NYX Parisian Chic Love in Paris Eyeshadow Palette

I recently hauled a bunch of things from my local Target to satisfy my NYX craving!  I posted a picture on Instagram (@hollieforrest) about it here. NYX Cosmetics is a drugstore brand that I've been wanting to explore in depth. I have tons of round lipsticks, a few single eyeshadows, and eyeliners but other than that I haven't tried anything else! Now that they have a huge range of products, I figured it's about time I take a closer look!

Love in Paris is a new line of palettes that were recently released for Spring 2013. There are twelve different palette shades to choose from, and I went with the neutral Parisian Chic.

 I absolutely love the convenient travel-friendly design of this palette. The thick plastic case is very sturdy and snaps shut easily. The packaging couldn't be any better!

Parisian Chic contains nine eyeshadows and a double ended sponge tip applicator. There are three different finishes in this palette:  The top row are satin, the middle are matte, and the bottom are shimmer. 

I swatched each row from top, middle, to bottom. Each shadow was incredibly chalky and dry. Barely any of them had good pigmentation, with the exception of the shimmery bronze. I had to use multiple swipes to get these swatches to show up. Primer is definitely needed here!


Claims: "Use this adorable travel friendly kit with the included applicator through every voyage and adventure for creating captivating looks and touch ups."
Pigmentation There isn't any pigmentation here! An eyeshadow primer would be a must.
Finish/Texture: There are various finishes as I explained above satin, matte, and shimmer. The texture of each shadow is dry and chalky. Some shades have lots of fallout too.
Lasting Power: I can't imagine these lasting long on the eyes at all. I didn't bother wearing them because of the poor pigmentation. 
Packaging: The packaging is travel-friendly and has a sturdy design. The design is the best aspect of this palette! The cheap applicator doesn't have any use for me though.
Price Availability: I paid $10 at Target

Likes:

• Sturdy, convenient packaging
• Wide color selection
• Nice idea to have varying finishes/neutrals

Dislikes:

• Poor pigmentation
• Tons of fallout
• Dry/chalky texture
• Primer is a must

Overall: 
I felt like this palette was just a waste. These shadows are so dry, difficult to work with, and have tons of fallout. The pigmentation is so poor, that a primer is a must. I prefer to buy and use eyeshadows that are already good quality on their own. I also wanted to mention that these smelled really odd, like chicken soup. I have no idea why they smell that way, but it grossed me out! The quality in the NYX single eyeshadows are a million times better than this palette.

When primer is a must, I'm less likely to wear an eyeshadow in general, so I personally would never use this palette. I returned it right after swatching! 

Wet N' Wild Color Icon Palette in Nude Awakening

I went crazy looking for this palette! I hunted from drugstore to drugstore with my mom for days on end to find it! I'm a huge Wet N' Wild shadow enthusiast, and neutral shadows are my absolute favorite.. basically Nude Awakening was (and now is) a must have for me! 

Nude Awakening is one of two limited edition palettes that were released for Spring 2013. As you can see, the packaging is different than the usual black! This palette is white plastic decorated with flowers, so cute! 

There are eight shades total in Nude Awakening. It reminds me a lot of the Urban Decay Naked palette! 

The first four swatches are the left side of the palette, and the other four are the right side of the palette. The left browbone shade and the left crease shade have a matte finish. The rest of the shadows have a satin finish. Each shadow is silky smooth and very pigmented. I only needed one swipe to get full color. The first swatch looks unnoticeable, but that is because the color is such a close match to my skintone. It's a perfect brow bone shade for me!

 All swatches are without primer.

Claims: "Eight dynamic, perfectly color-coordinated shades with high pigment and pearl for ultra-impact color."
Pigmentation: The pigmentation on each shadow is excellent! The quality is amazing.
Finish/Texture: There are two finishes in this palette, matte and satin. The texture of each shadow is silky smooth. The softness is comparable to Lorac and Urban Decay shadows.
Lasting Power: These shadows last all day on me without primer, but if you have oily lids I suggest using a primer as needed.
Packaging: I love the cute design on the palette. However, the thin plastic isn't strong enough to protect the shadows if you were to travel or accidentally drop the palette. 
Price/Availability: I paid $5 at CVS, this is limited edition! 

Likes:

• Inexpensive, only $5 
• Silky, smooth texture
• Excellent pigmentation
• Cute packaging
• Great selection of nudes/different finishes

Dislikes:

• This palette is limited edition and hard to find
• These shadows are very soft, may break easily

Overall:
Nude Awakening is the best neutral palette I have ever seen at the drugstore! The pigmentation and silky texture is nothing short of high end. The price is unbeatable, it's only five dollars for eight great quality shadows. The packaging is really cute, but it's not durable enough for travel. I really wish that Wet N' Wild would make this palette permanent, because I'm loving it so much that I almost don't want to use it! If you wand to get your hands on the beautiful Nude Awakening palette, I suggest finding it quickly! On top of being difficult to find, these are sold out almost everywhere. 

I found my palette by using Nouveau Cheap's interactive sightings map, which you can find here. Thank goodness for her maps, they are such a big help! 

Have you tried Nude Awakening yet?

Milani Runway Eyes in Naturally Chic

Milani Runway Eyes palettes are something that I've always wanted to try! I have never been interested in the color selections available, until now. When I spotted this limited edition palette at Walgreens, I thought it was going to be another great addition to my neutral shadow collection. The colors look gorgeous in the palette, but they look completely different when swatched! Oh the frustration.. 

The palette contains six individual eyeshadow strips and a double ended sponge tip applicator. These shadows are baked, so they can be used wet or dry.

Each shadow has a pearl finish. Some shades are a bit less shimmery than others.

I swatched each shadow in the order they appear in the palette. 

These are dry swatches, I also tried swatching the shadows wet, but they crumbled and the pigmentation looked the same. I was disappointed in the overall sheerness of the shadows. The only impressive shade was the last one. I needed tons of product just to get these swatches, and they still are barely noticeable! 

Claims: "Six intense eye color bars in one luxury compact with a double ended sponge applicator. This luxurious formula glides on effortlessly. Use WET for more color impact or DRY for a shimmer effect." (Read more here).

Pigmentation: As you can see, the pigmentation is poor. However, the last shade is decent.

Finish/Texture: Each shadow has a pearl finish, some more noticeable than others. The texture is very chalky when dry, and crumbly when wet. 

Lasting Power: There was no lasting power at all! 

Shade Selection:Naturally Chic contains all neutral shades.

Packaging: I'm not a fan of the strips, because they are too narrow for a brush or finger to fit on. Also, the shadow flakes get everywhere.

Price/Availability: I paid $9 at Walgreens

Likes:

• Love the idea of a neutral palette (Milani previously never had one)
• Last shade is decently pigmented

Dislikes:

• Poor pigmentation (when used dry and wet)
• Low quality
• Shadows are very flaky/messy
• Strips are hard to use
• Expensive (for drugstore and the quality)
• Doesn't live up to any claims

Overall:

I was expecting much higher quality from Milani. I love their single eyeshadows, but these Runway Eyes are nothing like them! The eyeshadow strips are very difficult to use because they are too narrow to swipe a brush or a finger across. The texture is so flaky that even if you barely touch the shadow it breaks off everywhere, and it also crumbles when used wet. The pigmentation is what most disappointed me, it's barely there! I had to use so many layers to even get the swatches to show up. I suggest to skip the Runway Eyes palettes all together. 

Maybelline Eyestudio Palette in Natural Shock

Earlier this month I blogged about the Limited Edition Maybelline Colorsensational Vivids lipsticks (review here). This Eyestudio palette, which is also limited edition, was sitting in the same display next to the lipsticks. I can't resist shimmery neutrals, and I've also never tried anything from Maybelline's Eye Studio line before! 

 Maybelline Limited Edition Eyestudio Palette in Natural Shock

There are four shades in this palette total, and a double ended sponge tip wand.

The white shade has a very frosty finish and was a bit patchy compared to the other shades. The champagne shade has a satin finish and reminds me a lot of Naked Lunch by MAC. The coppery brown shade has a satin base, but it does have a fine gold glitter in it. The chocolate shade also has a satin base with specks of fine gold glitter.  The champagne definitely is my favorite! Each of these feels very buttery and smooth, like Urban Decay eyeshadows. 

These swatches are without primer. 

Claims: "Rich color. Smooth feel. Now silk makes shadow new again. Exclusive formula with silk pigments creates the ultimate shadow texture and luminosity."
Pigmentation:  The white shade is a bit patchy, but the other three shades are very  pigmented. It's nothing that an eyeshadow primer can't fix! 
Finish/Texture: The finishes vary by color (see above). Each shadow has a soft, buttery texture. They are extremely blendable, which really impressed me. 
Lasting Power: I get all day wear with these shadows, no problem. 
Shade Selection: I love this neutral palette. I like how there is a light shade, a middle shade, and then two darker accent shades. There are so many looks that you can create!
Packaging: I like the way these shadows are set up in a cute arrow pattern. The plastic case closes tightly and feels durable. I don't care for sponge tips, but I find ways to use them. My only gripe is that the white shade is the largest amount, and the least I'll probably use.
Price/Availability: I paid $9.50 at Walgreens

Likes:

• Great pigmentation (except the white shade which is just ok)
• Soft texture
• Easy to blend
• Different finishes throughout (satin, shimmer, and glitter)
• Versatile neutrals

Dislikes:

• The white shade is a bit patchy
• Limited edition
• All shades are shimmery/glittery 

Overall:
I'm so impressed with the quality of these shadows! They are pigmented, smooth, and blendable. The smoothness reminds me of how the new Urban Decay shadow formula feels!     I was pleasantly surprised at how easily each shade blends, even the ones with glitter. The pigmentation of the shadows is impressive without primer (except for the white shade). With primer, they are even more intense. The variety of finishes is something I appreciate, but I do wish that at least one matte was included. Each shadow has a satiny base, but the last two have actual glitter in them. The champagne shade is gorgeous, it's my favorite of the palette. 

Unfortunately this palette is limited edition. I suggest going out and finding it soon before it disappears! I can't wait to try other Eyestudio palettes now that I know the formula is excellent. 

On a side note: Thank you to the readers that support my blog by subscribing! I can't believe I have 200 readers now! It's nice to know that people actually like to read what I have to say. I feel that it's extra special that I reached this milestone today, because today is also my birthday! Once again, thank you for reading, commenting, and subscribing to eatinglipstick! 

Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette

Urban Decay's first all matte eye shadow palette is here! If you are a fan of neutrals and matte eyeshadow, then you might want to take a look at Urban Decay's newest eyeshadow palette, the Naked Basics. I was thrilled when I first saw pictures surfacing on the internet, but now that I have actually used it, I'm having second thoughts. 

From what I understand, this palette was created to make up for the lack of matte shadows in the other Naked palettes. However, I feel that the Naked Basics isn't unique from the matte shadows already featured in the Naked and Naked 2. 

There are six shadows featured in this palette: Venus, Foxy, Walk of Shame, Naked 2, Faint, and Crave. Venus is white with a satin finish, and is very similar to Bootycall from the Naked 2 palette. Foxy is a yellow cream matte, and is also featured in the Naked 2 palette. Walk of Shame is a pinky toned matte, and was featured in the Build Your Own Palette. Naked 2 is a cool dusty brown, and my favorite shade of the group. Faint is a matte warm chocolate brown. Crave is a deep matte black, that is similar Blackout from the Naked 2 Palette.

Swatches from left to right: Venus, Foxy, Walk of Shame, Naked 2, Faint, and Crave.

Pigmentation: Urban Decay shadows have always delivered excellent pigmentation. In this palette, all shades were true to pan and were opaque. 
Finish/Texture: I was a bit disappointed that Venus was more of a satin finish than a matte. This palette was advertised by Urban Decay as an all matte palette, so that is what I expected. Plus, foxy is a bit too yellow for my complexion and a white matte shadow would've been perfect for me. The texture of each shadow was creamy and smooth, as most Urban Decay shadows are. They are soft and buttery, that is my favorite quality of UD shadows!
Lasting Power: I usually get all day wear with UD shadows, about 8-9 hours until fading (without primer). I always wear a primer under my eyeshadow, so lasting power isn't too important to me. Urban Decay Primer Potion was actually the first primer I started using.
Shade Selection: I honestly thought that this palette could have been more unique. There are two shades that are complete repeats! Venus, Faint, and Crave are easily dupable. Naked 2 was the only shade that I thought was interesting. 
Price/Availability: I paid $30 with tax at Ulta.

Likes:

• I like the concept of having an all matte palette
• The packaging is durable
• Shadows are great quality
• Neutral shades are good for everyday

Dislikes:

• Venus isn't a matte shadow (more like a satin)
• The shade selection isn't very unique
• There are two repeated shades (W.O.S. and Foxy)
• I would've liked to see a full range palette (12 shades instead of 6) 

Overall:
I feel like the Naked Basics could have been better. Honestly, if you already own the Naked and Naked 2 palettes, you aren't going to see much variety here. The purpose of this palette was to make up for the lack of matte shades in the previous palettes, so I don't understand why Urban Decay would repeat shades. If the range of shades were completely different from the other naked palettes, I would have enjoyed this palette more. The quality of shadows is great, there is nothing wrong with them, it's just that I felt bored with this palette. I am a total neutral shadow girl, but the Naked Basics didn't have much to offer since the shades are so similar (some even repeated) to the previous naked palettes. The Naked Basics is very basic indeed, but if you are  new to Urban Decay, or just want to build up your neutral collection, you might want to give this a closer look. 

Urban Decay's Build Your Own Palette!

I'm so happy that Urban Decay FINALLY came out with the Build Your Own Palette. It's nice to have a completely customizable palette filled with your favorite shadows! I have both of the Naked Palettes, and I love them, but this is so awesome. I'm really excited to start filling up my very own palette with shades that I chose myself. 

Urban Decay has recently re-vamped their entire eyeshadow collection! The shadows now include purple chrome packaging that can be easily de-potted. The formula has changed too! Now all of the shades are even smoother and more pigmented than ever before. They're almost creamy to the touch and are even easier to blend. I never would've thought that Urban Decay eyeshadows could get any better..

Look at the pretty box! I wonder what took Urban Decay so long to come out with a customizable palette.

The Outside:

This is what the tin itself looks like, brushed metal with the Urban Decay logo. This packaging reminds me of the Naked 2 Palette. I feel like the tin case is going to last me a long time, and I won't have to worry about it getting dinged up. 

The Inside:

What sealed the deal for me was this full-sized limited edition eyeshadow, "Walk of Shame", that comes in the palette for free! This palette pays for itself when you think about it. An Urban Decay eyeshadow alone costs $18 (without tax) and this palette was $18, so it's kind of like getting a free eyeshadow and mini brush. 

"Walk of Shame" is a matte peachy shade, described as "the perfect nude". It would make a great matte highlight, or could even be a great base shade to swipe on all over the lid. If it doesn't quite match your skin tone, you could use it to mix with other shades to lighten them. 

It would've been really cool if they let people actually pick their first shade, because I know this shade isn't going to work for everyone. It works nicely on my skin tone though, yay! Whenever packages automatically come with pre-selected shades, they are almost always never a perfect match. 

Likes:

• durable packaging
• customizable
• comes with a limited edition shade
• the palette pays for itself! 
• comes with a brush
• full-sized mirror

Dislikes:

• The shade it comes with might not work for everyone

Overall Thoughts:

The bottom line is, if you're an Urban decay eyeshadow lover, you're going to want to pick this palette up. Since all of shadows pop out anyway, it would be handy to keep them all in the same place. The fact that the palette pays for itself and comes with a brush, it's definitely worth the money. Urban Decay eyeshadows are some of the best quality shadows available on the market, so if you haven't tried them, you should! Haha