Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette Review, Photos, Swatches
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette ($39.00 for 0.41 oz.) is a set of 24 eyeshadows to celebrate the color of the year: Marsala. Last year’s palette was larger in size and in amount ($48.00 for 1.53 oz.) with 24 eyeshadows and one blush. This year, there are still 24 eyeshadows (but no blush), and each eyeshadow is 0.017 oz. (compared to 0.059 oz. each). I liked the palette, and it was easier to use without a primer than many other palettes I’ve tried over the past few months–even the mattes–which is always a happy find, but a lot of the satin/matte shades seemed prone to fading. I think that it does get repetitive, there’s an overabundance of warmer tones, and in general, the composition could use improvement (greater diversity in tone, color selection, and for such a large palette, it could use a couple of lighter shades that could work as brow bone highlighters or transitioning shades). This palette actually seems like it will suit deeper skin tones more readily (which is often not the case), so that is a plus–I still think some cooler plums, a richer copper (rather than two gold-ish hues), and a couple of apricot/peach shades would have helped make this palette more versatile. The texture of the eyeshadows are slightly drier and more powdery–almost like there’s a bit too much filler, though color payoff is decent to good with a couple of exceptions.
The palette has deeper wells and seems cheaper (just in the way it felt), but the upside is that it is more compact and would be easier to travel wish. I just wish they had found a better balance between materials chosen and laying things out. Perhaps, if they were going to significantly reduce the physical size of the palette, they could have reduced the number of eyeshadows included as well (and the price could better reflect the reduction in size/quantity).
Autumn Blonde is a light, warm-toned beige with a bit of gold sparkle and a satin finish. It had good pigmentation with a soft consistency, though it was slightly powdery. It lasted for seven hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Toasted Nut is a brightened copper orange with a metallic sheen. The color payoff was rich and opaque, while the consistency was soft and smooth, so it was easy to blend on the eye. It started to fade after seven and a half hours of wear. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Marsala Matte is a muted, medium-dark red with warm undertones and a matte finish. It had pretty good pigmentation with a soft, slightly powdery texture. It lasted for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Marsala Satin is a muted, medium-dark red with warm undertones and a satin finish–it seemed slightly brighter than the matte version. It had good color payoff with a fairly soft consistency. It wore well for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Shifting Sand is a light, brightened gold with subtle,w arm undertones and a metallic sheen. The texture was denser and felt almost creamy. It had good color payoff and lasted for eight hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Cocoa Brown is a muted, medium-dark brown with warm, yellow undertones and a mostly matte finish. It had good color payoff but was slightly dry to work with. It lasted for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Burro is a muted, medium brown with warm, khaki undertones and a matte finish. It had nice pigmentation with a soft, blendable texture that wore well for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Deep Taupe is a cool-toned, gray-taupe with a semi-matte finish. It was soft but dry, and it didn’t have the best color payoff. It showed signs of fading after seven hours of wear. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Marsala Metallic is a red-copper with warm, orange undertones and a frosted sheen. It had really good color payoff with a soft, smooth consistency that was easy to work with. The color lasted for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Marsala Glitter is a slightly muted, medium-dark red-copper with warm undertones and sparkle over a more metallic sheen. The texture was somewhat dry, and the sparkle made it feel a little gritty, so it wasn’t a great product to work with. It lasted for seven hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Kelp is a muted, light-medium green with warm, golden pearly shimmer. It had good pigmentation with a fairly soft consistency. It wore well for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Dusty Olive is a medium-dark green with warm, olive undertones and fine, forest green shimmer. It had decent to good color payoff, but it was a little dry and could have been better. The color stayed on well for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Desert Mist is a sparkling, golden orange with warm, yellow-orange undertones and a metallic, glittery finish. It had semi-opaque pigmentation and didn’t feel gritty, but it was prone to fall out both during application as well as during wear. It lasted for seven hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Butterum is a coppery orange with warm undertones and a soft, metallic sheen. It had decent to good pigmentation with a slightly dry texture. It started to fade after seven and a half hours of wear. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Macaroon is a light-medium, peachy-beige with warm undertones and a matte finish. It had good color payoff with a soft, blendable texture that was slightly powdery. It stayed on well for seven hours before fading. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Chutney is an orange-brown with warm undertones and a matte finish. It was slightly powdery but had fairly good pigmentation. It lasted for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Nimbus Cloude is a sparkly silvery-white with a metallic sheen. It was semi-opaque and didn’t go on as smoothly or as evenly as one might like. It lasted for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Moonlight Blue is a blackened navy blue with blue and silver sparkle. This shade was very dry, stiff, and had really poor color payoff and blenability. What I managed to get onto the skin stayed there for about six hours before fading, but it looked like something out of a horror movie. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Carob Brown is a muted, medium brown with warm, yellow undertones and a matte finish. It had nice pigmentation that went on smoothly and evenly. It wore well for seven and a half hours before fading. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Bracken is a dark brown with warm, yellow undertones and a soft, golden bronze shimmer and frost finish. It had excellent pigmentation that went on beautifully and was easy to use. It wore well for eight hours before fading. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Russet is a medium-dark brown with warm, orange undertones and a satin finish. The texture was slightly dry, though it had decent to good color payoff, it just didn’t blend as easily. It wore well for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Hot Chocolate is a warm, reddish-brown with a matte finish. It had fairly good color payoff that was slightly dry and lasted for seven and a half hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Castor Gray has a reddish-brown base with a bluish-teal duochrome and metallic finish. It was a bit dry and dusty to work with, but it had decent color payoff and lasted for seven and a half hours on me. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Red Mahogany is a rich, burgundy brown with a satin finish and warm undertones. It had fantastic pigmentation that was easy to apply, blend, and wear as it lasted for eight hours. See comparison swatches / view dupes.
Facets of Marsala
LELimited Edition. $39.00.
Autumn Blonde
LELimited Edition.
Marsala Glitter
LELimited Edition.
Kelp
LELimited Edition.
Dusty Olive
LELimited Edition.
Desert Mist
LELimited Edition.
Butterum
LELimited Edition.
Macaroon
LELimited Edition.
Chutney
LELimited Edition.
Nimbus Cloude
LELimited Edition.
Moonlight Blue
LELimited Edition.
Carob Brown
LELimited Edition.
Toasted Nut
LELimited Edition.
Bracken
LELimited Edition.
Russet
LELimited Edition.
Hot Chocolate
LELimited Edition.
Castor Gray
LELimited Edition.
Red Mahogany
LELimited Edition.
Marsala Matte
LELimited Edition.
Marsala Satin
LELimited Edition.
Shifting Sand
LELimited Edition.
Cocoa Brown
LELimited Edition.
Burro
LELimited Edition.
Deep Taupe
LELimited Edition.
Marsala Metallic
LELimited Edition.
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Universe Facets of Marsala Eye Palette
Sephora + Pantone Autumn Blonde Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Autumn Blonde Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Toasted Nut Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Toasted Nut Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Matte Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Matte Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Satin Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Satin Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Shifting Sand Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Shifting Sand Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Cocoa Brown Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Cocoa Brown Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Burro Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Burro Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Deep Taupe Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Deep Taupe Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Metallic Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Metallic Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Glitter Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Marsala Glitter Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Kelp Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Kelp Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Dusty Olive Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Dusty Olive Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Desert Mist Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Desert Mist Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Butterum Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Butterum Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Macaroon Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Macaroon Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Chutney Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Chutney Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Nimbus Cloude Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Nimbus Cloude Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Moonlight Blue Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Moonlight Blue Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Carob Brown Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Carob Brown Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Bracken Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Bracken Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Russet Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Russet Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Hot Chocolate Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Hot Chocolate Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Castor Gray Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Castor Gray Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Red Mahogany Eyeshadow
Sephora + Pantone Red Mahogany Eyeshadow
Shifting Sand (inner lid), Desert Mist (middle of lid), Butterum (middle of lid), Marsala Matte (outer lid), Hot Chocolate (crease),
Autumn Blonde/Macaroon (brow bone), Marsala Metallic (lower lash line)
Kelp (inner lid), Dusty Olive (middle of lid), Castor Gray (outer lid), Marsala Satin (outer lid/crease), Russet (crease),
Autumn Blonde/Macaroon (brow bone)
Kelp (inner lid), Dusty Olive (middle of lid), Castor Gray (outer lid), Marsala Satin (outer lid/crease), Russet (crease),
Autumn Blonde/Macaroon (brow bone)
I can’t help but be a little disappointed. Was hoping this palette would get at least a B+!
It’s right there in the middle, lol!
While definitely a no-go for me ( too warm, blue a total fail, greens a meh), I’m glad this palette came out decently for the most part. When I first saw the colours, it reminded me strongly of that Makeup Geek Vegas release ( must have been the burnt orange?) rather than a ‘marsala’ one, to be honest! 😀 I do agree thet the two very similar golds and SO MUCH ORANGE are a strange choice for a large palette (although the butter one is pretty), and I’d be really interested to hear what adventurers on the deeper end of the skintone spectrum think of this one! 🙂
I wish the blue wasn’t such a disappointing shade! I mean, if you’re going to include it… make it half-decent!!
I’m actually kind of in love with this. Its pretty versatile and has potential. Might keep my eye on it for the near future. I mean, my birthday iiiiiis coming up.
Happy (almost) birthday 😀
I bought this based on your Sneak Peek and am not disappointed! Yes, the silver and blue are not the best, but those are the two colors I wouldn’t have used in this palette, since it’s primarily warm and those two are cooler toned. I love how they’ve worked in the golds and olive tones to compliment Marsala! I copied your first look and wore it on Christmas Day and plan on doing the second look tomorrow!
What do you use to wipe up glitter fallout? I’ve been doing my eyes first lately so that I can get rid of sparklies (ugh, Autumn Blonde in this palette made a mess of me!), but even using makeup remover didn’t seem to get them off, just spread them around! I was hoping you’d have suggestions?
With shades like Autumn Blonde, if you just lightly tap the brush against your wrist (handle against the wrist), it usually will dislodge most of the sparkles. Tape if you’re really desperate (usually stick it to the back of your hand/arm to make it less tacky so it won’t tug at the eye as much).
This may sound strange, but it works-take an old pair of nylons (or even lycra tights, which are softer), and buff the area where the glitter is. If your skin isn’t too sensitive, dryer sheets work, too!
I have the best luck doing my foundation first and setting with powder… then using a duo fiber brush to flick them away. You can also apply extra powder first to make it even easier to dust away. I find if I have bare skin or moisture of any kind it makes the fallout stick.
Post-It notes make a really good, cheap “eyeshadow shield” – get a small one and place it under your eye before you start applying the problem shadow. I have also found the tape trick to work really well but Christine is right – stick it onto the back of your hand first to make it a bit less sticky so it won’t pull your under-eye skin too much).
I do my eyes first, then clean up with a micellar water on a cotton pad (I currently use Sephora Triple Action Cleansing Water, since it’s less expensive than most), then rinse off the fragrance of it with a bit of warm water on a cotton pad, and that process usually gets all, or almost all, of the glitter. (and I tend to make a pretty big mess when I do my eyes). Don’t wipe too much; think of ‘catching’ the glitter specks on the cotton pad rather than ‘wiping’. Then I pat dry, apply eye cream and my face primer, and let that set while I clean my eye brushes. Hope that helps!
There’s a bunch of nice shades, individually, but, as a cohesive palette, this really isn’t doing anything for me.
I wish there was a little more variety in it!
It’s pretty ironic, but I like all of the shades, EXCEPT for the Marsala shades! Since they are a warm orange-red brown, they can make my eyes look red and tired, especially with my yellow undertones 🙁 It’s too bad because the Marsala shades are really pretty and not that common. I’m still undecided about this palette, until I can swatch the Marsala shades in the store to see how they look on me. I have been surprised before (who knew fuschia shadow would look good on me), so I’m keeping my fingers crossed !
Hope you can swatch ’em soon, Katherine! All the Marsala shades were way harder to dupe!
Hm, I’ve been on the lookout for a set with warm browns and mahoganies and thought this might be a good alternative to the original Chocolate Bar… but a lot of the shades I was interested in this palette doesn’t look like they performed that well. Ah well, I might just end up buying individual ColourPop or MakeupGeek shades.
I’m so digging ColourPop eyeshadows! Well worth trying.
I like this despite it being so warm-toned. It could be a good alternate to Lime Crime’s Venus Grunge palette.
Thanks for sharing, Alice!
I’m obsessed with this palette and I really wear eyeshadow these days lol. I just really like the color scheme and the quality seems pretty decent too
I’ve been getting more into warm shades lately, so I like the colour palette, but the quality is pretty inconsistent.
I actually love the palette….. True the shadows are drier than some others out there. I do think its amazing for us women of darker/ deeper skin tones…..
Nope, not for me…I did get the blush…but there are only 5 or 6 colors I’d use..so it’s not a good idea for me
I am torn. While these shades are right up my alley — the quality is not that impressive either, then again I always found Sephora’s eyeshadows (in palettes) lacking in quality. BUT if they made the shadows available in single form, I’d definitely get them!
I totally agree with your comments Christine – two – thirds of this palette consists of repetitive colours and it is very, very warm toned. It seems more like an autumn palette to me. I think it is better to have fewer colours of better quality than to have lots of average quality. I could see that the only blue in the palette swatched very poorly. A wide variety of colours would have been much better.
This palette is lovely to look at, and admire from afar, but it’s just *too* warm for me… However, if my daughter was just a few years older, it’d be absolutely *perfect* with her coloring! She’s pretty fair, bit looks absolutely amazing in oranges & yellows.
I think there are just too many warm tones (really warm and also really similar) for this to be a good purchase for me but there are at least 3 and possibly 5 or 6 shadows I’d love to be able to buy singly or in a smaller palette (especially Kelp, Dusty Olive, Shifting Sand, Bracken and Castor Grey).
The first releases are the best in quality and amount. There is less than .02 oz for each color.
I was also holding high expectation to the blue, since Sephora’s official photo used this blue on the model’s upper lid with Marsala around her waterline. And now the blue turned out to be a big miss, I probably would put off the whole Marsala thing from my eye area for a while, until I figure out a more wearable way than to make myself look like “just cried” with too much warm color.
I actually love the shades in this palette! They’re perfect for my skintone (medium/tan and warm), except I agree – it probably could have done with about 5 less shades
I think it looks pretty good, if you’re yearning for some warm off-reds and orangey browns. I like the greens in there and I luuuuuuv your second eye look.
The Pantone site has a great story about how Marsala was chosen as well as what colors work well with it. Though the Marsala in the photo story looks a bit cooler toned than the shadows.
Bleh. It’s releases like this that make me skeptical about the “Colour of the Year”. Hot Chocolate is the only shade that actually looks like Marsala at all! The ‘Marsala’ shades are… Reds. I don’t mind complementary colours, but I stand by my original opinion that this is cluttered and confused. I still would have preferred Marsala in a few well conceived shades and finishes along with a few thoughtful inclusions for complementary shades, crease colours, and highlights. This is everything and the kitchen sink.
Swatch galore 😀 😀 I really like the look and sound of this palette, I might pick it up!
I quite like the look of this overall. This palette screams Autumn!
I do really like some of the colours, but I don’t think I’ll buy the palette. I really like the how the shadows looked on you, Christine.
I wonder if people with warm undertones were as dismayed by ‘radiant orchid’ as ‘color of the year’ as I am by ‘marsala.’ It’s a color that is really difficult for me to use in a flattering way, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that there are few shades in this palette that I would really enjoy wearing. But I’m putting the MUFE dupes for ‘kelp’ and ‘dusty olive’ on my wish list, because I think they’d work well with the olive green flecks in my iris. Thanks for the review, Christine — it’s very helpful!
I’m medium dark and I love the concept of this palette. Most of the palette is perfectly warm for my complexion with transition, crease and lid colors for days! I have enough eyeshadow for 2 lifetimes, but if I was starting fresh, I would certainly check this out.
I still like this. There are some beautiful colors. Such a shame about the blue, though. I’m not sure why on earth they decided to make it a glitter. I would have gone dark matte with it.
This is happily not going to be a purchase by me! This might be the most ugly cohesive palette I’ve ever seen. I feel that having the MAC Red Red Red eyeshadows as well as the MJB Siren & Parisienne palette, as well as MUG Vegas Lights, I’m covered! Other than colors slightly reminiscing those of the palettes I mentioned, I feel this is like a swatch study in baby poo and shades of vomit. Not esthetically pleasing AT ALL.
Castor Grey needs to be a single!
I don’t know why I just can’t get excited about this palette… I love the colour this year and it looks like a pretty decent palette but there’s something stopping me from pulling the trigger…
I’m super excited to pick up this palette! As you stated, this palette is going to be perfect for deeper complexions such as myself. When I look at this palette, I see transition shades for my NW47 skin which means that I can finally do a look from start to finish using ONE PALETTE! The only other palette that I have like this is my Amrezy palette. (This obviously doesn’t include palettes that I built myself from MAC, Coastal Scents, and Makeup Geek eyeshadows) 2015 is definitely going to be the year of more warm toned makeup which makes me excited. 🙂
I love this palette. It will make green eyes really stand out. Loving these reds and oranges that are so popular this year!
Christine, how does Shifting Sand compare to MAC Retrospeck or Nylon? They look similar.
Every time I see it, I think “I want it!”
But then I stop and think that I probably wouldn’t actually use it that often.
Maybe if it goes on sale…
The 3-4 colors I swatched in store were really nice I was just shocked by how small the palette was! I guess I was just expecting it much bigger!
Still debating if I should get this. I feel like I need to but I’ve bought so many palettes and makeup geek and colour pop shadow singles recently, I have like 15 palettes I have not even touched yet!
Such beautiful looks you did with these! I actually quite like the colors in this palette, but there is just too much sameness in colors overall for me to want to buy it 🙂
thanks to my warm skin, I quite like the palette.! A few shades could have been replaced in here but overall a great mix of warm shades!
Hope it launches in India soon! 🙂
When the Pantone color for 2015 was first announced I cringed but after seeing a couple of looks using Marasala I really am liking it. I may need this palette!
I hate it when companies put out less product and charge more (or the same) amount of money for it. It is so obnoxious and makes me want to boycott a product I would otherwise be interested in buying. LOVE your eye looks for this Christine. Really beautiful!!! You made this palette look enticing with them!!!
I absolutely love the look you created with the palette it’s just gorgeous! Really enhances the color in your eyes!