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MAC and Inglot both have a good system, as it makes sense to buy pans or larger palettes. Their ranges are both huge, so there are plenty of shades to choose from. I love Make Up For Ever’s Artist Shadow range, but good luck getting a palette larger than a trio.
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I find the MAC palettes really convenient, both the 15 pans ones for the bulk of my collection and the empty quads for when I want to group a specific combo. I wish it was a little easier to pop out the eye shadows from the singles but it’s not too hard using the iron technique.
It’s hard to get the MUFE empty palettes? I have a 10 pan one from a few years ago. It’s pretty handy and I liked how the singles came already magnetized.
I like Make Up For Ever’s, but yeah I agree I wish they would release more palette sizes that aren’t just trios. I understand that the MUFE Artist Shadow range right now is probably also super geared towards “regular” consumers who probably don’t need the huge palettes. They do have empty giant empty palettes available at their standalone stores, but those are super pricey and not readily available.
I like Makeup Geek for build your own (more affordable) palette, even though it’s just z-palettes etc. I think I’d like Make Up For Ever’s, but their pans are so big, I might make a blush trio but there’s probably no way I’ll ever finish one of the huge eye shadows.
I really like the look and feel of the Inglot system. My problem is getting them out once they are in.
Yep, once you put them in you kind of have to either commit too not moving them or be ready to use a safety pin or bobby pin to try and get them out unharmed.Easier said than done 🙁
The SA at the Inglot counter said to use a magnet, and the shadows will remove easily
That’s true! They are very easily removed using the magnet in the lid of your palette 🙂
I wish MUFE offered a 6 and/or 9 pan palette.
I think MUFE makes their own palette that holds more than three but it’s basically a glorified Z Palette (i.e. no insert to hold the pans in place).
Inglot wasn’t on my radar much at the time but they used to sell their eyeshadows in both round 26mm pans and the current square ones. What I’d give to have them go back to the round ones! Inglot palettes are certainly sturdy but I’d love to be able to fit them in my MAC palette. Especially because those round 26mm pans seem to be a pretty universal size.
I personally love it! MUFE and Inglot both have really amazing refills indeed, but I agree that there could be a bigger variety of palette sizes available.
Inglot for me!
I haven’t found a build your own palette system that is perfect for me – right now I have a zpalette that is full of Inglot, blush pan depots (that ugly Benefit holiday tin!), and some eyehsadow depots. I don’t love the zpalette solution for aesthetics and wasted space from different sizes of pans, but it is practical for travel. I wish MUFE would put out a 5 or 6 pan case!
I love Inglot and Coastal Scents’ systems! The prices are great for both brands, too. The problem with Inglot is that it’s really hard to get the pans out after sticking them in the palette. :/
The SA at Inglot said to use a magnet and they will remove easily!
The only one I’ve tried is Inglot, and I have mixed feelings about them. I love their huge shade selection, but because there aren’t any stores in my area (other than a local Macys that carries a limited selection), I can’t swatch in person, and this it’s tough if you’re looking at 20 shades of purple online. And if you order online, shipping costs and returns can be a pain. Overall, their shadows tend to be good quality, some on powdery side, but they are very affordable – $ 7-$9 range. They have compacts with a big mirror and applicator, but compacts are also kind of heavy. And the shadows are huge – I wish they would cut the shadow size in half, as I can’t see myself finishing any of them. I guess they were made for makeup artists, so the sizes are generous.
I like MAC’s system, since I’m able to at least pull out the shades to check what their names are. I love Inglot’s shadows, but I hate that it’s next to impossible to get out to check the numbers.
I love MUFE’s empty palettes! From 4 to 20+ inserts… truly awesome with a lower price tag than Z-palettes for a much better quality. But yes, the problem is that you need to be in Europe to find them easily.
The MUFE store (at least in NYC) has the magnetized pans. I have the smaller ones which I think hold 12 (I haven’t filled it yet). I also have a really huge one. They are definitely stronger seeming than the z ones which I dislike because they peeled quickly. Strong magnets and metal but heavy. They come with a foam insert and a plastic film to prevent moving if traveling. The trios are so cute that I am torn tho.
I like Inglot’s system the best. They have a great range, nice sturdy palettes and it doesn’t cost an arm & a leg 🙂
Makeup Geek, if they count! I have a Z Palette and I love buying their shadow pans. I keep them all together along with the two blushes I have from them and it’s super convenient to be able to just pop them right in without needing special little settings to put each pan in, so it’s highly customizable compared to palettes that only offer one pan size. Not to mention how affordable MUG products are. 🙂
Coastal Scents — can’t afford any others. Boy, try to build a 12-pan eye shadow palette and things can get real expensive real fast!
I would definitely have to say MAC, IMHO. Very easy to use and accessible with a decent variety of different sized palettes. It would be fantastic and extremely welcome if MUFE would at least offer a 5-pan at Sephora! Or at least a quad! Yes, now I too am hooked on MUFE Artist Shadows, LOL! They are just so rich in pigment and so creamy!
Inglot and Makup Geek.
I like MAC, I don’t have the insert thingy, so I can fit a lot of eyeshadows in one palette (24). I have a MUFE palette that holds at least 9 shadows, I only have on in it, so far. I still prefere the MAC ones, though.
Wow. Surprised everyone says the larger MUFE palettes are expensive or hard to get. I literally just called an MUFE boutique (Northpark, Dallas) and ordered 2 of the “Large” size palettes. OK, so yes, you have to go to an actual MUFE boutique or call one…but that’s not that hard.
Anyway, MUFE does have 4 metal palette sizes. They are Small, Medium, Large, and XL. They do not come with inserts, but inserts are available for purchase. The Small has a 4 pan insert. The Medium has a 6 pan insert (and I think holds 10 pans with no insert). The Large has a 10 pan insert and holds 18 with no insert. The XL has an 18 pan insert and holds 28! with no insert.
The Large is $13. The XL is $14.
Ok, yes, you have to pay shipping too.
Still, they are less expensive than Z-palettes!!
The first time, they were sold out and when they restocked, they said they could ship 1 palette but the shipping was over half the price of the palette (and by the time I called back, since they left a message, they sold through all stock), and the second time I called, they wouldn’t ship – said it was too high in demand and they were only providing them to customers who shopped in-store. I’ve been on the notification list for them on Sephora since they launched and I’ve yet to receive a notification, lol!
lol! so weird! I actually hadn’t tried before to call for the MUFE palettes, but since my collection is now 21 I decided I needed too! Maybe it is just the Dallas MUFE store or something, but no problems at all. I literally called this afternoon. I *had* noticed that they were never in stock at Sephora though.
(I decided on 2 “L” size because I’m hoping to limit myself to what the 2 palettes will hold…ie. 36 total artist shadows. We’ll see if it works!)
I’ll definitely try calling Dallas to see if maybe the stores are able to keep them in stock better now! I really want them, just because they will hold them more uniformly, haha.
oh, boy – I can see the phone lines at the Dallas store crashing from the # of calls they will be getting!
I just buy singles and de-pot, and make my own using Zpalettes. That way I’m (mostly) not brand dependent as to what I put in it. I can mix it up however I like.
The worst has to be Urban Decay’s eye shadow palettes. What is up with that? So bulky.
I don’t think there’s any one “best.” That’s the beauty of build-your-own. I’ve got the Mac palette with some inglot and Mac shadows. I’d like to add some Makeup Geek to it someday, etc. I can put in what I like best.
I prefer making MAC palettes to the other brands mentioned- the sizes are perfect, quads for traveling, 15 pan, and then the pro palette, which is 30 pan, I think- plus they have the blush palettes that also fit the sculpting powders as well, which is nice. The main reason I like it though, and I know it’s stupid, is because MAC shadows have names!!!! Inglot and MUFE shades are lovely, but if get overwhelmed with all of the shade numbers. If I randomly see a color I like its a lot easier for me to remember an actual name as opposed to a sequence of numbers. Also, I have a MAC store near me, so I can try out the shades, I don’t have a large Sephora store or access to an Inglot retailer to do swatches.
I like the Z Palettes best (does that count?) because I find that with MAC and MUFE (the only two others I’ve tried) that it’s not easy to get the pans out once they’re in. I figured out the pinhole on the bottom of the MUFE Artist Shadow Palettes, but I cannot for the life of me figure out how to easily get MAC shadows out of, for example, the duo. Maybe it’s just me, but I’d rather the Z Palettes so I can arrange it however I want and it’s super easy to move around.
Inglot, hands down! I love that they have palettes where you can put your own combo of blush and eyeshadow, etc. and I just love their eyeshadow palettes and the variety of sizes they offer.
MUFE makes a metallic thingy that holds quite a few of their Artist eye shadows! You might want to look into that! As for me, everything is just sitting in drawers as is. For now…
Oh.. I just read the comments. It’s well known. Go Dallas! 😀
OH! Urban Decay once sold bomb ones! I forget how many they hold but I have around 5 of them and just haven’t gotten around to it! They’re AWESOME. I’m way to lazy to get the name. Anybody know what I’m talking about? Before they changed the formula and such? They’re huge! And honestly, I’m so anal about color organization in the spectrum that putting all my singles in their empty bought pro cases/palettes would make me irate. So they’re just.. There. Stress is a risk to my health so whatever. If I was able to use 100% of my body, I’d have things done lickity split! Things happen that change us and I don’t wa t to be a martyr to myself so I’ve accepted my disarray as something beautiful and accessible. De-potting is too dangerous for me! I was so proud when I cleaned out a broken Barbie loves mac blush! I actually did it and put the empty clean, still containing a pan, but clean, compact back together! I was so proud!!!! 😀
Glazel Cosmetics is not bad either, there is huge range of shadows there.