The Bomb of an Eye Shadow Palette

In an effort to ease my eye shadow experimentation, I've been trying to find a great palette instead of collecting singles. Usually, I either don't like all of the coordinated colors or not all of them actually suit me. The only one I love so far is NYX Trio in Guru. A few weeks ago, I finally found a high-end palette that does the trick - TheBalm's Shady Lady Eye Shadow Palette (limited edition).

This amazing palette has NINE eyeshadows/shadow liners (including 3 new ones) in an assortment of shades and formulas suited for almost any occasion or makeup mood. They are:

Caught in the Act Courtney (rich brown with gold sparkle)
Shameless Shana (tahitian bronze)
Luscious Lani (icy pink champagne)
Jealous Jordana (rich shimmering green)
Risque Renne (dark navy blue sheen)
Curvy Camy (plum shimmer with gold flecks)
Jet-Setting Jennifer (pale gold shimmer)
All About Alex (olive shimmer)
Easy Wheezie (gunmetal gray shimmer)

You see that there is a nice mix of deep jewel tones that double as eye liners, neutral shades, and metallics. And, of course, there is my requisite plum. All these shades work together in a number of different combinations, or can be used alone.

Best of all, I actually really like the quality of TheBalm's eye shadows (see experience with Mysterious Marissa). While clearly you have to be a bit more careful with the shimmer/sparkle and darker shadows, the lighter ones are a breeze to use. My favorite ones are Jet-Setting Jennifer, Easy Wheezie, and All About Alex. They work on just about everybody and are so easy to use, no experience is necessary.

The only "eh" factor with this palette - the leopard print cardboard packaging. Not exactly discreet or sophisticated. Like other TheBalm shadows, this is a large cardboard flip-top with a magnetized lid to for secure closure. Just to be on the safe side, I wish they had changed the packing for this product (and taken down the ugly factor a few notches).

As important as the versatility of this palette - the price. At $15 each, nine TheBalm shadows would normally cost you about $135. This palette is $38.00 and in my opinion, actually worth every cent. Limited Edition @ Sephora

Things I've Been Reaching For More Than I Expected

So while I still haven't developed a makeup "routine" (and likely won't, for a number of reasons), I find myself reaching for some of the same products over and over again. They help me clean up pretty nice in the morning, and I don't feel like I have guck on my face that I can't deal with.

Eye liner falls into the guck category, and I just haven't had the heart to bother using any lately. My eyes have been sensitive, and in this weather, no matter how long it lasts, it just doesn't feel very summery. Normally, I would reach for liner, some lipstick/gloss, and maybe a dusting of powder.

This is what I've actually been using:

1) L'Oreal True Match Super Blendable Powder in W4, Neutral Beige
2) L'Oreal FeatherLash Mascara in Black
3) Milani Mineral Blush in Sunset Beach
4) TheBalm Shady Lady Eye Shadow in Mysterious Marissa
5) Clinique Buttershine Lipstick in Rum Kiss

Sounds like a lot for me, but the effect is pretty simple and polished. I bother with the powder because my skin is on the oily side, and in this weather, I need something to mattify it a tad in the mornings.

Mascara - so much easier than liner, especially this one. The Marissa shadow is a dream to use, and I love the color/packaging more every time I use it. Just have to remember to use something underneath so it lasts longer...

Rum Kiss, the only product I haven't mentioned previously, is a basic pink/brown/nude with work-appropriate shine. I don't need the color in the mornings, but this is quite moisturizing. Very reliable and useful - will definitely buy again once it's done.

Nice mix of high and low products, huh? I'm quite pleased with myself. Now if only my dermatologist would fix my skin!

The Bomb

In addition to Laura Mercier's Kohl eyeliner in Black Violet (prize to anybody who will count how many times I mention it here), I'm also obsessed with trying on TheBalm's ShadyLady Eye Shadow in Mysterious Marissa (a "luxurious champagne gold") whenever I'm in Sephora. I don't know what it is about this color that intrigues me and that I feel in my gut is The Perfect Eye Shadow for me. If my friend A ever gets around to reading this, she can attest to it. I've always been convinced that it is the perfect version of Stila's Kitten eye shadow for me. Which, as I've mentioned before, makes me look like a futuristic ghost. So do most shadows in the color family, with the recent and major exception of Smashbox's shimmer eye shadow in Shell (reviewed here).

Like Shell, Mysterious Marissa (she must really be a futuristic ghost) is somewhat of an icey shade but much, much warmer and closer to a cool copper or peachy beige, almost like a bronzer actually. Again, it has that perfect lustre/pearl/shimmer, but extremely fine-milled (no sparkles or metallics) finish that I crave and love in an eye shadow because it makes it so much more blendable, layer-able, and overall, wearable. For some reason though, although Marissa is a much warmer shade than Shell, it can look just as pasty on my lid, but less so on the brow bone. So like Shell, this falls under the excellent highlighter category.

Because it's a warm shade, I tried it on my cheeks too and it actually gave a very nice shimmery glow. I think I'll use this shadow as a multi-purpose highligter/bronzer/magic marker of a product that I can just dot anywhere or under/over something else to make it pop a bit. I just like it too much to give it up and am going to force it to work. Luckily, TheBalm's products are meant to be "multiuse" to allow "beauty in five minutes," so perhaps I'm right in doing so. TheBalm has this cute, retro (think '40s and '50s pin-up ladies) packaging and whimsical naming like ShadyLady - definitely the bomb. $15.00 @ Sephora