Natasha Denona has announced their newest palette for fall, Lila. 

And I won't be buying. 

I feel like I should just start this post by saying that Natasha Denona as a brand really accentuates a lot of what I find problematic in the beauty community. This is a brand that started as an internet or Instagram brand, sent out PR of their preposterously expensive eyeshadow palettes to YouTube beauty "influencers" who of course said these were the greatest eyeshadows of all time (it is always easy to say that when you don't buy things yourself), and built their following from there. Frankly, the fact that these eyeshadows are so preposterously expensive is, in my opinion, precisely why people became interested in them. Because if you jack up the price for something and have people saying it's great, people will want to try it simply out of curiosity to see if they are really that special. 

Spoiler altert: They're not. 

On top of all of that, Natasha Denona has some of the cheapest packaging I have ever come across, and considering the price of these products, the cheapness of the packaging is frankly unparalleled. 

And even so, the brand lives off of hype and influencer shilling, which is how they get people to pay these crazy prices. 

And I say that especially because I was once exactly who this brand targets. There were so many times that I put the brand's $239 palettes into my shopping car, justifying the purchase by saying that I could declutter all my other palettes if the formula was really all that special. But eventually I would always (thankfully) close out my browser before I pulled the trigger.

However, I did buy two of the brand's 5-pan palettes (spending $100 instead of $239) and eventually depotted the shadows because the packaging was just so incredibly cheap that I never even used the shadows:

(My Natasha Denona shadows are on the top left.)

And this is my personal opinion of the Natasha Denona shadows: They are mostly pretty. The glitter shadows are very pretty, but need to be applied with a finger, which I don't like. The foiled shadows are the best. And the mattes (at least in the 5-pan palettes) are terrible. 

Are they worth the price being charged for them? No way. 

Let's look at Lila:

At first glance, I think this is a pretty palette. It's full of berries and taupes, and it almost seems like it might be a bit unique. 

And the swatches are very pretty:

And for people who are sick of the warm eyeshadow trend and palettes filled with oranges and yellows, this might seem like a welcome change. 

But when you consider the astronomical price tag of $129 (before tax), this palette really feels a bit too much of the same to me. Without doubt there are people who gravitate toward pinks and berry taupes, but this palette doesn't appear to offer too much versatility to me. It seems like the majority of looks that would be created would be berry in nature or something that would look similar to a look from Modern Renaissance. This doesn't feel like a workhorse or everyday palette to me, which, again, for the price, is not worthwhile. 

Natasha Denona palettes also tend to look similar. I see similar shades in the Star palette:

As well as the Purple/Blue palette, specifically the left side:

And just because this palette isn't filled with reds, oranges, and yellows, that doesn't mean that this is an innovative color scheme that we haven't seen before. It is just a color scheme that hasn't been popular for a while. But this palette looks like a lot of others. 

Like Ciate London Fun:

Kat Von D Chrysalis: 

NXY Velvet Rope:

Morphe 35P:

Jouer Springtime in Paris:

And an old classic, Wet N Wild Petal Pusher:

From my own collection, I have Viseart Bijoux Royale:

One of the best examples I've seen showcasing the unnecessary and outrageous prices of Natasha Denona palettes is looking at Natasha Denona Sunset ($129):

And Colourpop Yes, Please! ($16):

While I'm not a fan of most Colourpop products, I do enjoy their pressed eyeshadows, and I think Yes, Please! is a really fantastic palette. Yes, the shadows are smaller than the Natasha Denona ones, but I don't know how frequently people looking to try the Natasha Denona formula are hitting pan on any of their eyeshadows. And if you can get the same color scheme in high-quality shadows for a fraction of the cost, it really shows how unnecessary Natasha Denona prices are. 

And it's not even like you're paying for packaging! That is still something that really gets me with Natasha Denona products. Even as the brand has grown and spread to being sold in Sephora stores (at least in NYC), they have not upgraded their packaging even a little. And it really bothers me that the brand has luxury prices with drugstore packaging. 

Considering that, it may be worthwhile to pick up Colourpop She:

While not exactly the same, the palettes are similar enough, especially considering the more than $100 price difference. 

Natasha Denona is a brand that feels to me like spending money just for the sake of it. I have personally fallen for the hype before, and I have to say that it really was not a good decision for me. It is so easy to be influenced by a person telling you how fantastic something is (hence why they are now called "influencers"), but it is so important to keep in mind that these same people did not pay for the products and have so many products that they will likely use an item at most a few times before telling you to go out and spend a significant amount of money on it. And then you'll never hear them talk about that palette again. Because there will be something new out that they have gotten and they've moved on. And it's no big deal for them because this is how they make their income—convincing you to buy expensive things. 

That's why it's so important to just let the hype pass. I know it's not easy, especially in a consumerist culture fed by fear of missing out. But really, it's just makeup. The trends will pass and shift to something else. And if you're a person who likes the trends, it may be worthwhile to look into a brand like Colourpop. They keep their products at a relatively low price point precisely because they are a brand that follows trends. And if you want to follow a trend, spend $16 or buy a few cheap singles. Spending $129 on an eyeshadow palette is an investment, and if it's just going to be one of many palettes in your collection, there are cheaper options. 

When Natasha Denona shadows first came out, I remember reading a criticism of the brand that said, "You don't get to just come out of no where and decide you are a luxury brand, especially when nothing about your brand is luxurious." And while that sentiment made me laugh, I feel the same way. Now, obviously, Natasha Denona did get to do just that as the brand is successful and sold out all stock of the Sunset palette, despite the fact that Colourpop offered such an inexpensive alternative. But personally, I'm not going to give any more of my money to a brand that offers shadows of comparable quality to Colourpop and Makeup Geek foiled shadows. Natasha Denona shadows are, in every sense, a huge waste of money. So, I won't be buying. 

This summer is really full of new products - which I either bought myself, received as a present from family or received as pr samples - I'm doing my best to show you guys everything XD In the previous post I showed you a look I specifically design to try an eyeliner by NYX - but I created today's look to try some loose glitters I got last month. These are from Glitter Palace - another UK based brand which I discovered through Instagram. The ones I got are all "chunky" - not fine, dust-like: they feature different shapes (circles, hexagons, stars...) and sizes (from dust to really big ones); can you tell I'm a little obsessed with glitters lately? XD Anyway, I really wanted to do a highly glittering look and that's what I came up with! ♥ 

I had no particular inspiration for this look, I just wanted to show the glitters off - so I went for a simple look with graphic liner and glitters, of course. You might remember this eyeliner style from this look and it's inspired by @robertavixen on Instagram :D

The first step was creating the eye look without the glitters (which I applied at the very end). So I started off by priming my lids, then I worked on the crease blending: I used Under Pressure by NABLA as main shade, applying it on the crease and outer corner area. I blended it using New Heaven by NABLA - and I wanted the aquamarine shade to be quite visible because it's too lovely *-* With those two shades I created a soft, elongated V shape on the outer corner. I used Shore Thing by Makeup Geek Cosmetics as transition shade - and I applied these three shades in the same order on my lower lids too.
I used Alchemy by NABLA as inner corner highlight (have I mentioned already that I managed to get my fins on it??), then I applied Virgin Island on the very first part of both upper and lower lids - just a gentle hint!
The main lid shade is Poolside by Makeup Geek Cosmetics, which I blended into the Under Pressure as I wasn't going for a cut crease look. At this point the only two eyeshadows I needed to apply were Nocturne (which I used to define my lower lashline) and Antique White on my brow bone.

As I said, I applied the glitters at the very end, so when I was done with the shadows I moved on to the liner: first of all I made the usual winged line, then I added the design on the crease (I designed the longer line first, starting from the middle and moving outwards, then I moved back and added the shorter line above it). Needless to say, I used Tattoo Liner in Trooper by Kat Von D Beauty.
And then it was time to apply the glitters, at last! These glitters are Bob by Glitter Palace, and they're loose - I used DUO eyelash glue to make them stick on my lid (I still need to buy a proper glitter glue, whoops). I applied the glue on small portions of my lid/under-eye area, then applied some glitters, and repeated these steps until I covered all the upper lid & lower area. I really packed the glitters on the upper lid, while I tried to achieve a tear/rain effect on the lower lid.
When I was happy with the glitters application I completed the look by applying Feline eye kohl on my waterline, false lashes and mascara!

Face

- MAC Cosmetics Pro Longwear Foundation NW15 (foundation)

Eyes

- Too Faced Shadow Insurance Eye Primer

- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Alchemy" (inner corner)
- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Virgin Island"* (upper and lower lid, just an hint)
- Makeup Geek Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Poolside" (upper lid)
- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Under Pressure" (crease, outer corner, lower lid)

- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "New Heaven"* (crease, outer corner, lower lid)
- Glitter Palace loose glitters in "Bob"
- Makeup Geek Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Shore Thing" (transition colour)
- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Antique White" (brow bone)

- NABLA Cosmetics Eyeshadow in "Nocturne" (lower lashline)

- MAC Cosmetics Kohl Power Eye Pencil in "Feline" 

- Kat Von D Beauty Tattoo Liner in "Trooper"

- MAC Cosmetics "Extended Play Gigablack Lash" Mascara

- Ardell Lashes Wispies Lashes
- DUO White Eyelash Adhesive

Eyebrows

- NABLA Cosmetics Brow Pot in "Mars"*

Brushes

- 239 ~ MAC Cosmetics

- 217 ~ MAC Cosmetics
- 213 ~ MAC Cosmetics
- 224 ~ MAC Cosmetics

- 2x Short Smudge (A13)* ~ Spectrum Collections (Marbleous Set*, BombShell Set*)
- 2x Fluffy Pencil (A12)* ~ Spectrum Collections (Marbleous Set*, BombShell Set*)

- Large Fluffy Shader (A06) ~ Spectrum Collections (Siren Set)

- Precision Crease (A16) ~ Spectrum Collections

- 3x Lip Liner (A15)* ~ Spectrum Collections (BombShell Set*, Siren Set, Glam Clam)
- Accent Brush ~ Real Techniques

Hope you liked this look!

Are you into these bigger, chunkier glitters? Or you just prefer fine glitters?

Mermaid kisses and starfish wishes ♥

*Disclaimer: Starred products are press samples, sent by respective brands for me to test and review.

Makeup artist/YouTube beauty personality Kandee Johnson has teamed up with Too Faced for the I Want Kandee Collection, which consists of an eyeshadow palette, face powder, liquid eyeliner, highlighting stick, and liquid lipsticks. 

And I won't be buying. 

Sigh. I'm really disappointed in this collection. But we'll get to that. 

Kandee was one of the first people I ever watched on YouTube, more than seven years ago. These were the days when people didn't have professional lighting or HD cameras, before sponsorships, affiliate links, and product shilling. And I loved Kandee. I was living abroad at the time (which is actually how I came to find the YT beauty community—since I didn't really have access to television), and I would sit at my desk with a cup of tea and cookies and be completely enthralled with whatever Kandee would do. 

My favorite videos she did—without question—were her Halloween tutorials. And I still very fondly remember some of my favorites.

Edward Scissorhands:

Snow White:

Queen of Hearts:

And Maleficent: 

Kandee without question is an incredibly talented makeup artist, and I would get lost watching her transform herself with makeup. Over the years, as YouTube changed and became much more of a production, lost most of its authenticity, and sponsored videos became overwhelming, I stopped watching Kandee. (I'm not trying to imply that Kandee was inauthentic; my preferences just changed as the platform changed.)

When I heard that she was going to be doing one of these big brand collaborations, I wondered why it had taken so long for her of all people to do one. Despite the fact that I haven't watched her videos in years, I still think she is so talented—moreso than a lot of these "influencers" who have had collaborations. 

But when I heard it was with Too Faced, I was immediately disappointed. Because I knew exactly what it was going to be. And when I saw the products, I wasn't surprised at all. 

These products range in price from $18 (eyeliner), $21 (liquid lipsticks), $30 (face powder and highlighter stick), and $45 (eyeshadow palette). 

Let's look at the eyeshadow palette first, called I Want Kandee Eyes:

So, this is where my biggest disappoint comes from, other than the fact that Kandee teamed up with Too Faced, which has clearly been favoring quantity over quality and riding gimmicks, packaging, and collaborations, literally, to the bank. 

This, to me, looks like a very uninspired palette. More than that, it looks like every other Too Faced palette that they keep recycling, switching around the shades, and slapping on new names. 

This looks like the Nikkitutorials collaboration:

And the Vegas Nay collaboration:

The recent Natural Love palette:

The White Chocolate Chip:

Chocolate Bon Bons:

And the original, Natural Eyes:

This palette also looks like other popular collaborations, like the BH Cosmetics X Carli Babel palette:

And the Urban Decay X Gwen Stefani palette:

That is why I say that this palette feels uninspired—because it looks exactly like almost every Too Faced palette or a palette curated by a white woman. 

And here's the other part of why this is such a disappointing release for me: This palette feels transparently like it was only made with light skin tones in mind. And as I just demonstrated, there is no shortage of those kinds of palettes. 

And I find this to be unacceptable. I have read that this collection was curated by Kandee to be her ideal products, and while I can see an appeal in someone doing that, it can be incredibly alienating. The fact that the I Want Kandee Eyes palette has three huge pans of white shadow further perpetuates this. Could one of those pans not have been a highlight shade for deeper skin tones? 

Now, Too Faced has very recently teamed up with YouTube personality Jackie Aina to expand their Born This Way foundation range to include offerings for deeper skin tones, and I think that is a very smart move on Too Faced's part. But releasing an eyeshadow palette like this undercuts the attempt at inclusivity, in my opinion. 

The majority of big collaborations have been with white women or women with light skin tones, and I think part of that has to do with perceptions of what will sell. I have brought up this palette before, but KathleenLights teamed up with Makeup Geek on a highlighter palette:

And many people in the beauty community consider this palette a "flop" because it did not sell out and have a huge demand. And I just very recently read a criticism of this palette to say that it was a "mistake" to include the shades that she did because they were "too dark." This same person said that the palette should have had colors "that would suit most skin tones" and that it would have sold better. And, frankly, I think that is completely ignorant. I find there have been so few attempts at creating a palette that is entirely inclusive outside of black-owned makeup brands, and it is so ignorant to say "Why wasn't this made for me?" when nearly everything else is. 

So for Kandee Johnson to "curate" a palette that looks like a generic, throwaway Too Faced palette made exclusively for light skin tones... yeah, I'm disappointed.

As far as I can tell, the face powder is not meant to be translucent, which means it will likely work best for lighter skin tones, and the highlighter stick seemed geared toward light skin tones as well. The only products that seem to be inclusive are the liquid eyeliner and liquid lipsticks, which people can find duplicates of literally anywhere.

Finally, I would like to talk about quality. Now, we all know that Too Faced has been on the decline for over a year now. They are so transparently greedy and seem to only care about getting money and not at all about the product they're charging upwards of $50 for that people are meant to keep around for a while. And that's because Too Faced makeup is disposable. That's the way the brand treats it. They throw out limited edition items every couple months that are uninspired and keep the cycle going. If you've ever watched a "pan that palette" video on YouTube, where people try to use up an entire eyeshadow palette, you'll see that it takes about a year of daily use on a single palette to use up the entire thing. So, theoretically, when we buy a palette, it is supposed to last us one year if we use it daily and is our only palette. But at the rate Too Faced churns out palettes, those aren't meant to be cherished and enjoyed. They are meant to hold you over until they release something else a few weeks later.

And when I look at brands like Colourpop that advertise themselves as selling disposable, trendy makeup, and when they can do that at a much cheaper price and higher quality than Too Faced, it really makes Too Faced look like they are only interested in collecting money.

The quality of the I Want Kandee Eyes palette doesn't look that great to me. The shadows look chunky and like they would be challenging to apply to blend. And for $45, that is unacceptable. That is not a price for half-assed quality. But with most of their collaborations, Too Faced is banking on the love people have for Kandee and this odd feeling people have they they need to "support" these people who create content they enjoy.

But you don't need to spend upwards of $50 on a crappy palette full of boring shades you already have to show that you like someone. They will never know that you personally bought that item, and they are not hurting for funds. I think that's one of the biggest manipulations of collaborations, because brands know that people will shell out money for mediocre product because of their fandom. And they absolutely want to take advantage of that.

Seven years ago, when I was watching Kandee with my tea and cookies, if you would have asked me to imagine a palette designed by Kandee, I would have thought it would be full of interesting colors. Seven years later, without having watched Kandee for a few years, I would have thought the same thing, especially since people are being more vocal about inclusion. So, this palette was just very disappointing for me. I don't need a face power or eyeliner or highlighter or liquid lipstick because it has Kandee's name on it—I have plenty of great options already in my collection. This collection just doesn't do it for me on every level, so I won't be buying.

Huda Beaty is releasing another warm-toned eyeshadow palette. 

And I won't be buying. 

I think I may have had a perspective shift. As some of you know, I have been in recovery for the majority of the summer from two back-to-back major surgeries. And during that time, I haven't physically been able to apply makeup. I've seen the collection of makeup that I have sit, unused, and also seen the flood of new releases and teasers for holiday collections. 

And I've realized something. I have, basically, every single color I can possible think of in eyeshadow form. I have every shade of neutrals, berries, plums, greens, brights, glitters, duochromes, etc. And the thing I keep saying about all these new releases is that I don't see any innovation. I just see the same things being recycled over and over again. 

But I don't know if a brand could come out with anything at this point that I don't already have. Or that the majority of us have. The only difference is how a brand chooses to arrange the colors, the formula, and the packaging. But for the most part, you basically have your pick of the type of product you're looking for from most brands. 

And that is exactly how I feel about the Desert Dusk palette:

Now, I will admit that this is a gorgeous selection of colors. You've got gold, bronze, purple, orange, berry, red, brown, etc. But when I first saw this palette, I didn't even feel a little excited. And that's because it just looks like so many palettes. 

Like Coloured Raine Queen of Hearts:

And Lorac Unzipped Desert Sunset:

And Kylie Cosmetics Burgundy: 

And Makeup Geek X MannyMUA:

And Urban Decay After Dark:

And Too Faced Glitter Bomb:

And Jaclyn Hill X Morphe:

I think the most interesting shade in this palette is Twilight, which appears to be a purple/blue duochrome. And I'm sure a lot of people will buy this palette because they are drawn to that color (and maybe the berry/purple shades next to it) and will justify the purchase because they know they will get use out of all the other shades. And the reason they know they will get use out of these shades is because they already have those kinds of shades. 

But really, Twilight looks just like Urban Decay Tonic:

And for a significantly cheaper option, it looks just like Makeup Geek Blacklight:

I have Blacklight, and recently made a quad with it and some other shadows. And the shadow I've paired next to Blacklight in this quad (Colourpop 143) looks just like Amethyst from Desert Dusk:

I know I probably sound like a broken record, but it really just makes so much more sense to buy the one or two interesting colors you're most drawn to rather than an entire palette. And if Twilight and Amethyst were the shades you were most into, you can buy two singles for about $10 and add them to the other colors in your collection. 

I should also add that I am skeptical of the quality of this palette. When the first Huda palette released last year, it was met with some pretty mixed reviews. Huda palettes tout having several different "textures," which is just another word for finish. The finishes in the Desert Dusk palette look to be matte, shimmer, and glitter. Glitter shadows are incredibly difficult to do well. They tend to be gritty, chunky, difficult to apply, and prone to fallout. But glitter eyeshadows look incredible in the pan and in promotional photos, and so people are drawn to them. And if you take out the glitter shadows from this palette, all you are left with are neutral warm matte colors that every person likely has in spades in their collection. 

This palette costs a whopping $65, and that is not including shipping or taxes. That is quite high for a palette, especially if it doesn't perform well, and even moreso if you have all those colors already.

I feel as though we are at a peak of oversaturation at the moment. We are oversaturated with brands, products, and even "influencers." We are so trained to look beyond what we currently have and focus—constantly—on what's coming next. And at times I think we don't even realize when "what's coming next" is what we already have, just slightly repackaged. These products cost a lot of money, and I feel the overwhelming attitude is that they should be disposable, used for a couple of weeks, and then forgotten when the next thing comes out. The fact that there were two palettes released within weeks of each other with the same theme, colors, and basically the same name (Lorac Desert Sunset; Huda Desert Dusk) perfectly captures the oversaturation. 

And to just speak about this a bit more, I remember when the Urban Decay Naked palette came out. I was in Sephora, and it had just launched. It wasn't hyped (there hadn't been time to hype it), and I remember being so enthralled by it. I had maybe eight eyeshadows at the time (all MAC singles), and I remembered thinking I would never need to buy another eyeshadow if I just got this one palette. But that also my entire collection of eyeshadows would more than double with this one purchase. It was such a great value, I thought. So, I bought it. 

And after that, I feel like palettes just completely exploded. And I was always caught in that same mentality of "this is a great value." 

But the issue was that I hardly ever used the Naked palette. I used those MAC singles so much more. And it was because I had picked them out myself. And it has taken me years to get back to the point I started from to see that palettes are actually the opposite of a great value. They make you buy colors you already have or colors that you would never buy or use. If people had collections of singles and just bought the one or two interesting colors that attract them to palettes, they would spend less money overall than buying the palette itself. But people get so caught up in the idea of what that same palette would cost if you bought the colors individually—even though you would never buy those colors individually. 

And so when I look at Desert Dusk, I just see Queen of Hearts and Shade and Light Eye and Modern Renaissance and all the palettes I listed above. (Out of all of them, my personal recommendation would be Queen of Hearts, especially since this is now a permanent item.) I see a really beautiful selection of colors, and that's not all that surprising considering the theme: a desert sunset. I'm originally from the desert and miss those vibrant sunsets terribly. The color scheme really is gorgeous, but that doesn't mean that I need to buy all these colors that I already own. 

Huda Beauty is a relatively new company, and Desert Dusk is their second eyeshadow palette. So, they aren't like a brand like Too Faced that releases a new half-assed palette every couple months and is happy to oversaturate the market with crappy products. But still. It's hard to be a brand in a market this saturated and come out with something that truly feels special. Despite missing my desert sunsets, I just don't need this palette as it would add nothing to my collection other than bulk and clutter. So I won't be buying.