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Definitely from time to time as I need some additional eyeshadows to review or discover a new brand that does single eyeshadows, but all my data suggests that palettes are where most readers are focused overall (and those that prefer singles tend to be covered by now).
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Very seldom, since I prefer palette. However, sometimes, a single duocrome catches my eyes due to particular shift in colors and so I buy It to use as a Topper. BTW currently I have only 3 sigles but 11 palettes (so thousands of eyeshadows arranges in palettes,)
I’ve been building my singles collection the past few years, so 90% of my eyeshadow purchases are singles.
Fairly often. If there’s a colour I like in a palette and I worry about using it up (even though I’ve never finished any eyeshadow except for way back in the day when all I wore was Revlon’s Guilty Grey), I still have that totally illogical fear so it’s why I bought Marc Jacobs Brav-O (it’s a dupe for Casterly Rock from the UD Game of Thrones palette). But then I also got O-Yeah, which looked so nice and different from my “usual” shades. If a shade is really attractive to me, I’ll purchase it as a single. I like the Tarte metallic singles, so I’ve bought a few of those and the low price of MAC’s pro pan shadows makes them hard to resist so I guess last year, I maybe bought half a dozen or thereabouts singles. I can tell you, though, if Sydney Grace or Colour Pop were available in stores near me, I’d probably have purchased dozens of singles!
I used to buy single shadows only. Loved my singles back when everyone was making palettes with MAC pans and then the brands that came after.
But now, I buy mostly ready made palettes, and if I buy singles (pans) it is with the idea of putting them in a palette. But I do have a few singles, such as MAC Orb to set my eye shadow primer, MAC Cork which I use for my eyebrows and a few others which I use for lid or inner corner shades when a palette doesn’t come with a shimmery white/champagne color.
Basically every time I feel like adding a new colour to my arsenal! There’s so many gorgeous shades out there 🤩
Quite often! Before I was into makeup, I had a few Urban Decay singles, and that was it. As I got into makeup more, I bought palettes, but I’ve found now I prefer singles again. You can fill gaps in your collection, replace only the colors you need, or experiment with shades that are outside your comfort zone. Plus, singles are easier to store! I have some palettes I love, and I will still buy palettes, but I do miss the seasonal release of a few singles from Urban Decay. Luckily, Sydney Grace and Mac are around to offer some new singles.
I love single shadows and purchase them several times a year. Sydney Grace, Colour Pop, and Fyrinnae are current favorites. I really want to try Clionadh as well, and I’m excited about the new Makeup Geek shades! I generally prefer singles over palettes, but I do like seeing the color combinations in new palettes that come out for inspiration.
Do you know if Sydney Grace and Colour Pop singles are the same size?
Yes, they are the same size (or at least close enough that I can’t tell the difference). They fit evenly and uniformly in a magnetic palette together, along with my ABH, Makeup Geek, and Fyrinnae round shadows.
Thank you! Good to know! I heard ABH were different sizes so I am hopeful to try it now! I am sad that MUG is now square pan as I like to mix and match. I heard Morphe singles are the same size too.
I think I recall that the MUG square and round pans take up the same amount of space–that the diameter of the round pans is the same as the height and width of the square pans–but I’m having trouble finding where I saw that so I can’t confirm it for sure. I’ll probably get some of the new ones as long as they fit nicely in a palette with the old ones and don’t mess up the rows and columns. I forgot to say my Coloured Raine singles are also the same (round) size as the others. It does sound like Morphe ones are too, but I don’t have singles from them.
I used to buy them all the time. Like regularly. Now though, it’s a rare thing that I do. Seems like I’ve gone down the palette rabbit hole and have even been neglecting the singles I have. 😟
I usually only buy singles because it’s has so many advantages ! You can build your own palette(s) and only have the best colors you love, unique and just the way you want it. It’s so much fun to (re)organize and use singles ! Theyre better money investment then pre-made palettes. Wish they were more popular as back in the day (may be Makeup Geek rebrand will help). But guess most people are too lazy or not as creative or smth so they rather go with palettes someone put together for them even if they dont sometimes like or use all the shades (which sounds like a waste to me).
My fave single shadow brands are Sydney Grace (mattes and pressed pigments, also cream shadows ,wish they were available in Europe! ), Nabla (mattes, soo good! brights are great too!), Colourpop (such great mattes for the price too, metallics vary and are not their best), Anastasia Beverly Hills (inconsistent, both mattes and metallics, can be super awesome, can be total flops). Makeup Geek had some good ones too but again rather inconsistent in quality (the circles ones) and overall too dry for my liking.
You definitely helped me a lot as far as single shadows/swatches, I hope youll continue to do so 🙂 Looking forward to see your take on Makeup Geek rebrand.
I’m always buying a single here and there. There’s always new formulas. I’m never ‘covered’ as someone ultimately will come out with a beautiful shade that I can’t pass up. I just cherry pick them, that’s all. I also go through all-over lid shades, transition shades and cream lid shades. Some dry out, too. I’ve been through a few LM Amethysts since Caviar Sticks were introduced.
If people like palettes, great. If they like singles, great. If both, great. I just prefer singles for a host of reasons. For me, a beauty collection is a marathon, not a sprint.
I buy singles rarely, but always for the same purpose. I always use a primer with my oily eyelids, so I always need a shade similar to my skin tone to set the primer before I apply color!
Not very often. I will purchase singles to try out a new company or new product range before investing in any other shadows or palettes. I will purchase singles if it is an unusual shade and it isn’t in a palette. I also purchase singles to replace singles that I love and want to continue buying such as MAC Omega.
I don’t purchase singles often, the last time was before Christmas and I purchased some SG singles. I tend to choose shades that I don’t have in my collection and that I would use.
I prefer singles over palettes because I can get my favorite shades. In palettes there are many shades I don’t wear, then I put them into a palette. Love Sydney Grace and colourpop.
I tried Make up Geek recently and wasn’t impressed, to much fall out and dry and pigment wasn’t there.
I almost exclusively use singles, I did a huge clear out of makeup and got rid of so many palettes I’ve bought but never used more than once or twice. I love how with singles I got full control over what I’m buying and I can make sure it’s good quality and suits me, but a palette often has many shades I don’t use. This way I can also buy the eyeshadows one by one over a longer period of time so I’m not spending lots of money at once.
Everytime I need to replace one of the 15 eyeshadows in my custom made palette. I usually track batch codes and at the 3 years mark from manufacturing date an eyeshadow is out no matter what. At the 1-2 years mark I usually start to be more careful with eyeshadows and if I feel the quality is off I just replace the eyeshadow. Even with wearing make-up often and only 15 eyeshadows, I rarely actually finish one; I do hit big pans on my favorite ones. Purchase wise, I guess it’s 4 times a year, usually when MAC has 25% off sales; since I track my collection I can plan purchases diligently.
Very infrequently do I purchase individual eye shadows. The color/formula has to be really special. Most recent purchases have been the MAC dazzle shadow , Pat McGrath Eye dolls and I only bought the lightest color because I seem to hit pan on those shades first in all my palettes… and I bought the Dose of color glitter shadows. I love them all… and I really use them… but I still prefer the palettes…
Usually only if there is a colour that I am missing from my collection, or something reviews really well and is just really irresistible. Otherwise I have quite a few palettes and they serve my purposes perfectly.
It’s nearly all I buy anymore. I don’t want all the clutter of 50 palettes, when I use 1-3 of the shades. It’s makes more sense in the long run to buy singles. Its not just the space, it’s the time going through all the palettes to create a look, plus I have a lot less desire to buy palettes since owning a lot of singles. In the long run it probably winds up being cheaper since I’m not constantly buying palettes, just a couple new shades here & there. I definitely check your swatches before I buy a new single, so please keep them coming. I love looking at all the palettes you swatch too, but that rarely results in my buying a palette. I’m a lot more likely to buy a single dupe, provided there is one, of colors I like.
I’m only counting pressed singles here, and not loose shadows: A few times a year, which is more than I used to. When I do buy singles, though, I tend to buy several at once.
I’ll mostly buy to fill holes in my collection, try a new brand, or because I want a unique finish or color.
I have 7 palettes,one of them is a single eyshadow palette. I am a teacher, not a blogger, so I don’t need so many. But I do like eyeshadows , so now I buy a few singles from Colorpop. Also it is such a waste when some colors in the palette do not suit you. If two or three colors are nit suitable, it’s ok. But half of the palette it is bad. But why are empty magnetic palettes so rare? Even on Colorpop website they are out if stock. I need a cute package for my singles)))
Menagerie cosmetics has one for $10 with beautiful art on it.
I prefer singles, palettes are usually complicated and a waste of money for me since I end up being allergic to ingredients or never use the brighter colors. I prefer Mac Pro Palette singles but am considering branching out since Mac has discontinued so many shades.
This comes in waves. It’s almost always Colourpop these days. It seems like every few months, they have new assortments available for singles, so I do a byop (build your own palette), where you get the shadows and a z-palette for a special price.
I keep a 24 pan z-palette on my vanity, and it has everything I would possibly need to complete any other palette I’m using. So if my palette of choice doesn’t have a transition, outer-corner, or pretty lid shimmer, I just open up my custom palette and fill in. It’s got all the things I use. A row of yellows, grays/black, light to dark cool browns, light to dark warm browns, an orange/red row, and a row of brights – pink, purple, aqua. It’s organized and has everything I need. I can definitely do complete looks from this palette, but I use it mostly to pinch-hit with other palettes.
I primarily buy single shadows. I own several MAC pro palettes filled with Mac and Colour Pop singles. Whenever I finally reach 24 empties (about once per year), I go to MAC and redeem 4 single eyeshadows. Then I depot them into a pro palette. It’s like a fun project. I also have the blush inserts which makes traveling super easy because I can just take the blushes and shadows I want without carrying 7 different palettes around.
I was sad that MUG went to square pans because they were the same size as MAC pans and I like all my singles to be together. So unfortunately, I likely will not be purchasing MUG shadows anytime soon.
The only palettes I own are from Colourpop because they are so inexpensive that even if I dislike 1-2 shades, the overall price is usually still worth it. I know depotting Colourpop palettes is pretty easy but they are smaller than their singles.
Interesting fact: Colourpop singles fit in the MAC x15 inserts but not the x6 inserts. Strange!
More and more. I find myself moving towards a more simplistic look. More than not I found myself not using the majority of the shades in a palette. I do like that Bobbi Brown has a way to ‘build your own’ palette out of your own chosen singles. I reach for that one the most.
I’m over palettes (maybe palette fatigue, because brands push them so hard). I’m slowly making the switch to singles so that I’ll have a more curated collection where every single shadow suits me, instead of palettes where maybe half the shadows suit me.
I would love a review on the Clionadh Cosmetics Stained Glass collection, it’s a Canadian Indie brand. It is hard to get. 🙁
I only buy single eyeshadows to minimize the number of palettes that I own. I don’t need the same neutrals or transition shades that are in each palette.
I would love a review on the Clionadh Cosmetics Stained Glass collection, it’s a Canadian Indie brand. It is hard to get. 🙁
I only buy single eyeshadows to minimize the number of palettes that I own. I don’t need the same neutrals or transition shades that are in each palette.
I used to buy palettes, but now my collection is largely singles. I even dupe palettes with singles, especially if I like the palette’s color story but not the formula. I duped the Melt Muerte, Gemini and Smoke Sessions palettes with singles from Sydney Grace, MAC & Coloured Raine.
I’ll still buy palettes occassionaly, but I prefer singles & making my own “perfect” palettes with only the shades I want. Sydney Grace, Coloured Raine, Shroud, Menagerie Cosmetics, Sugarpill, MAC and Clionadh are where I shop mostly now.
I am very interested in swatches of indie multichrome shadows! Also any interesting singles.
I depot all my palettes and judge them as singles anyway. I prefer to control my own color stories. I hate buying redundant shades, but buying palettes is the easiest and cheapest way to build up a singles collection. I do want to add more warm blues/greens and multichromes to my collection still… maybe two more duochromes too.