And of course a good value, with great quality (at least as good as the same brand’s single shades).
I’m usually disappointed . But I love the Urban Decay Naked’s and always go back to them.
I need to have “utility” shadows in an eyeshadow palate in order for me to reach for it. Meaning,I want a highlight browbone shade, a couple options for transition shades,and a liner shade. The rest should be good quality options for the lid.
First, I usually only consider eyeshadow palettes. It have to be able to see me wearing the colours. That’s means a cohesive palette with a variety of tones and some bright nor deep colours. And no glitter or heavy shimmer. Then the quality test. It has to swatch well on my skin and not be made in China. It has to be different from what I already own. I tend to want what I’m comfortable with.
Yes – definitely the colours. I like to see a variety of unique colours and combinations. I like to see a variety of greens, blues and greys and some olive tones. Maybe one or two neutrals like a lovely taupe and/or a creamy satin (not white). A lovely navy colour would be heavenly.
I prefer satins/slightly shimmery shades over mattes. In fact I like these finishes over mattes and glitter.
The quality needs to be excellent – richly pigmented, easy to blend with staying power.
I prefer anything from 4 -16 colours – but not the mega palettes – too many repetitive colours in those.
Above all – no rich chocolate or black mattes.
I really hope that the brands do read this blog and then they know what to produce!
Quality goes without saying! But other than that, the #1 consideration for me is versatility. Can I use it for day and night? Does it have bright colours and neutrals? Does it have a variety of finishes? Are there both warm and cool tones? I basically want a palette to do it all! I have yet to find it, lol, but the Lorac Pro comes close!
I LOVE eyeshadow palettes and I take everything into consideration. The packaging has to be very nicely designed (UD, Too Faced), or at least sleek and nice enough (MAC, Lorac). It sounds ridiculous, but I don’t get inspired when the packaging feels cheap. I tend to gravitate towards warm colors, especially browns, and most importantly, I value complex and rare shades. The shadows have to be pigmented and not too soft, otherwise the colors will get muddy on my lids. Preferably, there have to be a few stunning shimmers for the lid and inner corner, a deep brown or burgundy for the outer corner, a light cream matte for the browbone, and at least two medium matte transition colors. Glittery shadows are pretty, but often difficult to apply or pull off, so they’re not my favorites. I have more than enough blacks in my collection, so I’d rather not buy more palettes that include black shades.
Oh, and as Christine said, the color selection has to be a mixture of predictable and unusual. I need to be as lazy or creative with my makeup as I feel like lol
I agree with the packaging.. I never reach for cheaper packaging, because I feel it gives off that the product inside is cheap (maybe that’s a little shallow lol) I also mainly reach for what I display on my vanity, and the cheaper packaging never makes it there, so I’m less likely to go and dig it out when my nicer packaging makeup it out already.
In general, I think a combined palette that has beautiful quality (whether it’s just the products themselves and the overall palette is inexpensive, or it’s the entire thing and the palette is luxurious and beautiful), jewel tones (royal blue, emerald green, sapphire, dark blackened navy with a subtle blue shimmer through it!) or beautiful neutrals (If I saw a pale barley like eyeshadow mixed in with a beautiful plum, an iris blue-purple and a shimmering shade sort of like Le Metier’s Whisper, I’d be hooked!) in small sets of luxurious color combinations will usually get my attention. The only palettes I’ve immediately been into and thought I NEEDED to have were eyeshadow palettes, or eyeshadow palettes with a single rich red/vampy lipstick in. I generally like to be inspired by a palette, to be able to customize my look so I can go for depth or a more subtle look. Glosses, concealers, base products, multiple browbone shades and non-classic lip colours will immediately put me off a palette, no question!
The ultimate test to which I put any palette is the traveling test. Are there enough full looks I can achieve that I’d feel comfortable taking only this one palette with me? Also will it be a pain to store or pack? If it’s a yes, I’m buying it.
Since so few palettes actually pass that test, usually I look for organized presentation of colors that allow me to quickly create combos or at least have some method to the layout of shades.
As far as finishes go, I’m not to picky. But I avoid chunky glitter like the plague. If there’s a substantial amount of glitter in a palette I pass.
Color, price, if it’s LE or not, quality, brand, reviews…
palettes are definitely not something I buy on a whim.. it takes a lot of research for me to buy a palette, because even though you usually get your moneys worth with that amount/quality of product, palettes are pricey!