Eyeshadow Week: Five affordable neutral palettes
A neutral eyeshadow palette is a basic makeup must-have. It's the best way to enhance and contour your eyes for any occasion, be it in a job interview or a fancy event!
Now, if you can afford to splash cash on Bobbi Brown, MAC, Urban Decay, or Shu Uemura, then just go for it. These brands make the best eyeshadows out there, and the price tag is definitely justified since it'll take forever to finish up one pan! Their eyeshadows are silky smooth and has this rich pigmentation that's hard to find in drugstore makeup.
However, if you're on a budget (ain't we all) then there are a lot of great drugstore options out there. Here are five neutral eyeshadow palettes that are affordable yet offer good color combinations and pigmentation! Click the links for the full review, although I've posted swatches here so you can compare too.
Ready?
I blogged about the Wet n' Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palette in Vanity two years ago but this remains as one of the best drugstore palettes that I've tried. I recommend it to those who are just starting out with makeup but need something they can really play around with. This palette has six colors that you absolutely need. They come in shimmer and matte, too!
Love the pigmentation. The texture can be kinda powdery and chalky, but it's not too bad for the price. Do you spot that shimmery copper shade? That's a deadringer for MAC Mulch eyeshadow - one of my fave MAC colors EVER!
I also adore the Revlon ColorStay 16 Hour Eye Shadow Quad in Brazen. I like the more elevated color selection - that is not just a shimmery white, it's a white gold with peach flecks. That isn't just a beige - it's a peach with gold shimmer. It's pigmented too, and stays on very well (with primer of course, although you can do without it and still get a nice color pay-off).
You can wear these colors alone on your lids or combine them to get something more dramatic. These shades are just MFEO!
The IN2IT Eye Colour Palette in Island Sands is interesting because it has this subtle olive tone. Get it if you're into gold shades!
The Etude House Dolly 3-Step Eyes in Cute Doll (P648) may look underwhelming, but believe me these three matte shades are the most important colors you will need on your eyes. You can use them together or have each individual shade as a "supporting" color - meaning, you can wear a bright pop of color on the lids and then tone it down with the matte tan or smoke it up with the charcoal brown. This is really handy!
The Majolica Majorca Jeweling Eyes palette in BR361 (P795) can be quite shimmery, but the colors are unquestionably pretty. This is definitely for the girl who loves glitter! I know a lot of people avoid it like the plague, but seriously it's fun on the eyes and never hurt anyone as long as it's applied properly.
I'm not sure if this particular palette is still available (it was part of a collection) but I'm sure Majo has an equivalent neutral palette available by now.
So there you go. Which one appeals to you most? I like the Wet n Wild obviously, but the Revlon palette is also quite good. The EH trio is also very useful since I like wearing bright colors on my eyes.
Have a great weekend, folks!
