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Do you like makeup palettes?

Do you like makeup palettes? Do you prefer items sold individually? Why/why not?

I personally prefer individual items, because I find that rarely are makeup palettes that amazing.

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Stephanie Avatar

I always buy palettes because they are so eye-catching, but I honestly rarely go back to them again and again. I hate when they put lipstick/glosses in pans right next to the eyeshadows (this means you too Sephora!), it is impossible to use the eyeshadows without getting the pigment into the lip stuff!

Ruth Avatar

I agree about the naked palette, favourite palette ever! I also have their ammo palette and I find the colours too shimmery, and the glittery ones annoying! x

Nadia Avatar

I prefer individual items as well. However, when I find awesome palettes like Coastal Scents 88 Warm Palette and Urban Decay’s Naked Palette, I just can’t pass them up.

tg Avatar

I only like eye shadow palettes from established brands – none of that Coastal Scents stuff. I don’t trust where the materials to make it came from and the one I had smelled really strange, sort of like plastic or clay.

nicci Avatar

No, I don’t think I have ever purchased one. I don’t like how they can blend in together – I don’t want lip gloss to get mixed in with the eye shadow some how or my blush to get mixed w/shadow. I did see the new one Chanel has out but wasn’t impressed enough to buy it.

reene Avatar

I’d love for there to be palettes AND individual items to be available. So I can buy a full-sized version of the one shade in the palette I can’t live without. I know.. asking for too much. 😛 lol

Val Avatar

I love eyeshadow palettes and of course single eyeshadows as well. However, i don’t like palettes that have everything inside (blush, eyeshadows, lipgloss, etc) I find that a lot of the time i don’t like the combination….

Erica Avatar

My makeup collection started with a majority of palettes. I would sy I still love the most of them but I am now buying more individual iteams because I’m starting to appreciate theie qualities.

Christine Avatar

I usually prefer individual items. Palettes tend to have too many colors that I wouldn’t use. Also some companies release palettes that have inferior quality when compared with their individual items. However, there are exceptions, such as the UD Naked Palette. It’s top notch quality with all wearable colors. Love it! I also have a couple Dior quints that are excellent.

Colleen Avatar

I love to buy them, but I find I don’t use them all that often. In fact, I don’t like using them b/c most of the time I love the packaging of them and I don’t want to use them up.!

Rebecca R Avatar

I actually find that the coastal scents 88 palette works great for me. It has nice pigmentation and plenty of colors. You can create almost any look. Problem is, its really fragile and I prefer to carry individual items as opposed to a palette.

Livy Avatar

I agree but I love Lancome’s eyeshadow quads lol I have this one shimmer quad with a brown pink bronze and champange color I wear and use this quad everyday to school because I can wear it anywere and in so many ways too

Dawn Avatar

I do like palettes but I get frustrated with them. They are usually missing something I want like a highlight color. Or they’ll have a random pop of color thrown in there that doesn’t fit with my style. I do like their convenience and when one comes out that actually meets my expectations, I get super excited.

Jennifer Avatar

I really like palettes that I can put together myself (aka the MAC palettes, where you can choose the colors YOU want) … because most of the time, you end up purchasing a palette and not using many of the colors. However, I do find that palettes are advantageous in that they’re convenient when you travel, and take up much less space in a suitcase.

Mallory Avatar

I love the UD palettes, but I always love one or two of the colors more than the rest and I use those up and ending up buying them on their own (half baked and smog for example!).

Dre Avatar

I love the idea of palettes; however I tend to finish up the colors I love and then never use the palette again, but instead try to find a dupe of those individual colors.

Jazz Avatar

Cost wise , I love palettes, especially for the high end brands. It allows me to get a lot of product for a smaller price. And for travel , palettes make my life easier. But sometimes I dont love the whole palette ( Like the BOS 3 , I only like 3 of the shades , I feel like I have similar shades for the rest ) so in that case I will buy the single shadows. Generally I just like pretty makeup . While I love palettes , I wouldnt take the time to make my single shadows into palettes- too much work

Courtney Avatar

I have a couple of palettes that I LOVE. And then I have a few that I absolutely despise and I wish I would have saved my money.

Love : Stila Smokey eye kit, UrbanDecay Alice in wonderland palette

Hate : The E.L.F palettes.. Why did i buy you 🙁

dolce aria Avatar

I love palettes, when the quality isn’t compromised. UD is generally decent, MAC too….. But I just got a smashbox palette that applies worse than some drugstore shadows I’ve worked with! I hate it when high quality brands throw out palettes in bulky or fragile packaging, or the shadow is OBVIOUSLY a different/worse texture and formula than their singles.

I like the value of palettes, since I rarely hit pan. I just hate trying to figure out which palettes actually have the quality to back it up!

Lulle Avatar

The most catchy thing with palettes is often the packaging more than the products… I collect Too Faced Quickie Chronicles because I find them so cute and fun!

Apart from that, I always find that you get some shades you’re never gonna use.
But it can be a way, when you’re new to makeup, to try on colors you wouldn’t naturally reach for. And you can have good surprises! That’s how I discovered that peach for the blush and bright orange for the lips were some of the most flattering shades for me.

It can also be a cheaper way to try a new brand – if the quality is the same as individual products of course.

DonnaN Avatar

My luck with palettes is that I get them and find one or two components that I really LUV, several that are ok, and a few that are so-so. The only palette out that I COVET right now is the UD NAKED palette….all of those colors I would definately use often!!

stephanie Avatar

I only own 2 premade palettes, Diana eyes 2 and leopard luxe both by. MAC you can tell by the amount of years in between them that I am not that into pre made palettes. I always find that I only like 1 or 2 colors and that is never a sale for me. I just like to make my own palettes from tried and true favorites. I like spend the money on colors I choose

Katie Avatar

Typically, I don’t like palettes. I especially dislike the ones that include eyeshadow AND lipstick. Sometimes, I look at them and think to myself that these colors don’t coordinate and the company is assuming that this one palette will work for every woman. Every woman with different colored eyes, hair, skin, different preferences and expectations. You can’t define me by a palette. Okay, okay, except for the Naked palette. 🙂

Catherine Avatar

It depends. I don’t like MAC holidays palette. I like one or two colors but not worth the price tag. But, i bought the blue dahlia palette from estee lauder and i will buy their holiday palette as well and this is amazing.

Janet Avatar

I love them! They’re purse friendly and much cheaper than buying individual items. I find that if I buy a few palettes every year I’m not stuck with large amounts of outdated colors later on.

Paige Avatar

I’m a sucker for palettes! I agree that rarely are they completely practical (exception: UD Naked Palette and Too Faced Neutral Eye Palette) but I still get excited about the fun colors and combinations! Plus, a lot of times it’s cheaper per eyeshadow to buy in palette form. But- I have quite a few I never use, so it really didn’t save me any money hahah.

Nilufar Avatar

Yes & No.

Yes because sometimes they are great value, loads of amazing colours,that can be bought cheaply for less than buying them invidualy.

But no, like some mac ones, i dont like all the colours and wouldnt want to buy a palette just for some of the colours not all of them. Some palettes are a pain in the bum to store (like the boots front cover ones) because they are so big and hard to carry around. The one thing that i hate about some of the urban decay palettes are that they have the same colours in some pallettes, im sure i saw zero in three different palletes.

Jayna Avatar

Indiviual! Urban decay palettes are the exeception! I recently picked up two of the MAC trip eye palettes which are nice because they allowed me to get some great colors I had missed and I had some colors on my list to acquire. I would rather have them as singles but they are very nice palettes and well thought out!

Brenda Avatar

I will have to say I have the same feelings as you, Christine. I have a few palettes, but none of them (except for one I JUST bought) hold over 6 colours. I find they are always just “meh” and I can purchase the few colours I actually like separate. AND….I usually don’t like the layouts or packaging.

Ilhame Avatar

I love the UD palettes, the shades are so pigmented and unique. Otherwise, it’s pretty rare to find a palette where you like all of the colours. I dont buy a palette for one or two shades, it would be a waste of money, so I’m more a single eyeshadow person.

Ursula Avatar

I like palettes like the UD ones where you get the chance to have all these amazing colors at a better price than you would if you bought individually. However I don’t like palettes that mix eye shadow with lipglosses or blushes as I will only touch up my lip stick or lipgloss and sometimes my blush but never my shadow so I would need to carry an entire palette if I were using that specific color. I like to keep palettes seperate, only shadows or only lipgloss etc.

Cassykins Avatar

Rarely. As you and others have stated, lip and eye products in the same pallets is craziness as you WILL wind up getting them all mixed together. I don’t really even like eyeshadows being together, though, as I still wind up with one color migrating into the other(s) and then have to clean it all out. I like one color in one container so it only makes a mess all over itself.

Amber Avatar

It depends, I love my coastal scents 88 palette because it has so much to choose from. Others I feel really need to grab my attention because a lot of times there are so many colors I just wont use.

Ana Avatar

Yes! I love them! I have UD Alice in wonderland, Dior Nightbutterfly, Ben Nye Grande Lumiere, and UD Naked Palette. Don´t want to buy too much because I´m making my first Mac Palette 🙂 and I only have two eyes..

Carrie Avatar

Yay! I’m not the only one who doesn’t tend to be dazzled by palettes.

I’m so picky on colors that I’ll be lucky if 50% of a palette are shades that I want to wear, let alone can wear.

Even beyond the waste issue, there’s a storage issue: some of the palettes are just so big and bulky!

Dani Avatar

I don’t tend to like palettes other than the ones I make myself of my most often used products. The Naked Palette is the only palette I think I have ever loved.

Lisa G Avatar

I like some palettes. What I hate are palettes that include cream products ie lipsticks/glosses with powder products such as eyeshadow. That’s just so gross when the powders get into the lippie creamy products! I do not buy those types of mixed products EVER!

Kareen Avatar

I am kit girl or palette women! You get to try several products or colors in a line without committing to a full size. Kits and palettes are great for women with a short attention span like me!!

Valerie Brower Avatar

Depends on which brand’s palettes. I love all my BOS’s and naked palette from UD. But most other palettes I’ll buy and never use again.

muffingrl Avatar

i love the convenience of palettes. i dont have to think too much about coordinating colors and they encourage me to try new colors that i probably wouldn’t have bought individually. i also think i get a better deal out of it.

Carrie Ann Avatar

I like eyeshadow palettes because they usually have coordinating colors, so you can just grab a palette to do your eye makeup, rather than having to look for individual eyeshadows you want to wear together. It’s also fun to play around w/ the colors in a palette and come up w/ different looks.

kloutt Avatar

I prefer palettes for two reasons. I like to have everything together for travel reasons and organizational reasons. And also because i think its better value-wise. I would rather spend 30.00 on 120 okay colors than 14.50 or something on one good one.

LorraineER Avatar

I prefer sets of mini products to palettes. Even so, I have more palettes than I can use right now. I like that they give me ideas- I can pick up a palette and see a good combination instantly which helps when I’m short on time.

Air Avatar

It depends. I have notice the quality can be poor when u buy palletes compared to individual items (ex mac eyeshadow palletes) but if the quality is the same and I like enough colors that’s its cheaper to buy the pallette I will. I love the stila it girl eyeshadow palette. 10 dollars and I use all 3 colors. I do like mac holiday collection mini lipglasses too. I wouldn’t buy a pallette that mixes different types of products because its just a mess. A pallette that I’m thinking about getting is the UD naked, but I don’t wear makeup that often and am not a pro at applying it so I’m not sure :/

KiruHana Avatar

Sometimes. It depends on what kind. I really love the Naked palette, but thats because its all neutrals, which i wear the most. Most palettes have to many bright colors, so its not really worth it for me to buy since i’m not exactly rolling in the dough. If i had more money to spend i would probably be willing to buy more of them.

Thats why i love MAC palettes 🙂 you can get the colors you want and you don’t have to buy them all at once. 😀

MissChels Avatar

I prefer things to be sold separately. Rarely do I find a palette that is full of colors I will use. I have one palette (a very small 8 color one) that I use all the colors in and it is a neutral palette! The rest of my palettes I actually feel sorry for because they just sit there looking pathetic.
You can always make a palette yourself but it is much harder to take one apart!

Rachel Avatar

It’s hit and miss for me with the company-packaged type palettes. There have been ones that have been great and I use nearly all of the shades, but then there have been others that the quality hasn’t been up to par or I haven’t liked the colors, so I don’t reach for them except in rare cases.

How do you feel about duos, like Nars’?

saku Avatar

Sometimes yes, for someone like me who’s starting to get back into makeup. It helps to have a stand by look or choices of colors. There’ll always be like 1 or 3 eye shades in a palettes that won’t work so I’m picky about what to buy.
I try to stay away from lip palettes. I’ll rather buy them separate, unless it’s a lip gloss sets.

Sandy Avatar

I prefer my individual eyeshadows vs palettes. It’s rare to find all the shades you like in one palette and I just prefer my little MAC pots of color….I don’t put them in a palette!

Elisabeth Avatar

same here! i love all the little MAC shadows. i won’t ever de-pot them. aesthetically, i like having them individually, seeing all the tiny black compacts. 🙂

Ru Avatar

I normally don’t buy them, but have been swooned by Naked Palette and BOS III. I normally don’t like to buy palettes because I already have a huge collection of single items, and like to excersise my creativity without being restricted to one place. However, owning 1-2 good palettes is essential for travel.

Little Miss Sunshine Avatar

I don’t like them too much. So far I hardly found any palettes which made me think “This would be great”. But I do create my own eyeshadow palettes with refill pans (mostly MAC). It might me expensive but this way I have exactly the colors I want in my palette.

Rainbow Avatar

I’m not a makeup person (into nail polish) so I love palettes! I have two eyeshadow Urban Decay palettes (and just finally was able to order the Naked palette today) and that’s all I use. But I would never buy a palette with lip products because I feel they would just dry out and become icky.

Rose Avatar

I love my UD palettes. They get me to try colors that I don’t think I originally would and if I find one color that I really like then I just go and buy the full size version when I run out and then leave my not-so-favorites be.

Yumi Avatar

Only if they’re good. That and I only like palettes that have just one thing–either blush or eyeshadow! Can’t stand combination palettes or anything with lip stuff. Otherwise I like individual items so I can build my own.

Bethy Avatar

I originally LOVED palettes and I still do because often they come to more value than buying products individually. Even though they often offer a smaller amount than the individual product, I doubt I’ll ever hit pan with all the makeup I own.

However, now I am starting to prefer individually sold items because I would rather purchase two eyeshadows I absolutely must have rather than a palette that I won’t touch half of.

That being said…I won’t hesitate to buy a palette that calls out to me! Oh, the make-up junkie inside me. 🙂

Bethy Avatar

Let it be noted: I loathe buying palettes which mix products. No lip products and e/s products together, etc. I loathe the thought of getting e/s powder into a lip product or the other way around.

There have only been two exceptions to this rule thus far; Sephora’s Red & Pink palettes. I was able to make this exception because while they contain blush, e/s & lip glosses, the blush & lip glosses are in slide out compartments keeping them fully away from the possibility of mixing the components.

Jean Avatar

I feel so-so about them. Unless they’re packaged with great care in mind, the powders tend to fly and get into other things, rather unsanitary. I find it annoying that every time I sweep some blush onto my face I have to get a Q-tip and clean out the surrounding are; powder on the palette, powder on surrounding eyeshadow, etc. At least the powders aren’t near the lip creams, which would make me throw my kit away altogether. (I got the ELF mini kit as a sample.)

Jean Avatar

Oh, by the way I have a question: Does anyone here have any of the five new Stila makeup palettes? (Winter in Moscow, Road Travel Across USA, etc; 4 eyeshadows and cream.) I was wondering what they were like; thought about picking one up since they’re on such a steep sale, but I don’t want something that feels cheap too.

Lissa Avatar

UD– really the only pro is that $17 ea is harder to justify than the price of a full palette which is usually only the cost of 2-3 shadows totally regret AIW vs wallpaper (asphyxia) or NYC though 🙁

otherwise, absolutely, thebalm Shady Lady. I love every shade, can’t wait for vol 3, def worth every penny. best shadow quality of anything I’ve tried.

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