Today, I am going to show you how to get the most makeup for your dollar- the rewards programs and websites I use to buy products and the sales I take advantage of. I am also going to give you my opinions on some products I use- what is worth your money and what isn't worth the hype.
Anyways, let's get on with the perfect palette tag. If you are a blogger of any kind that wears makeup, consider yourself nominated by me to do this tag. I'd love to hear some differing opinions on the matter!
1. Best packaging- Smashbox's Smokebox 2. I did not pay full price for this palette- I paid $15 for a set on HauteLook, which is Nordstrom's flash sale site. The palette itself is normally more that $15, but for that price I got the palette, an eyeshadow crayon, a lip gloss and a cute little bag it all goes in. I have seen the site having this sale more than once, so go check out the beauty offers for that or something even better! http://www.hautelook.com/invite/EHill96067
I picked this palette for best packaging because it's sturdy and high quality, something I feel safe taking with me if I were to travel somewhere to do makeup. Also, a lot of palette packaging can look really gross if there are fingerprints all over it, and this one doesn't show that.
2. Best Color Payoff- Anastasia Beverly Hills Tamanna Palette. This is a palette I paid full price for, an would do so again. Worth the hype. Shadows are so beautiful, pigmented, blendable. The great thing about these shadows is the endless variety of looks you can do with them. There is a great mix of neutral and colorful shadows. It's supposed to be a holiday palette, but you can make it work for every day by sticking to the browns and blacks. My favorite look involves using the two pinkish colors and then blending them out with the matte brown shade.
3. Most versatile: Pixi Ultimate Beauty Kit 2nd Edition. This is now on sale at Target! I wasn't about to spend $34 on drugstore makeup, but $17 I can justify. It may still be in stock, so check the cosmetics aisle at Target. It may still be there!
This palette is so versatile because there are 40 eyeshadow shades, 6 highlighter shades and 6 blushes. The palette is organized by undertone, so you can do a cool tone look on someone with pinkish undertone skin or a warm tone look on someone with yellow undertones in their skin. There are pink blushes and peach blushes, bright colors and more subtle colors, so the palette really does have something for everyone.
4. Best for Traveling- Urban Decay Naked 2. I did not buy this one myself. A dear friend gave this to me as a thank you gift a few summers ago. I feel honored to have it in my collection.
I feel very safe taking this palette traveling with me. This one I brought along to do a whole wedding party's makeup with in May. I put it in my suitcase, took it on the plane with me and unpacked it without a worry and without bubble wrap. I could not say the same about a lot of my other palettes. It's a very sturdy metal palette with a hard acrylic interior that snaps closed completely without magnets. While the colors aren't as great as the first Naked palette, the packaging was a great improvement.
5. Biggest Regret- NYX Golden Horizons Palette. This palette is about 14-16 dollars depending on where you buy it. I got a $10 birthday coupon from Ulta and used it on this palette, so mine was around 5 bucks.
This palette is so not worth the full price! It's very cheaply packaged, not very compact or logically put together and the eyeshadows really leave something to be desired. They smell a little bit like silly putty, are very chalky and crumbly, and really don't have a great deal of pigment or color payoff to them. Unless you use them with an *excellent* eye shadow base, they don't really show up on your eye and will fade and flake off quickly. There are two more of these palettes in the "dream catcher" collection, and when they go on sale I will be testing them out to see if it's just the gold one or if all of them are like this.
6. Best Names- Stila In The Garden Palette. I really liked all of Stila's "In The" palettes, and this one is my favorite. All the names really go well together, all of these things being plants you could find in a garden, parts of plants, etc.
This is a great palette for creating a variety of looks, because there are about 3 very bold colors and the right sort of more neutral ones to incorporate them into an eye look that is wearable and not clownish at all.
7. Most Used- NYX Secret World Palette. This is a palette I picked up on a whim quite a few years ago during a clearance sale at Ulta and I use it all the time and just love it. The colors are all kind of fall-ish, purples, greens and oranges with enough neutral/ highlight colors to blend them. All the shades are metallic/ glittery, except for the bright green on the bottom row that is a satin finish.The "runway collection" NYX palettes were the perfect compact little 10 pan palettes. I hate to see them go, but I'm always on the lookout for the rest of them to complete my collection.
8. Most Loved- Sephora/ Pantone Marsala Palette. I got a gift card to Sephora for Christmas, and I almost bought the Tartlette palette. So glad I didn't! This compact little palette has delivered consistently on every single look I have created with it. I even get compliments from men who don't care or appreciate the makings of a good smokey eye when I wear the colors in this one. The colors are beautiful, blendable and versatile, and you can make cool toned, warm toned, special occasion or every day looks with this palette. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants an eyeshadow palette that can really do it all.
9. Desert Island Palette- NYX Nude on Nude Palette. If I had to pick any palette to bring with me to a desert island, it would be this one. Strange question, I'd probably bring bottled water and a jetski, but if I had to look nice for the desert island, this is the one. I got it for 80% off on clearance at Ulta, and it is one of the most welcome editions to my collection. The matte shadows leave something to be desired, but the metallic ones are gorgeous- but the best part? Lipsticks. Yes, hidden in a bottom secret compartment are 10 potted, opaque lipsticks in a variety of pinks and reds. This is my favorite part of the palette. On the island, I could do eye looks, wear lipsticks, and even use the lipsticks to add some color to my cheeks, and the mirror to signal for help- so yep, perfect palette for being lost at sea.
Anyways, if this post helps just one person decide what kind of palette they'd like to try out, I did my job. Lots of palettes didn't make my list, but I'd love to see what makes yours. What would your perfect palette list be?
-Emmy
