Maybelline The Nudes Palette

Maybelline The Nudes Eyeshadow Palette

Sorry for being MIA for the last couple of days guys, but I have been feeling a bit under the weather, spending every free minute of the day trying to sneak in a nap. I’m feeling a bit better now and can finally go back to my regular schedule. You may (or may not) have noticed, but I’ve been on a drugstore makeup binge lately. My latest find: Maybelline The Nudes Palette.

I usually try to stay away from drugstore eyeshadow palettes, because I already have SO many palettes that it always seems like a waste of money. Unless, that is, I come across something that really intrigues me (like NYX’s Suede Color Palette). Maybelline’s “The Nudes” palette has been out for quite some time now and even though I’ve read mixed reviews, I still wanted to try it out to see how it compares to its high-end competitors. I never saw anything similar to this palette being sold at a drugstore which is why it caught my eye.

First thing that I thought when opening this palette was: why doesn’t it have a mirror? Not a major downside, but with palettes like this one, I really like when they are more travel-friendly and come with a handy mirror. Second thing that I thought was, why doesn’t it have an applicator if there clearly is a dent in the palette where the applicator should be stored? Then I noticed that my dog was already chewing it…. I guess I must have dropped it when opening the palette. It was a typical, drugstore sponge applicator, which I don’t care for so it wasn’t a big deal.

This palette comes with 12 different shades: about five matte shades and seven satin-finish shades. I thought that all of the colors were gorgeous, but I couldn’t understand why some were more pigmented than others. Satin-textured shades seemed to be a lot more pigmented than matte ones. The black eyeshadow was probably a biggest disappointment as it barely showed up when used without a primer (and even with a primer, it really needs to packed on if you’re hoping for a nice color payoff). If you know what you’re doing, you can definitely make this palette work, but eyeshadow primer is a must. The eyeshadows weren’t as easy to blend as I would like to, but I wouldn’t expect these to compare to MAC eyeshadows, so it’s not a surprise.

Maybelline The Nudes Eyeshadow Palette Swatches

Does this compare to any high-end nude palettes like The Naked Palette by Urban Decay? No, I don’t think it does, but it’s a nice “starter” palette and if you use an eye primer, the color payoff and staying power is much, much better than it would be otherwise. The Nudes Palette by Maybelline sells for about $9.99 and is now a part of their permanent line.