Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette Review, Photos, Swatches
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Not Enough Smoke in This Smoky Eyed Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette ($88.00 for 0.41 oz.) is a face palette that contains one highlighter, two eyeshadows, and one lip color. The shades are described as, “White shimmer highlighting powder is paired with a gradation of grey eyeshadows to create a wash of color, finish with the red lip wax for a sophisticated winter style.”
The highlighter is a pure snowy white with a silver-white shimmer. This one was a bit more sparkly compared to the Moonlight Beige palette. The texture, while finely-milled and soft to the touch, wasn’t as blendable–perhaps easier to notice given how stark this looked against my skin tone in particular. It will look best on very, very pale complexions. The closest dupe I could think of was Benefit High Beam, which is pinker.
The lip wax is a darkened pink-red with a natural sheen. On lips, it looks more red than pink and yielded semi-opaque color coverage. It has a thin consistency, so it looked a lot like a stain when applied to the lips. MAC Fire Sign is a little brighter, but it has a similar look and feel on. NARS Flamenco is also very similar, perhaps a touch more pigmented.
The first eyeshadow is a light-medium gray with a soft shimmer. It had decent to good pigmentation, and while finely-milled, was just a bit powdery. NARS Self Portrait 2 is darker. NARS Ramatuelle is shimmery and lighter. Guerlain Les Gris is more frosted. MAC Silver Gull is similar. Guerlain Les Ombres de Nuit is frosty.
The second eyeshadow is a medium-dark, faded gray with a mostly matte finish, though it is sprinkled with sparkle–you just don’t see it show up or at a distance. The color payoff here was weak; it had a faded, almost dry quality to the end result. bareMinerals Chateau is more pigmented, more matte. MAC Scene is very similar, just more pigmented. Chanel Gris Exquis is similar but has no sparkle.
My biggest problem with this palette is in the composition, all quality comments aside. There’s simply not enough contrast between the two eyeshadows for a really great smoky eye. I felt like the colors together ended up looking so much like the other–instantly muddied (if mud was gray). I was originally interested to see how Giorgio Armani took a rather bold pairing (smoky eyes and red lips), but I can see now that the grays are subdued enough that the lips are more of a focal point.
The highlighter lasted just over seven hours, and after eight, there was some slight fading. The lip wax lasted four hours, but it was a little drying to wear. Both eyeshadows were prone to blending out and disappearing (the lighter shade did this in a particularly frustrating fashion!), but once applied, they didn’t seem to fade much more. The eyeshadows appeared a little faded after eight hours without a primer (but no fading with a primer).
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette Review, Photos, Swatches
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Giorgio Armani Moonlight White Palette
Talk about being underwhelming, and at that price point that’s an unforgivable sin! The idea isn’t actually a bad one, but meh. You could throw together something similar into a make-up bag for quite a bit less. It wouldn’t be quite as convenient, but it’d certainly be higher quality!
I love how you’re always honest in your reviews. That’s why I love reading your blog. Thank you 🙂
Thank you! <3
You look simply gorgeous! I was (and still am) utterly unimpressed by this palette (esp. at that price) but on you… wow. It’s a very sleekly sophisticated look that you’ve managed with colours that, frankly, seem beyond bland and uninteresting. (And this comes from someone with an obsession with grey!!)
You know, upon a few moments reflection, I’ve concluded that it’s simply how chic grey looks on everyone (of all skin tones that I’ve seen thus far) and it has nothing to do with the palette itself. Grey (real grey, not taupe masquerading as grey) is such a hugely under-utilized, under-appreciated colour, imo.
Not enough gray in the world… eyeshadow, that is!
Yes! More love for grey!
One more for team grey!
Also, if you want that well-performing, sophisticated Armani palette, go for the new Maestro ETK Quad in #1 : I have it and looove it (and I’m not giving this “Moonlight White” Palette a second look, lol)
Mel, is that the one whose promo photos Christine just posted a few days ago? The graduated levels of ALL-grey? If so, I almost whimpered when I saw it. I’ve put myself on a No-Eyeshadow buy for the next 6 months but that one? That one is probably going to make me break my rule! I feel almost light-headed thinking about all those greys. LOL.
Yeap, that’s the one! Since it’s not limited edition, I suggest that you swatch it for yourself when you get the chance (or just keep going strong for 6 months and rush to it on the 7th), but I’m really swept away by it and I’m not a palette-type of girl…
Hope you like it too! A good grey palette is always whimp-worthy 😉
Oohhhhhhh, a rave, RAVE review from another grey-fanatic! Mel, I’m not sure I’ll be able to last 6 months after that! LOL. I’ll definitely go check it out at Neiman’s (which says a lot, given how much I dread that place.) It’s just so damn hard to find greys that aren’t either: 1) greiges or taupe-grey; and 2) not overly frosty/shimmery. (I’m generally a matte or minimal-shimmer girl.) What are your other favorite greys? My absolute favorite is MUFE Aqua #1 in Anthracite, and then an old (discontinued) matte dove grey from an YSL duo. I have another dark grey from a Chanel quad that’s nice (though that’s not super pigmented and it fades), and the lilac-y grey from the NARS Melusine duo, too, but that is a bit too shimmery. So, I’m constantly searching for good greys. I recently picked up the Tarantino Lovely (grey/black/beige/silver) palette & the Emerald palette because of their greys, but both are pretty dark (and similar to the MUFE #1 Anthracite). I’d like some variation in shades, which that Armani ETK palette definitely seems to have! Like you, I’m generally not a huge fan of palettes as they often have a ton of colours I’m not gaga on. But it’s a hassle to use greys across so many diff. pieces which makes that Armani one with its TOTAL, exclusive focus on grey…. Well, honestly, how could I possible resist??! 😀 I’ll definitely check it out after Thanksgiving — my “No More Eyeshadows” resolution be damned! LOL
Weird, it won’t let me reply to your last comment Kafka, so I’m replying to your second one and hopefully you get to see it.
Anyway I’m afraid I’m not the best to share favorites with, since my annoyingly sensitive eye area keeps me from trying on different brands. Plus, as you’ve mentioned, it’s difficult to find a true grey (most are just silver shimmers). That said, I do love me some Korres Sunflower & Evening Primrose e/s in #51 and Burberry’s “Pearl Grey” sheer e/s (#17).
I say stay strong a couple of months, because the makeup world is starting to embrace the color grey while constantly improving e/s texture. I’m curious to see in person the new Burberry Palette in “Stormy Grey”. It looks pretty similar to the Armani one, color and texture-wise (2 sheer, 2 matte ones), but the second shadow down on the B Palette seems to be a rich grey that translates vibrantly onto the eye (from what I’ve seen on other people, I’ve yet to try it for myself), whereas the second shadow on the Armani Quad is a more subtle grey that brightens up your look. And I still think the highlighter on the Armani Quad is superb: although VERY sheer, it really makes my eyes glow.
Once again, the winter is gonna be full of new Quad and Mono shadow launches (Armani is revamping the Maestro Monos and Estée Lauder is introducing Shadow Paints in January), so it’s best to wait until all the collections are in full display.
By the way, are your eyes green? Cause WE are the ones seriously rocking the greys dear! 😛
Agreed! Gray has become my go-to neutral of choice for that reason. lol
I really only like the face powder (again), but I just can’t justify the price for that one thing. Besides, alot of brands put out similar products during the Holiday season, even DS brands, and I still have a couple CoverGirl ones from a few years back (it’s not a product I wear regularly).
Hm… I don’t know. Your comments are as well-thought out as always, but I think that the palette looks really beautiful on you…
Yawn…. BORING. Especially for $88.
totally agreed !!
Seriously right?? I’d rather buy a crap load of Coastal Scents stuff!
wow and this one was the one i was excited about seeing! very sad about it :[
Wow, that’s..underwhelming is a good word for it. I could probably pull off the highlighter, but the rest of the palette’s not doing it for me at all, and for $88, I’d better love the whole thing.
88$ for this??? really??
Thanks for posting the eye tutorial at the bottom of the review Christine! Its very helpful to know how you did your look 🙂
Ugh, I just want the highlighter! I feel like on both of these they spent way more effort on presentation – making a stark white and silver look, than they did on quality. Wasted opportunity to make a perfect winter palette.
Sort of “The Emperor’s New Clothes”…if it’s got a high enough price tag and a designer name, I guess that’s supposed to be more than enough to justify its mediocre performance. And I’m sure to some people, having the Armani insignia is preferable to having something for 1/10th the price that performs well but carries a label like Wet n Wild or Maybelline.
I quite like the look you’ve done, with the bright white highlighter, but up close the lip wax looks yuk, like lipstick that’s worn off. If I had $88 I don’t think this is where I’d invest it…
For the price, this is definitely not worth it. Out of curiosity though, which brush are you using to apply the eyeshadow? I see it in almost all of your step by step tutorials? 😮
MAC 239!
It’s very pretty for a toned down work smokey eye. I would like to add one comment regarding this pallete
If you’ll notice there’s flecks of either e/s or illuminator in the Lipstick. That is why I HATE, hate, hate, hate when companies mix creams and shadows in a pallete.
Powders mix no big deal you just dust/blow the debris from the other colors. But when you have powder land in a cream you have a mess and it transfers to the lip usually and is noticeble.
No thank you. I refuse to purchase palletes like this for this very reason.
I only want the lipstick lol…but wouldn´t get ths pallete for just that if I´m not particularly fond of everything else. I don´t like lipsticks-gloss mixed in a pallete with powder shadows, it creates a mess generally, no matter how nice the pallete could be 🙁 .
Wow! Once again we see an Armani palette very differently. My darker gray tone has blue, deep pink, and silver shimmer in it, and it definitely shows on the eye- much like an Eyes to Kill shadow. The silvery light grey has lavender undertones and shimmers beautifully! The lip creme is more of a deep blue pink if I dab with my finger, and a rich blue red when I use a brush. Very creamy and moist either way. Also makes a soft cheek color, for that I-just-came-in-from-the-cold look. The most beautiful pearl powder highlighter I have come across is in the top pan! I am leaving the silver overspray on half of it just so I can enjoy the gorgeousness! I am a silver and dark haired lady with very pale pinky skin, and this is the perfect Snow White Winter palette for me!