Bobbi Brown Goes Modern for the Holidays

Bobbi Brown Modern Classic Lip & Eye Palette ($75.00) contains ten eyeshadows and four lip glosses all housed in a sleek palette for the holidays.

It includes: Ivory (creamy white), Oyster Grey (silvery beige), Antique Pink (muted rose), Quarry (steely grey with golden flecks), Taffeta (pale pink bronze), Birch (soft brown), Heather Rose (golden plum), Navy Charcoal (navy charcoal grey), Gold Thread (deep golden copper), and Espresso (dark chocolate brown) eyeshadows; along with Grape (deep plum), Pink Bouquet (bright pink), Golden Topaz (golden bronze), and Paisley Rose (warm pink rose) lip glosses.

• Ivory is a creamy muted white–it’s not too stark, but it’s not what I’d describe as beige, either. I’ve mentioned it before, but this color is routinely in Bobbi Brown’s palettes. This is a matte eyeshadow. It is also part of the permanent range.
• Oyster Grey is a pale, frosted champagne. This is a metallic eyeshadow.
• Antique Pink is a sheer, pink champagne.  I found the pigmentation on this shade to be underwhelming–it could use a boost.   This is a shimmer wash eyeshadow.
• Quarry is a cool-toned muted brown with a white shimmer-sheen. This is a shimmer wash eyeshadow.
• Taffeta is a softened bronze with golden sheen. This is a metallic eyeshadow.
• Birch is a muted medium-dark brown–it has very subtle red undertones. This is a matte eyeshadow. It is also part of the permanent range.
• Heather Rose is a plummy rose with bronze shimmer.  It is a touch sheer but only negligibly. This is a shimmer wash eyeshadow.
• Navy Charcoal is a muted navy blue matte base with blue flecks of sparkle.
• Gold Thread is a browned gold with a bright gold sheen. This is a metallic eyeshadow.
• Espresso is a cool-toned, smoldering black-brown. This is a matte eyeshadow. It is also part of the permanent range.
• Grape is a sheer plummy pink with plum and gold shimmer. This is a glitter lip gloss.
• Pink Bouquet is a sheer medium rose pink. This is a glitter lip gloss.
• Golden Topaz is a sheer beige nude with champagne shimmer. This is a glitter lip gloss.
• Paisley Rose is a sheer peach-coral nude with faint champagne shimmer. This is a shimmer lip gloss.

Each regular eyeshadow is 0.02 oz.; metallic eyeshadow is 0.02 oz.; each shimmer wash eyeshadow is 0.02 oz.; shimmer lip gloss is 0.03 oz.; and glitter lip gloss is 0.03 oz. In sum, you are getting 0.08 oz. worth of regular eyeshadow ($20.00 value), 0.06 oz. of metallic eyeshadow ($12.00 value), and 0.06 oz. of shimmer wash eyeshadow ($15.00 value). For the gloss, you are getting 0.03 oz. worth of shimmer lip gloss ($4.30 value) and 0.09 oz. worth of glitter lip gloss ($12.86 value). There is also a lip brush and an eyeshadow brush, both functional and not too scratchy (nowhere near as soft as full-sized Bobbi Brown brushes, but they are decent), which I’d put at $10 of value. The palette contains $74.16 worth of product, but you do get 10 eyeshadows and 4 lip glosses (three lip glosses or three eyeshadows would run you right around ~$60 alone).

I really love that Bobbi Brown separates her eyeshadows and lip glosses; it’s not something we always see in palettes, but this brand often does it, and I can appreciate that. It’s just nice not having to worry about powder getting into your gloss products. I also like the inclusion of brushes over sponge-tipped applicators and wish more brands would do the same.

This is the kind of color palette I would expect from Bobbi Brown, and I think it does suit its name. If you’re after bright colors, this is obviously something quite different. However, this palette is excellent for creating work-safe looks as well as some heavier, smokier looks–but lighter, “safer” shades dominate and make it an easy palette for those needing work-friendly options on-the-go or all in one place. I did find that the pigmentation was a bit sheer in a few of the shades (indicated above), but overall, it’s a nice palette.

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• Product: 26/30
• Value: 8/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 5/5

RECOMMENDATION: At $75, I would want to make sure to purchase it (or gift it) to someone who would really enjoy and use the majority of the palette–not just for one or two shades, you know?

AVAILABILITY: Bobbi Brown

Grape, Pink Bouquet, Golden Topaz, Paisley Rose Lip Glosses

Grape, Pink Bouquet Glitter Lip Glosses

Golden Topaz Glitter Lip Gloss, Paisley Rose Shimmer Lip Gloss

Grape, Pink Bouquet Glitter Lip Glosses

Row 1: Ivory, Oyster Grey, Antique Pink, Quarry, Taffeta;
Row 2: Birch, Heather Rose, Navy Charcoal, Gold Thread, Espresso

Row 1: Ivory, Oyster Grey, Antique Pink; Row 2: Birch, Heather Rose, Navy Charcoal

Row 1: Antique Pink< Quarry, Taffeta; Row 2: Navy Charcoal, Gold Thread, Espresso

Ivory, Oyster Grey, Antique Pink, Quarry, Taffeta

Birch, Heather Rose, Navy Charcoal, Gold Thread, Espresso