Eye Shadow Palettes

All of the spring makeup collections are beginning to trickle in and it gives me hope that spring weather will soon follow (I know, slightly delusional but I still hope). One of the first items that I have been testing out are the new NARS L’Amour Toujours Eyeshadow and Cheek palettes. I am already a huge fan of this NARS palette, so I was excited to test out these colors and formulations.

1. NARS L’Amour Toujours Eyeshadow Palette – Just from first glance, the palette looked gorgeous and very wearable with only one wildcard color (bold turquoise), which after swatching it seemed much less crazy than in the pan. I did however anticipate the shades to be frosted and even chunky in their texture, but thankfully most of the shades were extremely buttery and had a medium intensity with regards to pigmentation. The first shade all the way to the left of my arm was the top left shade in the palette and literally disappeared into my skintone so it is a great lid and browbone highlight color for me. The only chunky shade in the palette was second from the left on my arm as it did take a few swipes to get a smooth application. Other than that though, the matte and shimmer shades applied very evenly and were easy to blend. There is a great variation of easy to wear shades rather than the standard brown, beige and taupe so it is a good option if you are looking to step out of your neutral comfort zone with shades that are still safe. 

2. NARS L’Amour Cheek Palette – This is my first cheek palette from NARS and surprisingly I don’t have that many blushes from NARS so this encompassed every shade I could want. I felt the color range was good though if it was going to be suitable for all skin tones, I would have liked to see one more very bold shade. But from a wearability standpoint, all the shades are easy to wear and would look good with an everyday makeup look. The only shade that was a bit of wildcard for me was the pale pink (fourth from the left on my swatches – the first swatch is literally the same shade as my skin). It had a ton of glitter, which is hard to see in the photo and is too pale for me. I ended up using it as an added bit of shimmer/sparkle on top of one of the more neutral shades. The first shade in the palette (far left on my arm and top left in the palette) could be a highlight for many but it blends in perfectly with my skin so I have been using it as a finishing powder over my makeup. For those that love a peachy/bronzey cheek, this is a palette that would suit you perfectly. It contains the famous Laguna bronzer and a great contour shade called Paloma (second from the left on my arm), 2 gorgeous peachy tones (2nd and 3rd shades from the right on my arm) and a more rosy shade that I like to add for just a pop of color on the apples of my cheeks (far right swatch). With the exception of the contour and highlight shades, all the colors have a bit of shimmer or sparkle but not too much in my opinion. Hopefully it travels well because I can see this being the only cheek item I would ever need on trips or vacations. 

Are you planning on picking up either of these palettes? Let me know!

Bareminerals is a new line to me, but one that is quickly gaining shelf space in my makeup collection. I’ve recently tried a bunch of their products and have definitely had a few standouts that made their mark on me almost immediately. Their new Complexion Rescue was one of them (which I reviewed yesterday – watch that video here), their Marvelous Moxie lipsticks (review coming next week) and these new “The Neutrals” eyeshadow palettes. At this point, it should come as no surprise to anyone that I gravitated towards these palettes almost immediately. What really drew me in at first glance was how small and compact they were in size – absolutely perfect for travel. So many of my palettes (and I have a lot – eek!) are big and bulky making them suitable for use at home but not when I am away. There were three palettes that differed in color but all fell in the “neutrals” category and can be worn every day.

1. The Power Neutrals – I was instantly excited to try this palette simply because almost the entire thing is matte. MATTE! Yay! There is one shimmer shadow and one pale glittery shade (the first one to the far left on my arm – it’s hard to see because it blends in to my skin). The texture of the shadows are powdery with a medium pay-off. I know so many people are quick to run to heavily pigmented palettes and eyeshadows, but for me I actually like formulas that are a bit more sheer because it makes them easy to work with in the morning when I am getting ready. No need to blend out for 10 minutes because the first swipe is too intense – these shadows are almost foolproof they are so easy to apply.

2. The Sexy Neutrals – After using this palette a few times, I quickly nicknamed it my “one swipe” palette, because most of the colors can be used by themselves for a quick wash of color. I was really drawn to the shimmer in this palette because it’s understated and appropriate for daytime use. It’s that grown up shimmer that gives the lids a fresh glow rather than a glittery disco ball fall out situation (not fun).

3. The Posh Neutrals – This palette has more cool tones in its mix and blends both shimmer and matte shades together. The colors seem to be a bit more sheer than the other two so a primer is a must when using this palette. I like that it has more plums, grays and purples to its assortment which forces me to get out of my brown shadow monotony. Ha! Out of all three, this palette has the most number of shades that blended right into my skin tone which makes them perfect lid or highlight colors when I am building a more dramatic eye.

Which palette was your favorite of the three? What are some of your favorite Bareminerals products? Leave me a comment below!